Joe Manganiello revealed that his first manager wanted him to change his name to something easier to pronounce at the start of his career, but he refused
Manganiello appeared alongside Tiffany Haddish and Matt Walsh for the season 5 premiere of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune
This marks the last season Pat Sajak will host after announcing his retirement in 2023
Joe Manganiello is reminiscing on what could have been.
The Magic Mike star, 48, revealed a surprising fact about his name during an appearance on the season 5 premiere of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. After introducing Manganiello, longtime host Pat Sajak asked if he ever considered changing his last name to something easier to pronounce.
“No,” Manganiello explained. “They did ask me to change my name, my original manager, but I said, ‘You know what, people are gonna have to learn how to pronounce it and spell it.’”
He then quipped: “And here we are, 20-odd years later, and no one can pronounce it or spell it!”
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Joe Manganiello
Related: Joe Manganiello Says Deal or No Deal Island Season 2 Winner Scores ‘Most Money Anyone Has Ever Won’ on TV (Exclusive)
The actor also poked fun at his name in a pre-show interview with Pat’s daughter, Maggie Sajak, after thanking her for saying it correctly.
“Italian, I assume?” she wondered, to which he joked, “Yeah, but here’s the interesting thing — it’s not really my last name.”
Playing along, Maggie then asked what his “true last name is” and he teased, “From what I can tell, I think my last name is Jones.”
Tiffany Haddish and Matt Walsh joined Manganiello for the special episode, which kicked off 78-year-old Pat’s final season hosting. He first took the gig in 1981 and stayed for 43 years, retiring from Wheel of Fortune in 2024.
“Well, the time has come to say goodbye,” Pat said in his final WoF episode on June 7, 2024. “I have a few thanks and acknowledgements before I go. And I want to start with all of you watching out there.”
“It’s been an incredible privilege to be invited into millions of homes night after night, year after year, decade after decade,” the TV veteran added. “And I’ve always felt that the privilege came with a responsibility to keep this daily half hour a safe place for family fun. No social issues, no politics, nothing embarrassing, I hope. Just a game.”
While Pat’s hosting career is coming to an end, Manganiello has just begun his own. In February 2024, the True Blood alum made his game show debut as the host of Deal or No Deal Island, which is a spinoff of the original series and follows 13 players competing for cash on an elusive private island.
“I was waiting for the right opportunity to happen and this was it,” Manganiello told PEOPLE at the time. “I was asked to be on Survivor at one point. I was offered Fear Factor — not the original, but after [Joe] Rogan stepped aside, I was offered the next incarnation. So they pitched me the show, [Deal or No Deal Island]. I was like, you have no idea who you’re talking to. I’m a big fan of game shows. One of the huge draws is to see how people interact with each other.”
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Celebrity Wheel of Fortune airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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