Dallas-area ventriloquist Terry Fator, the winner of last summer's $1 million prize on the debut season of America's Got Talent on NBC, has signed a five-year deal for a reported $100 million to perform at the Mirage resort and casino in Las Vegas.

NBC

Terry Fator, with puppet Walter, won America's Got Talent last year.

Mr. Fator, 42, who recently bought a home in Trophy Club near D/FW Airport, was born in Dallas but grew up in Balch Springs, Richardson, Corsicana and Mesquite, where he lived until recently. The son of janitorial workers, he's a man on a roll. Thursday night, he realized yet another dream by being set for his first appearance on Late Show With David Letterman.

"I'm thrilled," he said Thursday, moments before flying to New York for the Letterman show. "But Dallas will always be my home. My wife and I may get a place in Vegas, but we will definitely keep our new home in Trophy Club, which we love."

Mr. Fator's Mirage deal is for five years, with an option for another five, Mirage officials confirmed. Entertainer Robin Leach recently reported on his blog that Mr. Fator's deal is for $100 million, which, so far, Mirage officials have neither confirmed nor denied. A source close to Mr. Fator says Mr. Leach's figure is accurate.

The singing ventriloquist will perform five shows a week in the 1,265-seat Terry Fator Theatre, currently the Danny Gans Theatre, beginning in February. Tickets will go on sale later this year.

Mr. Fator's cast employs seven puppets, including Cowboy Walter, Emma Taylor and Winston the Impersonating Turtle, but he's also quite a singer, imitating Elvis Presley, Nat King Cole, Marvin Gaye and Michael Bublé, among others – often without moving his lips. He performed in March at the Meyerson Symphony Center.