Amon Carter is “by far Texas’ most public-spirited man.” – Will Rogers

 SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: AMON! The Ultimate Texan play is coming back.

Tickets are the perfect holiday gift

Hit comedy play about Amon Carter Sr. comes to The Texas Theater in Waxahachie.

Read the details here.

STILL NOT IN DALLAS!!

The play about Amon Carter – Mr. Fort Worth – comes to The Texas Theater in Waxahachie for four special shows in early 2024.

AMON! The Ultimate Texan, which one critic called a hit “as big as Texas,” celebrates the man who owned the Star-Telegram, WBAP radio and NBC5.

Carter famously didn’t like Dallas, which provides a comedic backdrop for the play.

Since its 2019 premiere, AMON! has been performed 52 times in six Texas cities.

But, as would have been Amon’s wish, the play has never been seen in the city of Dallas, hence the headline for this announcement: “Still, not in Dallas!”

**TICKETS ON SALE**

The first shows of 2024 are Jan. 19 and 20 and Feb. 23 and 24.
Doors open at 7 p.m. and showtime is 8 p.m.

Tickets are on sale at the box office of the lovingly restored Texas Theater in Waxahachie (capacity 500) 110 W Main St, Waxahachie, TX 75165

The ticket site is:
thetxtheater.com/tickets/

 HEAR what Jerome Weeks of KERA radio says about our popular play -- AMON! The Ultimate Texan.

The award-winning play about Amon “Mr. Fort Worth” Carter has now celebrated its 51st performance. As we embark on a statewide #AmonOnTour check here for details. Tell your friends!

“Hooray for Fort Worth and Weeessst Texas!”

READ: Fort Worth magazine lays it out: “Amon hated Dallas.”

Winner of Outstanding New Work by a Local Playwright - 2020

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 STARRING KELVIN DILKS

Kelvin Dilks, a retired teacher and seven-year member of the Birdville school board, returns as Amon. Dilks originated the role and has starred in every one of the 52 shows.

“The more he does it, the more he becomes Amon Carter,” said playwright and Dallas Morning News Watchdog columnist Dave Lieber, who wrote the play. “It’s uncanny.”

The play has been praised by critics and fans, many of whom have come more than once.

The director is former teacher Connie Sanchez, who Lieber said, uses the tools of theater to create a time-machine effect that propels Amon through his life.

AMON! The Ultimate Texan won an award as Best New Play by a Local Playwright.

Learn more about the play at AmonPlay.com and visit “Amon Carter Play” on Facebook.

 REVIEWERS HAVE SAID…

Bobbie Wygant of NBC5: “Extraordinary performance. Extremely moving.”

Jerome Weeks of KERA: “An affectionate portrait of the man.”

Fort Worth Weekly: “Yes, there’s a play about Amon Carter, and you should go see it.”

Dallas Observer: “Dilks took audience members on an animated, funny and sometimes emotional ride through time.”

Fort Worth Business Press: “A hit play. A damned entertaining love letter to Fort Worth.”

 This little story is called
“Amon G. Carter, naked ladies and TCU Library's 'buried treasure.


At a fundraiser for TCU Library's Special Collections, Dave Lieber, the playwright behind the hit play AMON! The Ultimate Texan addressed a high-powered audience, hoping to honor the hard-working librarians who helped him write the play and the companion book.

These librarians maintain the vast Amon Carter collection, and Lieber had spent months poring over its 444 boxes of materials to research his work...

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE


 

‘Let’s Bring Amon Home’ Project A Success

 After 52 performances, it’s safe to say that AMON! The Ultimate Texan about Fort Worth’s founding father Amon G. Carter Sr. was one of Dallas/Fort Worth’s, er, excuse us, Fort Worth/Dallas’ (you’re welcome, Amon) top theatrical events of the year.

We’ve only just begun. We’ve performed in six Texas cities. We’re exploring many venues for future shows.

Our goal is to take this show everywhere.

This is the play and the companion book’s official website. You can buy tickets here, and ask questions. You can visit the NEWS tab up top and see what audiences and the press say about our play that when you’re not laughing, you’re crying.

The play features actor Kelvin Dilks as Amon. The play is directed by Connie Sanchez, who also did stage and costume design as well script supervision. Rick Blair is the producer. The play was written by The Dallas Morning News Watchdog columnist Dave Lieber, who also serves as producer.

Stay tuned for more AMON! news.

   Founding Producer Rick Blair says: “I am overwhelmed with comments from patrons begging us to carry this story forward. Never in our history have we seen such an outpouring of love and passion for a show.”

Carter was a media tycoon unlike most. He ruled his town for a 50-year run. His holdings included the local newspaper, the Star-Telegram, as well as the region’s largest radio station (WBAP-AM), the first TV station, now KXAS/NBC5, and an oil strike that all these years later keeps on giving.

   But Carter didn’t put himself first. He cared about Fort Worth and Texas, and spent his life working to make both better. Carter is credited with luring a trillion dollars’ worth of business to his town.

   Playwright Lieber says, “I think he was our Alexander Hamilton, our most consequential figure who’s been forgotten. No other city has an Amon Carter.” Lieber added, “The play is a point of pride for Texans. And it’ll change the way you think about Texas.”

  Check back here for show info. Also, join our Facebook page — Amon Carter Play.

Kelvin Dilks brings Amon G. Carter back to life in a fun and funny way.

 
 
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Meet Connie Sanchez, the director who brought AMON! to the stage.

Director Connie Sanchez combines her love of teaching and directing to bring Amon “Mr. Fort Worth” Carter back to life.

Read this fabulous interview with her here.

 
 
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The Book

    When Amon G. Carter Sr. visited Ireland, he was hailed as “the mighty Carter, son of the Lone Star State.” Quite fitting.

  Texas is what it is today – a leader in industry, especially aviation – in part because of the work Carter did in the first half of the 20th century. A one-man economic development department for Fort Worth and vast West Texas, Carter is credited with luring a trillion dollars’ worth of businesses to his beloved state.

  Flashy, excessive, impulsive and powerful, the pretend-cowboy manipulated presidents with gifts and hobnobbed with celebrities.  At every turn, he fought arch-rival Dallas.

  In this book, a companion to the new theatrical production of the same name, Amon Carter tells how he built one of the great media empires of the land – and what he did with it. The book also presents 100 classic photographs from the era that bring Amon’s words to life.

 
 
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Amon Carter really is our Alexander Hamilton. He’s our consequential figure that we’ve forgotten who he is and what he did for us. “
— Dave Lieber

AMON! The Ultimate Texan is the story of one of the most amazing Texans who ever lived. Born in a log cabin and with only an eighth grade education, Amon G. Carter Sr. became Texas’ most powerful media overlord. Presidents put up with him because he owned the largest newspaper, radio and television station in Texas. He had a big heart, but a bigger sense for business and for the future. He was one of a kind and this play – and its companion book – by popular newspaper columnist Dave Lieber bring the story of this remarkable Texan back to life.  

Kelvin Dilks is a legendary Birdville ISD drama teacher who now directs and acts. In his free time, he’s also a Birdville ISD school board member. Here he’s testing costumes to perform as Amon Carter. (Photo by Alan D. Smith)

Kelvin Dilks is a legendary Birdville ISD drama teacher who now directs and acts. In his free time, he’s also a Birdville ISD school board member. Here he’s testing costumes to perform as Amon Carter. (Photo by Alan D. Smith)

 
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Longtime newspaperman Dave Lieber is now a playwright.

Longtime newspaperman Dave Lieber is now a playwright.

Dave Lieber

DAVE LIEBER has worked as a Texas newspaper columnist for 29 years – first at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and now at The Dallas Morning News where he writes the twice-weekly investigative “Watchdog” column. The author of nine books, Dave is also a certified professional speaker, one of only a thousand in the world. He specializes in teaching strategic storytelling to businesses, groups and individuals.

AMON! The Ultimate Texan is his first play.

His second play is PEROT! American Patriot. (PerotBook.com).

His latest columns are available on The Dallas Morning News Watchdog page. He fights for Americans and shows you how to save time, money and aggravation.

He works to expose corruption and make positive change. In 2019, he received top prize in the nation’s largest column-writing contest. A judge stated, “Through a lively combination of consumer advocacy and investigative reporting, Lieber’s columns were models of suspenseful storytelling and public service.”

In addition, he is the 2022 winner of the Ernie Pyle Award for excellent writing from the Ernie Pyle Legacy Foundation.

He is founder of a consumer rights movement —  WatchdogNation.com — which shows Americans how to protect themselves from thugs, thieves, scammers, and corporate skulduggery.

His heart is in the non-profit world. He’s co-founder of Summer Santa, one of North Texas’ largest children’s charities. For this, he won the Will Rogers Humanitarian Award. This honor goes to the U.S. newspaper columnist whose work produced positive effects on the lives of readers.

 

Motivational speaker Dave Lieber is one of America's top storytelling experts for businesses. He quickly trains your team on how to jump to the next skill level with humor and fun.

AMON! The Ultimate Texan is playing at the historic Haltom Theater on January 30, 2020 @ 7:30 PM. Starring Kelvin Dilks as Amon G. Carter, Sr. and directed by Connie Sanchez, this play is based on the sensational play and book by Dave Lieber.

Talk show Host Bryan Weatherford of BizTV interviews Kelvin Dilks about his role as Amon G. Carter, Sr. in Dave Lieber's smash hit production of AMON! The Ultimate Texan. This interview shows the amount of effort going into creating the play including the memorization of over 50 pages of dialogue.

 

 
 
Amon Carter is “by far Texas’ most public-spirited man
— Will Rogers

  When Amon G. Carter Sr. visited Ireland, he was hailed as “the mighty Carter, son of the Lone Star State.” Quite fitting.

  Texas is what it is today – a leader in industry, especially aviation – in part because of the work Carter did in the first half of the 20th century. A one-man economic development department for Fort Worth and vast West Texas, Carter is credited with luring a trillion dollars’ worth of businesses to his beloved state.

  Flashy, excessive, impulsive and powerful, the pretend-cowboy manipulated presidents with gifts and hobnobbed with celebrities.

  At every turn, he fought arch-rival Dallas. Legend has it that he carried a sack lunch to Big D because he didn’t want to spend any money there.

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