The Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. is one of the more famed arenas in the United States. It has held many memorable events, including several NCAA Final Four basketball games, the 1976 Republican National Convention, and a Paul McCartney concert the same year. But what the arena may also be hosting is a haunting.
The Kemper Arena was built within 18 months between the years of 1973 and 1974. It was the first major project of German architect Helmut Jahn, who became an important figure of his field at the time. It was built to play host to the city's professional basketball and hockey teams. The building was also revolutionary in its simple design, with it having no pillars on the inside to obstruct views and the roof being suspended by exterior steel trusses. The building cost $22 million to complete. The money came from numerous contributors, the largest of them being Rufus Crosby Kemper, a wealthy financier who funded many of Kansas City's projects and whom the arena was named after.
The arena received many architectural awards and had several prominent tenants including the Kansas City Scouts, now the New Jersey Devils (NHL), and the Kansas City Kings (NBA).
In 1979, a major storm caused a section of the roof nearly an acre wide to collapse. No one was injured because the arena was closed at the time. The collapse had been caused by rainwater gathering on the roof, causing it to sag. Another factor was that a bolt had given way, causing a chain reaction of other bolts to come loose. The arena was closed for the repairs and was reopened in less than a year.
It continued to host a multitude of sporting events including hockey, basketball, football, indoor soccer, and paintball. It also hosts professional wrestling venues, mainly for the WWE, which is where the ghost story for the Kemper Arena comes from.
On May 23, 1999, Owen Hart, brother of WWE Hall-of-Famer Bret Hart, died at a WWE pay-per-view (then known as the WWF) event when he fell from the rafters attempting a wrestling gimmick. He was supposed to be lowered into the arena on a cable when the release mechanism had somehow been triggered, having him fall nearly 80 feet on the ring ropes and then into the ring. While he did not die immediately from the fall, he was pronounced dead upon arrival at the hospital.
In the years since his death, there have been multiple reports of sightings of (the ghost of) Owen Hart. Employees have claimed to have seen him in the rafters wearing the costume he was wearing for his gimmick as well as the cable before he began the descent. There have also been reports of flickering lights and other power sources that seem to go on and off in some areas of the arena.
Owen Hart's death was an absolute tragedy for the wrestling world. For someone to lie about seeing the ghost of a person like Owen Hart would take a lot of nerve. However, it would not be the first time someone has. If he is haunting the Kemper Arena, it would make sense for him to be in the rafters, constantly reliving the events that led to his unfortunate demise. However, it would not make sense as it was known amongst the workers of WWF that he was afraid of heights, and had only done such a stunt very few times. The flickering lights and power losses could also be caused by faulty wiring or failing bulbs. But it is said that ghosts need energy to manifest and that they gather it from batteries and other appliances, so it could be Owen taking energy from the lights and outlets.
So, does the Kemper Arena still have someone performing there? There has been no way to prove if such a haunting exists as no one has attempted to investigate and have preferred to leave the issue alone. But someday, someone may try and evidence may be obtained to prove that Owen Hart ('s spirit) may still be among us.
13 comments
lets all grow up and see things for what thay are
in numerology, the number 23 represents the END... this horrible accidnet occured on the 23rd....1+9+9+0= 28 the month of may = 5... 28-5=23... leaving 23, 23... just figured i'd post it... RIP OWEN