Today, I had planned to announce the launch of my Kickstarter campaign to raise funds toward solidifying and expanding my efforts and vision with The Loop.
As it turns out, thanks to a generous partnership offer from Joe and Jomel Nichols, investors in Rochester Brewing and Roasting Company in the Crossroads as well as River Bluff Brewing in the River Market, I will not need to proceed with the Kickstarter event!
I’m thrilled to be working closely with my longtime friends who have been Downtown enthusiasts for at least as long as I have been (and that’s a long time). Their talents in the areas of business startups, finance, editorial, and marketing—along with their knowledge and passion for Downtown—are an amazing fit.
I do, however, still have a request for you, dear readers: I will be shifting The Loop to a three-tiered subscription model at the end of this month. There will be a free tier with content yet to be determined, a paid tier that provides all-access for $6 a month or $60 a year, or a Founders’ Tier for those of you who want to give an extra boost to The Loop as we build and expand our publication and platforms.
I hope you will choose a paid level to support our vision and help make The Loop an indispensable source for Downtown news, entertainment, history, and more, but I also hope that if you choose the free tier, you will remain with us and continue to be part of our Downtown Loopers community. It’s going to be a lot of fun!
I will have more information soon about the exciting things happening with the KC Downtown Loop, our vision and plan, and the subscription tiers that begin June 1. In the meantime, enjoy today’s issue of The Loop!
Today marks the date in 2009 when one of Downtown’s most revered structures reopened as the AMC Mainstreet Theater after being threatened with demolition for nearly two decades. The movie house opened in 1921 as the Mainstreet Missouri and was later known as the RKO Missouri, Empire, and Alamo Drafthouse before becoming the B&B Theatres Mainstreet KC last year.
It was this week in 1995 that Robert Plant and Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin finally returned to perform in Kansas City (as a duo) after skipping our town for more than 25 years. The full Zeppelin band last performed in KC at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kan., on November 5, 1969, and some believe the particulars of that night may have played a role in the band’s seeming neglect toward KC. I’ll write more about this legendary two-concert night in KCK at a later date, but the bottom line is that in 1969 drummer John Bonham was supposedly inebriated to the point of “disappearing” repeatedly during the second show, and one or more members of the band were allegedly arrested for public drunkenness when they returned to the Muehlebach Hotel in Downtown Kansas City, Mo., later that night. (Plant referred to Bonham and “the jails” in Kansas City during a St. Louis concert in 1975, so the story has some validity and the band clearly didn’t forget.)
When Page and Plant performed at Kemper Arena on May 5, 1995, a bootlegged audio recording of the show suggests the KC audience was elated to see the post-British Invasion icons: The crowd roared with approval at every opportunity; I might have guessed they were playing at Arrowhead, not Kemper, had I not known differently.
This Friday marks the date in 1919 when Chester Arthur Franklin founded the Kansas City Call, one of the most successful newspapers in the United States to serve a black community. Born in Texas, Franklin’s family ended up in Colorado as a result of his father’s poor health. It was there that Franklin learned the newspaper business when his father bought the Denver Star. Eventually, Franklin and his mother, Clara Bell Franklin, sought a larger African-American audience, so they moved to Kansas City where he founded a printing business to get established in their new town. On May 6, 1919, the Call was born at 1311 E. 18th, the same street (but different building) where it operates today.
Friday also marks the date in 1945 that Jackie Robinson made his pro baseball debut with the Kansas City Monarchs. He helped KC beat the Chicago American Giants 6-2 that day with a run-scoring double, a stolen base, and a run scored. He would, of course, make history two years later by breaking the color barrier in Major League Baseball with the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Speaking of the Monarchs, there are a couple of cool events happening this week related to our legendary Negro Leagues team. A rededication of Monarch Plaza, site of the stadium at 22nd and Brooklyn where the Monarchs used to play, is scheduled for this Friday, beginning at 11 a.m. It is free and open to the public. The former Municipal Stadium site was one of four winners of a $10,000 grant from Evergy’s #SpreadGoodEnergy hometown grant campaign.
The next day, Saturday the 7th, the public is invited to join the free “March of the Monarchs,” from Monarch Plaza to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Shuttle service from the museum to the plaza begins at 10 a.m. The walk will celebrate the Kansas City Monarchs’ 1942 Negro Leagues World Series championship—and give the team the parade they never received 80 years ago. More here:
David Izzard recently discovered two vinyl records he borrowed from the Kansas City Public Library—60 years ago. Here’s more from the library:
Of the two endangered buildings on the northeast corner of 31st and Main, the Jeserich Building is the most recognizable. Built in 1880, here are a few images from its 142-year history.
Artful City: One weekly selection with a Downtown connection
Quick Clip: The city in motion—just a few seconds at a time
Downtown Lens: A single image depicting the urban aesthetic
Answering the question “Who are all these people and where are they going?”, The Loop brings you a list of some of the biggest events happening Downtown each week. Please give a friendly Downtown-Kansas City welcome to audiences and attendees of….
TODAY
Halo Championship Series last day at Bartle Hall
Imagine Dance Challenge finale at Music Hall
Finally the Folly: Benjamin Boyle’s Canata No. 1 with the KCKCC choirs and Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with Zsolt Eder, Eman Chalshotori, and Charl Louw, tonight at the Folly
MONDAY the 2nd
Pet Food Forum, today through Wednesday at Bartle Hall
TUESDAY the 3rd
“Fiddler on the Roof,” The Broadway Musical, today through May 8 at the Music Hall
WEDNESDAY the 4th
FRIDAY the 6th
UMKC Conservatory Finale at Kauffman Center
Lyric Opera of Kansas City presents Tosca, tonight and May 8 at Kauffman Center
Country performer Jordan Davis at the Midland
Tekila at KC Live! in the Power & Light District
SATURDAY the 7th
Kansas City Symphony: The Composer is Dead and other Musical Mysteries at Kauffman Center (2 p.m.)
Derby Extravaganza and Whiskey Mash Band at KC Live! in the Power & Light District (afternoon events)
“Jazz & Jackie: A Musical Salute to Jackie Robinson" at the Gem Theater
10th Annual Kansas City Burlesque Festival at the Folly
Comedian Bert Kreischer, today and tomorrow at the Midland
For a more exhaustive list of everything happening Downtown, go to the VisitKC events page and use the “regions” function to search for Downtown, Westside/Southwest Blvd, West Bottoms, River Market, Power & Light, Crown Center, Crossroads, 18th & Vine—or anywhere you want to go in the KC Metro
Got a tip about Downtown today or our Downtown history?
Write to: tips@kcdowntownloop.com or contact me via social media
Until next week—enjoy the city!