Panther Hall Collection

Collection

Identifier: SWWC-093

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Panther Hall Collection spans 1963-1978 and documents the Country and Western music scene in Fort Worth, Texas. The bulk of the collection is photographs with subjects including performances as well as on- and off-stage posed and candid shots. The collection is arranged into six series: Identified Photographs, Unidentified Photographs, Negatives, Promotional Materials, Papers, and Published Materials.

Dates

1963-1987

Creator

Beckham, Garland Wayne (Person)
Beckham, Garland Wayne (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Materials from the Wittliff Collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user assumes responsibility for determining copyright status, obtaining permission to publish, and abiding by U.S. copyright laws. https://www.thewittliffcollections.txstate.edu/research/visit/policies/publication.html

Historical Notes

Brothers Corky and Bill Kuykendall opened the music venue, Panther Hall, in Fort Worth, Texas in 1963. The Hall quickly became a popular destination to hear country music on Saturday nights. Some of the artists that performed at Panther Hall include Bill Anderson, Tanya Tucker, Loretta Lynn, Jerry Lee Lewis, Hank Snow, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Conway Twitty and Fats Domino. Panther Hall also became the site for a local television network’s, KTVT, “Cowtown Jamboree”, which aired some of the Saturday night performances. Panther Hall closed in 1978.

Wayne Beckham was a photographer for Panther Hall. Beckham’s family donated the Panther Hall Collection to The Wittliff Collections in the 1990s through the efforts of The Center for the Study of Texas Music. Beckham took many pictures, both on- and off- stage, of the performers that frequented the concert hall on Saturday nights. In addition to his participation at Panther Hall, Beckham also had other business interests within the country music industry. Beckham was a publisher for the Country Music Reporter, a magazine that contained stories and bios of many of the Panther Hall performers, as well as other country music artists. Beckham also owned Becko Printing and Way-Beck Talent, an agency that booked concerts for other venues in Fort Worth and the surrounding areas.

Extent

3 Linear Feet

8 boxes

Language of Materials

English

Metadata Rights Declarations

The descriptive data created for this finding aid is licensed under the CC0 Creative Commons license and is free for use without restriction.

Additional Description

Abstract

Panther Hall was a concert hall located in Fort Worth, Texas and open from 1963-1978. The collection contains mostly photographs documenting the various artists that performed at the concert hall. Some of these musical artists include Waylon Jennings, Tanya Tucker, Tammy Wynette, Willie Nelson, Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis, Tony Douglas, Loretta Lynn, and Conway Twitty. In addition to the photographs, the collection also contains promotional materials, papers, and published materials.