Jim Thornton, the longtime announcer for the popular game show “Wheel of Fortune,” has been suspended following unspecified allegations.
“We have recently been made aware of allegations concerning Jim Thornton,” a spokesperson for Sony Pictures Television Studios told The Times. “He has been suspended from ‘Wheel of Fortune’ and we are recasting while we conduct a thorough investigation.”
Sony Pictures did not specify the reason for the suspension.
The allegations could possibly stem from an incident that occurred in May aboard a commercial American Airlines flight to Los Angeles, TMZ reported, when a passenger complained about Thornton to a flight attendant.
American Airlines told TMZ that a passenger was met by law enforcement upon arrival at Los Angeles International Airport on May 14, although the airline did not identify the individual.
Thornton’s attorney told the outlet that the 61-year-old “did not engage in any illegal conduct, was not arrested and has not been charged with any crime.”
“When questioned about the complaint made by a fellow passenger on the flight, law enforcement spoke to him for five minutes or less, immediately determined that no wrongdoing had occurred and told my client he was free to go,” his attorney continued.
Thornton joined “Wheel of Fortune” in 2011 following the death of announcer Charlie O’Donnell.
Thornton’s credits include “The Price Is Right,” “The Soup,” “Jeopardy!” and “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.” Thornton’s voice was also been featured in the 2001 animated hit “Monsters, Inc.,” and video games including “Wall-E” and “Mafia II.”
The post ‘Wheel of Fortune’ announcer Jim Thornton suspended amid ‘allegations’ appeared first on Los Angeles Times.
