Forbes has released its annual list highlighting the 400 richest people in the United States. While names like Gates and Buffett hold the top spots, there are plenty of North Texans with money in the bank.
Leading the local pack, and at No. 8 overall, Fort Worth’s Alice Walton, of the Walmart’s Waltons, is worth $33.5 billion. She's in the top 10 along with three other Walton family members. The only people ahead of the Waltons are Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Larry Ellison of Oracle, and the Koch brothers of “diversified” — which is a nice way of saying “everything.”
Pickens' investment in wind energy resulted in his overall net worth dipping below $1 billion for the first time since 2005.
There are 22 other captains of industry from North Texas on the list, including two more in the top 50. Harold Simmons and Andrew Beal, worth $10 and $9.8 billion respectively, are the 40th and 42nd richest Americans.
Well-known families like the Perots, Hunts and Basses make the list multiple times, ensuring that their Thanksgiving dinners feature unicorn steak and actual people as footstools.
Of course, the two most famous North Texas billionaires are Jerry Jones and Mark Cuban. Although they may be worth less than Kelcy Warren and his $3.4 billion, their playgrounds are significantly bigger than Warren’s.
And it’s not like Jones, with his $3 billion, or Cuban, with his $2.5 bil, are going to be asking for handouts anytime soon. While Jones’ source of income is the Dallas Cowboys, Cuban’s source is listed as online media, though he has owns both Landmark Theatres and Magnolia Pictures in addition to the Mavericks. Broadcast.com seems like an eternity ago.
North Texas energy magnate (and Oklahoma State donor extraordinaire) T. Boone Pickens, however, is no longer in the billionaire club. Pickens' investment in wind energy resulted in his overall net worth dipping below $1 billion for the first time since 2005. He's now worth a paltry $950 million.
Meanwhile, Fort Worth's Alice Walton of the Walmart family is No. 8, with $33.5 billion.
