The Gorgeous Transformation Of Wheel Of Fortune's Vanna White

Vanna White has made her name as the stalwart letter turner on "Wheel of Fortune," bringing stability (and a heavy dose of glamour) to many people's comfort show season after season. And the nation has truly fallen in love with this star over the decades. As "Wheel of Fortune" creator Merv Griffin put it during White's Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony (via "Today"), "She is America's sweetheart."

Part of why White has become so beloved is her sensible head and positive outlook, despite facing multiple heartbreaks. When asked for the best advice she got from her late mom, she told Closer Weekly, "Never give up, no matter what. Follow your heart and follow your dream. And that's what I did." And that blind faith and optimistic attitude have taken her far. White has gone from a baby abandoned by her biological father in South Carolina, to an aspiring model in California, to one of the most cherished women on TV (and the Guinness World Records holder for most frequent clapper) with a seriously gorgeous transformation.

Vanna White was born in 1957 as Vanna Marie Rosich. She was born in South Carolina to Joan Marie and Miguel Angel Rosich, but the latter walked out on his wife and child before White's first birthday. When White was still young, her mom married Herbert White Jr., whose last name White adopted as they forged a close bond. White opened up about the sweet relationship they shared during a 2021 episode of "Wheel of Fortune," sharing she would call him each morning to tell him she loved him. "He's special," White, who has a brother named Chip White, gushed. The star also looked back on her upbringing in Myrtle Beach fondly. "It was wonderful. Back then, we didn't have to lock our doors. We left the keys in the car. It was a population of about 5,000 people," she told CBS News.

The then-future TV star developed a love for game shows at a young age. "'Concentration' was one of my gameshows that I loved to watch," she said. "I even went to New York when I was 12 years old and went to the set of 'Concentration.'" But while White would become synonymous with game shows later in life, she didn't immediately pursue a career in TV. She was more interested in fashion and moved to Atlanta in 1975 with dreams of modeling. White began studying fashion merchandising and poise at the Atlanta School of Fashion and Design and got a modeling agent soon after, which led to her becoming a beauty queen who competed in the Miss Georgia USA pageant in 1978.

Like many people looking to make a name for themselves, young Vanna White moved to Los Angeles. She made California her home in 1980 and worked as a waitress and bartender in her 20s to make ends meet. "I had $1,000 to my name — $300 for the car, $700 for the apartment, and a job immediately," she recalled to CBS News. White also told The Chicago Tribune she found herself sleeping on a friend's floor and took modeling jobs for publications like Playboy (the controversial pictures would resurface years later and result in a lawsuit) to support herself. She also appeared as a contestant on "The Price Is Right" and began dating actor John Gibson.

Amid her move to the West Coast, White experienced the tragic loss of her mom to cancer. "That was devastating to me. But it gave me the strength to prove that her support was going to help me achieve my goal," White told Closer Weekly. At the time, her goals involved becoming a famous actor, and in 1981, the year after her mom's passing, she appeared in multiple movies, including "Midnight Offerings" and "Graduation Day." She then turned her attention to TV and landed roles in the likes of "Star of the Family" and "Gimme a Break!"

Two years after moving to Los Angeles, Vanna White landed the gig that would make her a household name and keep her employed for decades. After learning in 1982 that "Wheel of Fortune" letter turner Susan Stafford was leaving, White told FoundationINTERVIEWS she got herself in front of the right people thanks to a friend of a friend of John Gibson. Recalling her audition, she shared, "I was a huge fan of the show and watched it for many years, so I knew exactly what to do." And her familiarity with the series caught Merv Griffin's eye. "He said, 'First of all, you and [host] Pat [Sajak] make a great brother/sister team, I see you guys together. And you did turn the letters better than anyone else,'" White told CBS News. She was initially cast alongside Summer Bartholomew and Vicki McCarty while the show worked out who they wanted. But White came out on top and was confirmed as the show's official letter turner shortly after.

Surprisingly, though, while White (who became the queen of mall bangs, a throwback hairstyle only Gen X will remember wearing) and Sajak would become one of the most iconic duos on TV, he wasn't originally sold on her. "Not that she wasn't lovely and wonderful and personable and all that, but she was the most nervous, by far, of any of them," he recalled. Even White agreed she didn't make the best first impression. "I was probably the most nervous because I wanted this job so badly ... I could hardly talk. My mouth was quivering, my knees were shaking," she told FoundationINTERVIEWS.

Though Vanna White's career couldn't have been going any better as she gained legions of fans via "Wheel of Fortune," unimaginable tragedy struck when her fiancé, John Gibson, died in a plane crash. "The second I heard about it, I fell to my knees. It was just devastating," she'd later tell People. White elaborated about the incredibly tough time on "The Tamron Hall Show," sharing, "It was obviously very hard, it's so hard to lose someone instantly like that and be in the public eye, you want to mourn yourself."

But the TV star shared that the outpouring of support she got from fans helped pull her through. "I was at the pinnacle of Vanna-mania when this tragically happened. The support I got from my fans was so tremendous that it made me feel like I wasn't alone," she told Closer Weekly. She elaborated to People, "I heard from so many people who had shared the same experience of losing someone instantly in an accident, and that really helped me."

Despite experiencing such a devastating time in her personal life, White continued working hard in her career. She appeared as herself in several TV projects, including "The A-Team" and "It's Garry Shandling's Show," before turning her focus back to acting. In 1988, White was cast in the TV movie "The Goddess of Love" and shared that she was ready for a new challenge. "I've been turning letters on 'Wheel of Fortune' for six years, and most of America doesn't even know I can talk," she told The Chicago Tribune, confirming she took her role very seriously. "I realized it was time to study. I really worked my you-know-what off," she said.

Following Vanna White's devastating heartbreak, she'd found happiness again by 1990. White married her first husband, restaurateur and car dealer George Santo Pietro, that year and announced her first pregnancy on "Wheel of Fortune" in 1992. However, in a tragic twist of fate, she discovered she'd experienced a miscarriage shortly after making the news public. "Obviously I lost the baby, which was devastating after announcing it ... Losing a child — there's nothing good about that," she told People while opening up about her miscarriage. White also spoke to Closer Weekly about her heartbreaking baby loss, sharing, "I was so ready to be a mother. I don't know how you describe that loss."

Fortunately, White fell pregnant again and welcomed a son, Nicholas "Nikko" Santo Pietro, in 1994. Two years later, she gave birth to her second child, a daughter named Giovanna "Gigi" Santo Pietro. White opened up to Family Circle about how much motherhood meant to her, sharing (via Fox News), "Your whole life changes after you have children ... You're constantly worrying about their safety. But I wouldn't change a thing. Giovanna and Nicholas have brought so much love and joy into my life — more than I could have ever imagined."

White also spoke to The Washington Post about how her career goals changed after becoming a mom, as she put her acting dreams on the back burner. "Prior to having my first child, I had a huge ambition to go into movies and TV. But after I had my children ... mother was my first job," she said.

Sadly, Vanna White's first marriage ended in divorce. Deseret News reported she filed for divorce from George Santo Pietro after 11 years of marriage in June 2002, citing their date of separation as November 2001. Though the two never publicly confirmed infidelity, three years before their split was confirmed, White and Santo Pietro's marriage was hit with serious cheating allegations. A source purported to Esquire (via Page Six), "[White] caught her hot-blooded hubby flagrantly cheating on her with a sexy model." Tanya Abayan, the woman Santo Pietro was accused of cheating with, even purported, "He's had lots of mistresses [while married]."

Though this wasn't a celeb couple who called off their divorce and got back together, there still didn't seem to be any bad blood between the exes. Nicholas "Nikko" Santo Pietro told People his dad still supported White's work after their split. "When my mom and dad separated, my dad would watch 'Wheel of Fortune,' so I watched it probably more than she did," he said, referring to his mom. 

Despite being a single parent with major celebrity status (including having her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame) and a huge net worth, White was determined to raise her kids the right way. "Both of my children, I raised them just to be normal, just normal kids, they aren't spoiled. They didn't get everything they wanted, they had to work for what they wanted," she said.

A decade after Vanna White split from George Santo Pietro, she was firmly back in the dating game after her divorce and found love again when she met real estate developer John Donaldson in 2012. "I remember looking at him and thinking, 'He's really cute.' We ended up talking for a long time that night," she told People of their meet-cute, sharing that they crossed paths when a friend brought him to a party at her home. "He lets me be me, I let him be him. There is no drama," she added.

But just because she was happily in love again, that didn't mean the star was looking to get married again. Speaking to Closer Weekly in 2018, she explained, "Will we get married? I don't know. At this point, I feel like I am married. Everything is so good, there's no reason to change anything." White shared a similar sentiment with Closer Weekly the following year, once again making it clear a second walk down the aisle wasn't on her bucket list. "I don't think you necessarily have to have a piece of paper unless you want to," she said. But that certainly wasn't the last we'd hear about White, Donaldson, and marriage.

In 2019, Vanna White took on a major challenge for the first time. She moved out of the background and into the foreground on "Wheel of Fortune" by taking over Pat Sajak's long-standing hosting gig while he underwent surgery. But White made it clear she had no plans to host the series permanently. "It's not at the top of my list [to do it again]," she admitted to CBS News. "I loved being there, I loved doing it. But I was so nervous. Maybe if I did it a few more times, I would feel better about it. But I'm my worst critic," she added. Sajak returned to his post after a three-week absence.

The year after temporarily changing up her role on the long-running show, White achieved a major "Wheel of Fortune"-related achievement. The star revealed she'd worn more than 7,000 dresses during her many years on the show. Perhaps even more surprisingly, she also confirmed she'd never repeated the same outfit twice.

"Wheel of Fortune" saw a major shakeup in 2023 when Pat Sajak announced he'd be leaving the show in 2024 after more than four decades of hosting. The big change got Vanna White fans, and even White herself, wondering if she'd hang up her glam dresses and retire, too. "When Pat decided he was going to retire, I had to make a decision. Working with someone for that long, I feel like I should maybe go with him," she told E! News. But she wasn't quite ready to step away. "I thought hard and thought, 'You know what? I'm just not ready to retire yet. I'm having fun. I feel good. I feel healthy,'" she explained.

That same year, White launched a "Wheel of Fortune"-inspired makeup collaboration with Laura Geller and signed a contract that would keep her on the show for at least another two years alongside new host Ryan Seacrest. Entertainment Weekly reported White renegotiated her salary to include a raise, purporting she'd brought in about $3 million a year for the past 18 years. The Daily Mail claimed four months later that her salary had supposedly been upped to $10 million. White hasn't publicly commented on the figure, but later told People of the contract reports, "People just have rumors ... Everything is so blown out of proportion."

Vanna White proved in 2025 that she wasn't only sticking with the old; she was bringing in the new, too. She revealed on Instagram that she'd gotten her first tattoo, which was done by her tattoo artist daughter, Giovanna "Gigi" Santo Pietro. White, who was 68 at the time, brought her followers along for the journey as she got a small pink heart on her wrist. "I've been wanting to do this for a long time. I really have," White told her daughter in the clip. In the caption, White told her followers, "I will think of her [every time] I look at it."

White was also open about the fact that she hadn't made long-term plans regarding "Wheel of Fortune." "At this point, it's one year at a time ... I'm happy with my job, I'm continuing on 'Wheel,' and we will take one year at a time and go from there," she told E! News. She also made it clear she wouldn't jump ship for another TV opportunity. "I don't think there's anything else on TV I would rather do after being on 'Wheel' for so long. Honestly, I think I wanna just play golf when I retire," the newly inked star said.

White closed out the year by once again lamenting that she had no desire to become a wife again. When asked by E! News in December 2025 about tying the knot with John Donaldson, she stated, "We've been together for a long time and we are just happy the way it is." Only, she may have been telling a white lie about dressing in white.

Despite Vanna White making it clear for years that she had no plans to marry again, her stance had clearly changed by 2026. The star, who was older when she found love, kicked off the year with an exciting announcement: she'd secretly tied the knot with John Donaldson. "Surprise! We got married!" White captioned an Instagram upload showing Donaldson holding her while she wore a white gown, as well as throwback snaps from their many years together. "John and I have been in love for more than a decade and a little while back, we wanted to make it official in a private ceremony. We're excited to share this new joyful chapter in our lives with all of you!" she added, but didn't confirm their exact wedding date.

The comments section was flooded with well-wishes from fans and famous friends, including Jerry O'Connell (who has a few strange things in his own marriage to Rebecca Romijn), Kathy Hilton, and Donald Trump's former wife, Marla Maples. White thanked those who sent loving messages in the comments, writing, "Thank you all for the sweet well wishes!!! We are so thankful for all the love and congratulations." 

White's dedication to living her best life no matter what is truly admirable, so it makes sense she'd have some advice for young women that's worth listening to. "Follow your heart and really don't do anything you don't want to do," she told People. "Don't let anybody talk you into doing anything you don't want to do. You have that instinct inside you, we all do. You listen to that instinct inside of you. It never is wrong." And that mantra has clearly worked for this much-loved star.