Dan and Frank Carney
Dan (born 1931) and Frank Carney (born 1938) are the original founders of Pizza Hut.
Recent years
Today, Frank sits on the board of Intrust Financial Corp., Intrust Bank, N.A. He is the past president of the International Franchise Association (IFA) and the Wichita Area Chamber of Commerce. Industry honors include the 1975 Silver Plate Award from the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association, and the 1974 Man Of The Year in the Multi-Unit Foodservice Organization. He is an 1991 inductee into the IFA Hall of Fame.
Frank became a franchisee of Papa John's Pizza in 1994. By 2001, he owned 133 locations. Based in Houston, his company runs stores in Kansas, Arizona, Missouri, California, Texas and Hawaii, including several in his hometown of Wichita and the suburbs of Derby and Andover, under the franchise name PJ Wichita LLC., before selling the franchise to then Franchise President Terry Newman. During legal struggles with Pizza Hut in the late 1990s, Papa John's ran commercial advertisements highlighting the fact, including a dramatization showing Frank coming to a Pizza Hut stockholders' meeting wearing a Papa John's apron, saying, "Sorry, guys. I found a better pizza." Frank stands by his personal criticism of Pizza Hut, stating that the pizza now made by the chain he founded is of lower quality than when he and his brother ran the business.
Dan, who has maintained strong community ties to his hometown, has been Chairman of the Board of Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation of Kansas, since its inception of 30 years, a charitable organization and not-for-profit business. He presently sits on the board of the WSU Foundation, Guadalupe Clinic, Wichita Red Cross and Wichita Community Foundation. Dan has been awarded the W.S.U. Presidents Medal of Distinguished Alumnus Award, and the Big Brother/Big Sisters 'Reaching the Summit' honor. In 1977 he was the first inductee into the Pizza Hut Hall of Fame and in 2001 awarded the Junior Achievement Wichita Business Hall of Fame.
Dan also serves as Chairman of the Board of T-Netix (NASDAQ), he sits on the boards of DCSS Digital Computing, Resort 1 and Pulse, while managing his personal investments.
Dan has six children and ten grandchildren. He is married to Gayla Wagnon. Frank has eight children and eleven grandchildren.
Frank's children are also involved with him in Papa John's: Trevor Carney and Tressa Carney.
External links
- KTWU Wichita - Interview with Dan Carney from 2002
- Pizza Hut Official Website