In the early 1970s, the idea of a commercial haunted attraction was still a novelty. However, scare-entertainment concepts were percolating with a Missouri family, leading to the 1975 launch of Edge of Hell Haunted Attraction in Kansas City. Visitors are still drawn to this American original, like zombies rushing to fresh blood.
A seismic shift in haunting occurred with the family’s next generation launching the Beast Haunted Attraction in Kansas City sixteen years later. Amber Arnett-Bequeaith, aka the Queen of Haunts, grew up at Edge of Hell and then returned from college to concept Beast and ensure it could rival the Edge of Hell that her mother and grandmother created. The Beast ushered in the open format of scaring. Visitors did not follow a predictable path and instead could get lost, disoriented, chased by monsters, and have difficulty finding their way out.
Taking the Beast beyond the rapture of the original haunt drove the Beast’s storyline of the history of the ‘beast of man.’ Souls of the living (and some dead) travel the Beast’s time-warp from the medieval times of torture and the era of transformative werewolves to the evil of Jack the Ripper, pirates, and the Salem witch trials. And if that weren’t enough, the journey includes swamp creatures, voodoo spells, and many other unexpected twists and turns. The Beast is still going strong now in its 32nd season and still getting recognized by its peers and fans alike as one of the scariest haunted attractions in the nation.
“It’s all about taking people to a different dimension,” Queen of Haunts said. “We concentrate on the psychological aspect of scaring as we try to discover what makes people feel the most vulnerable and scared. It takes a broad range of tactics to ignite all the senses. The result is an adrenalin rush that goes from fright to fun.”
About the Beast and Edge of Hell Haunted Attractions:
The Beast and Edge of Hell are world-class haunted house attractions presided by the Queen of Haunts. Edge of Hell is the oldest haunted attraction still operating in the US, with its 1975 spooky start. The haunted attractions have always made charities central to their operations. Helping children and pet charities in the community, including the anti-bullying program “Don’t Be A Monster.” These massive haunts in towering century-old buildings are located in the Historic West Bottoms Entertainment District near Downtown Kansas City. The area’s attractions include the Ghost and Gangsters Ghoul Bus Tour and the Full Moon Escape rooms.
