Amon and the pajamas story
BY DAVE LIEBER
As the 100th anniversary of the founding of Fort Worth approached in 1949, Amon drew up plans to go big.
He announced to the Star-Telegram staff that they were going to produce a commemorative issue that would contain, he hoped, a record number of pages along with the most ad space of any newspaper published in the history of the United States.
He met his goal with 271 full-page ads, and he sold most of them. Who would dare refuse him?
“I didn’t ask. I told,” he explained. He announced to his business associates, “I’m putting you down for a full page,”
The Oct. 30, 1949 issue was 480 pages! A world record for a daily newspaper. Heavier than your pet cat.
Amon was so excited, he couldn’t sleep. In the middle of the night, he yanked a rewrite man off the city desk (future noted columnist George Dolan) and ordered a Star-Telegram photographer to grab his camera gear.
He picked up a fresh bundle of the heavy papers and off the middle-of-the-night crew went. They knocked on doors and started waking up Amon’s business friends.
It was 4 a.m.
“Wake up!” he shouted. “It’s Amon Carter. Here’s your paper. Don’t call me about it not being developed!”
The series of photos of the men in their pajamas is quite funny. Fort Worth’s top leaders dressed nicely for bedtime.
I don’t believe, though, that these photos ever ran in the newspaper. But I did find them in the Amon Carter papers in the special collections at TCU Libraries.
As good as this pajamas story is, it didn’t make my play, AMON! The Ultimate Texan. The other stories are even better!
Visit AmonPlay.com for ticket and play and book information. AMON! The Ultimate Texan reopens at Artisan Center Theater in Hurst, TX for shows in 2022 on — Aug. 27, Sept. 3 nd 10.
“Theater is the oldest way we have of trying to tell the truth about who we are.” — the late playwright, Terrence McNally.
NEW! Read how Amon stole a lot from Dallas, including Gary Cooper.
NEW! Read about Amon’s favorite paperboy
NEW! Read about the man who loved Amon Carter so he named his son after him.
NEW! Interview with playwright Dave Lieber
What the press has written about us.
