Designer Of The Wheel Of Fortune, Ed Flesh, Dies At 79

Wheel Of Fortune Designer Dies

Ed Flesh designed an icon of American television culture when he created the titular wheel for "Wheel of Fortune." Flesh was an art director who died last Friday in Mission Hills, California of congestive heart failure.

Flesh worked on the decor for many late 1960's and 1970's television shows such as "The $25,000 Pyramid," "Name That Tune," and the still running "Jeopardy!" His design style also graced the sets of several talk shows, including "The Montel Williams Show" and three special episodes of "The Oprah Winfrey Show."

As for his most iconic piece of design, the titular wheel on "Wheel of Fortune," Flesh was the one who decided the prop should be lying down so that the audience at home could better see the wheel. Though the first wheel Flesh created was made out of cardboard, paint an light bulbs, the curent wheel is made of steel and Plexiglass and comes in at more than 2,400 pounds.

Edwin Albert Flesh Jr. was born in Philadelphia on December 4th, 1931 and attended Franklin and Marshall College. He received a masters in scenic design from the Yale School of Drama. Mr. Flesh is survived by his partner David Powers.

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