1 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:07,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to Aaron Manke's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of 2 00:00:07,480 --> 00:00:14,440 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio and Grimm and Mild. Our world is full of 3 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:18,440 Speaker 1: the unexplainable, and if history is an open book, all 4 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:22,159 Speaker 1: of these amazing tales are right there on display, just 5 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:28,880 Speaker 1: waiting for us to explore. Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. 6 00:00:36,320 --> 00:00:40,080 Speaker 1: When it opened, it was enormous. The Higatt Regency Hotel 7 00:00:40,159 --> 00:00:43,880 Speaker 1: opened in downtown Kansas City in July of nineteen eighty. 8 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:47,320 Speaker 1: It's forty five stories tall and has seven hundred and 9 00:00:47,400 --> 00:00:51,080 Speaker 1: fifty rooms. One year in the history of the hotel, 10 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:55,400 Speaker 1: on July seventeenth of nineteen eighty one, fifteen hundred patrons 11 00:00:55,440 --> 00:00:58,640 Speaker 1: attended a monthly dance party at the hotel. They filled 12 00:00:58,640 --> 00:01:02,960 Speaker 1: the large lobby, including these suspended walkways that stretched across 13 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:07,160 Speaker 1: the atrium from the second, third, and fourth floors. Suddenly, 14 00:01:07,520 --> 00:01:10,840 Speaker 1: everyone on the walkways heard a loud snap from above, 15 00:01:11,280 --> 00:01:15,720 Speaker 1: and then they were falling. Time slowed, and all sound 16 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:19,680 Speaker 1: seemed to disappear as the fourth floor walkway, with hundreds 17 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:22,919 Speaker 1: of people on it, came loose from its steel suspension 18 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:26,200 Speaker 1: rods and crashed onto the second floor walkway below it. 19 00:01:26,640 --> 00:01:30,000 Speaker 1: That walkway immediately fell as well, with both of them 20 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:33,920 Speaker 1: plumbing to the lobby below. Dozens of people were instantly 21 00:01:34,040 --> 00:01:37,520 Speaker 1: killed by the collapse of the walkways. Most were completely crushed, 22 00:01:37,560 --> 00:01:40,720 Speaker 1: but some were cut in half or had limbs severed. 23 00:01:41,040 --> 00:01:44,760 Speaker 1: Loose electric wires swung across the lobby, and a broken 24 00:01:44,840 --> 00:01:47,720 Speaker 1: water line from the fourth floor sprayed water down onto 25 00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:51,320 Speaker 1: the catastrophe below. For those people trapped beneath the rubble, 26 00:01:51,520 --> 00:01:54,200 Speaker 1: there was now a risk of drowning as water began 27 00:01:54,320 --> 00:01:57,760 Speaker 1: to pool beneath them. Someone called nine to one one 28 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:01,720 Speaker 1: and soon emergency workers arrived outside, but they didn't have 29 00:02:01,800 --> 00:02:04,480 Speaker 1: easy access to the lobby. The whole front of the 30 00:02:04,480 --> 00:02:07,640 Speaker 1: building was blocked by the collapse. They had to call 31 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:11,400 Speaker 1: in heavy construction equipment and begin cutting away the debris. 32 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:15,000 Speaker 1: It was like a horror movie, as behind each removed 33 00:02:15,040 --> 00:02:18,400 Speaker 1: piece of debris was the shocking sight of dozens of 34 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:22,960 Speaker 1: horribly mangled bodies. Once emergency workers could get inside, they 35 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:25,800 Speaker 1: had to quickly usher out everyone who could walk, and 36 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:29,920 Speaker 1: then they started triage. In the end, one hundred and 37 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:34,040 Speaker 1: fourteen people died. The walkways had collapsed due to a 38 00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:38,320 Speaker 1: fatal engineering flaw. As I mentioned, these were suspension walkways, 39 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:41,440 Speaker 1: meaning that they were hanging from the ceiling by steel rods. 40 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:46,960 Speaker 1: A last minute changed, though, had made this design extremely unsafe. Originally, 41 00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:49,800 Speaker 1: each walkway was supposed to carry its own weight on 42 00:02:49,840 --> 00:02:53,000 Speaker 1: a set of their own metal fasteners to those steel rods, 43 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:55,320 Speaker 1: but the builders thought that it would be too difficult 44 00:02:55,360 --> 00:02:57,840 Speaker 1: to build metal rods that would be long enough to 45 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:01,440 Speaker 1: reach all of them, so instead of each walkway supporting 46 00:03:01,480 --> 00:03:04,359 Speaker 1: its own weight, only the top one ended up being 47 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:08,480 Speaker 1: supported by the rods connected to the ceiling. The bottom one, though, well, 48 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:11,320 Speaker 1: that was supported by the walkway above it, which put 49 00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:14,760 Speaker 1: a lot more weight on those fasteners than intended. All 50 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:17,760 Speaker 1: it took was one hundred patrons to send it crashing down, 51 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:21,320 Speaker 1: and just as terrifying, the standards were so lax at 52 00:03:21,320 --> 00:03:24,600 Speaker 1: the engineering firm. That's as different people moved on and 53 00:03:24,720 --> 00:03:27,840 Speaker 1: off the project, there was no clear paperwork trail of 54 00:03:27,960 --> 00:03:32,560 Speaker 1: design changes or review of those changes. The engineers, the builders, 55 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:36,040 Speaker 1: the owners, and the city inspectors all had an opportunity 56 00:03:36,080 --> 00:03:39,080 Speaker 1: to catch this flaw, but none of them did. The 57 00:03:39,120 --> 00:03:42,520 Speaker 1: engineering firm was found most liable. They lost their license 58 00:03:42,560 --> 00:03:46,120 Speaker 1: and were sued for one hundred million dollars by various parties. 59 00:03:46,560 --> 00:03:49,960 Speaker 1: The disaster also led to improve safety standards across the 60 00:03:50,000 --> 00:03:54,160 Speaker 1: country and is now standard freshman course material for any 61 00:03:54,240 --> 00:03:58,480 Speaker 1: engineering student. It shows how engineers are just as responsible 62 00:03:58,480 --> 00:04:02,440 Speaker 1: for public safety as any firefighter, police officer, or doctor. 63 00:04:02,840 --> 00:04:06,040 Speaker 1: So if you're a curious listener, engineering might just be 64 00:04:06,120 --> 00:04:10,000 Speaker 1: the profession for you. It's a job that requires constant curiosity, 65 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:14,080 Speaker 1: always checking and rechecking, running the math, running it again, 66 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:18,200 Speaker 1: being vigilant for any mistakes. Engineers may not be on 67 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:22,360 Speaker 1: the front lines or thrust into emergency situations, but they 68 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:25,720 Speaker 1: make decisions every day that are still a matter of 69 00:04:25,760 --> 00:04:42,440 Speaker 1: life and death. Washington, d C. Is often referred to 70 00:04:42,480 --> 00:04:45,400 Speaker 1: as the Halls of Power. That's an easy enough metaphor 71 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:48,520 Speaker 1: to understand too. The decisions that governed the United States 72 00:04:48,560 --> 00:04:51,720 Speaker 1: all get made within the hallways of Washington and its 73 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:55,719 Speaker 1: surrounding buildings. Like many capitals across the world, it's expected 74 00:04:55,720 --> 00:04:58,479 Speaker 1: that this is where power lives in America, which is 75 00:04:58,520 --> 00:05:02,720 Speaker 1: why it's so puzzling with official government buildings are absolutely 76 00:05:02,760 --> 00:05:06,360 Speaker 1: falling apart from neglect. Well, I'd like to tell you 77 00:05:06,440 --> 00:05:09,640 Speaker 1: about one building in particular that was once referenced as 78 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:12,760 Speaker 1: the ugliest building in the world in spite of it 79 00:05:12,839 --> 00:05:16,680 Speaker 1: holding immense importance to the US federal government. That would 80 00:05:16,720 --> 00:05:20,279 Speaker 1: be the J. Edgar Hoover Building on Pennsylvania Avenue, six 81 00:05:20,320 --> 00:05:22,640 Speaker 1: and a half blocks away from the White House. It's 82 00:05:22,680 --> 00:05:27,400 Speaker 1: an imposing concrete structure with enormous square columns and walls 83 00:05:27,440 --> 00:05:31,400 Speaker 1: of bland inset windows. Designed by the Chicago based architecture 84 00:05:31,400 --> 00:05:35,719 Speaker 1: firm Murphy and Associates. It's the platonic ideal of brutalism, 85 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,880 Speaker 1: and it served as the FBI headquarters for the last 86 00:05:38,920 --> 00:05:41,760 Speaker 1: fifty years, and for at least half of that time 87 00:05:41,960 --> 00:05:45,240 Speaker 1: the FBI has been trying desperately to get out of it. 88 00:05:45,880 --> 00:05:48,560 Speaker 1: The Federal Bureau of Investigation has been a pillar of 89 00:05:48,560 --> 00:05:51,840 Speaker 1: American law enforcement ever since its founding in nineteen oh eight. 90 00:05:52,160 --> 00:05:55,479 Speaker 1: There's a self made mythos to its existence that they're 91 00:05:55,560 --> 00:05:59,960 Speaker 1: the elite, stalwart defenders of the American Constitution from terrors 92 00:06:00,279 --> 00:06:03,280 Speaker 1: and foreign influence, and of course that mythos is hard 93 00:06:03,279 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 1: to square with the really decrepit office building. It was 94 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:11,000 Speaker 1: originally designed with a pedestrian observation deck that people could 95 00:06:11,120 --> 00:06:14,080 Speaker 1: use to survey the surrounding buildings. Of course, when the 96 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:17,480 Speaker 1: building first opened in nineteen seventy five. The observation deck 97 00:06:17,560 --> 00:06:21,799 Speaker 1: was immediately closed for security concerns and has remained closed 98 00:06:21,960 --> 00:06:25,360 Speaker 1: for the last half century. For much of the nineteen seventies, 99 00:06:25,560 --> 00:06:28,960 Speaker 1: the building was a public iore. J Edgar Hoover himself, 100 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:32,120 Speaker 1: the FBI director who gave the building its name, was 101 00:06:32,200 --> 00:06:35,719 Speaker 1: privately disgusted with the design, referring to the building as 102 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:40,160 Speaker 1: a monstrosity. He would die three years before it opened. Now, 103 00:06:40,279 --> 00:06:42,960 Speaker 1: as hideous as it is to much of the general public, 104 00:06:43,000 --> 00:06:45,599 Speaker 1: the design of the Hoover Building has a very specific 105 00:06:45,640 --> 00:06:50,240 Speaker 1: aim to project strength and intimidation. Its namesake was a 106 00:06:50,279 --> 00:06:54,240 Speaker 1: famous and controversial figure for bringing a tough guy attitude 107 00:06:54,240 --> 00:06:57,640 Speaker 1: to the Justice Department, cracking down on civil rights figures 108 00:06:57,839 --> 00:07:01,800 Speaker 1: as much as those suspected of terrorism. The unadorned concrete 109 00:07:01,880 --> 00:07:04,400 Speaker 1: facade of the building is a relic of the days 110 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:07,920 Speaker 1: when the FBI wanted to be seen as America's secret police, 111 00:07:08,240 --> 00:07:11,360 Speaker 1: a poignant irony since it was under construction during the 112 00:07:11,480 --> 00:07:14,800 Speaker 1: Nixon years and opened a year after the president resigned 113 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:18,560 Speaker 1: in disgrace because of the Watergate scandal. Starting in the 114 00:07:18,560 --> 00:07:21,440 Speaker 1: early two thousands, the J. Edgar Hoover Building was more 115 00:07:21,480 --> 00:07:24,880 Speaker 1: than an iceore, it was also a safety hazard. Regular 116 00:07:24,960 --> 00:07:27,840 Speaker 1: inspections of the building determined that the plumbing was out 117 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:30,920 Speaker 1: of date, the fire alarms and smoke detectors were in 118 00:07:31,000 --> 00:07:34,440 Speaker 1: dire need of replacement, and the elevators and air conditioning 119 00:07:34,560 --> 00:07:37,800 Speaker 1: units were reaching the end of their life cycle. What's more, 120 00:07:37,920 --> 00:07:41,440 Speaker 1: the concrete that made up the walls themselves was starting 121 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:43,760 Speaker 1: to crumble. It got so bad that they had to 122 00:07:43,800 --> 00:07:47,240 Speaker 1: install a layer of netting outside the building to protect 123 00:07:47,280 --> 00:07:51,600 Speaker 1: pedestrians from falling chunks of concrete. For over the last 124 00:07:51,640 --> 00:07:54,680 Speaker 1: decade now, the US government has been fielding petitions to 125 00:07:54,720 --> 00:07:58,800 Speaker 1: either renovate the building or relocate the FBI headquarters altogether. 126 00:07:59,120 --> 00:08:01,840 Speaker 1: The Great Recession of the late two thousands forced the 127 00:08:01,920 --> 00:08:04,520 Speaker 1: FBI to put any plans on hold, as the cost 128 00:08:04,560 --> 00:08:06,880 Speaker 1: of renovating the building could climb as high as a 129 00:08:07,040 --> 00:08:10,560 Speaker 1: billion dollars at that point, not money that the government 130 00:08:10,640 --> 00:08:13,880 Speaker 1: had to spare. Throughout the early twenty tens, the US 131 00:08:14,000 --> 00:08:17,960 Speaker 1: government fielded proposals from private sector companies on developing a 132 00:08:18,000 --> 00:08:21,600 Speaker 1: new headquarters for the FBI. None of these proposals wound 133 00:08:21,720 --> 00:08:25,040 Speaker 1: up moving forward. A time of this recording, there has 134 00:08:25,080 --> 00:08:28,120 Speaker 1: been no effective progress on moving the FBI from the 135 00:08:28,200 --> 00:08:31,160 Speaker 1: decaying concrete shell of a building. The amount of red 136 00:08:31,160 --> 00:08:34,160 Speaker 1: tape and money required to make that move probably makes 137 00:08:34,160 --> 00:08:37,600 Speaker 1: it unlikely to happen anytime soon. So if you're ever 138 00:08:37,640 --> 00:08:40,800 Speaker 1: worried that you're being spied on by government spooks at work, 139 00:08:41,080 --> 00:08:44,839 Speaker 1: consider that maybe they're just their window shopping looking for 140 00:08:45,320 --> 00:08:51,800 Speaker 1: a new office. I hope you've enjoyed today's guided tour 141 00:08:51,920 --> 00:08:56,000 Speaker 1: of the Cabinet of Curiosities. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, 142 00:08:56,080 --> 00:08:59,599 Speaker 1: or learn more about the show by visiting Curiosities podcast 143 00:08:59,760 --> 00:09:03,600 Speaker 1: dot com. This show was created by me Aaron Mankey 144 00:09:03,920 --> 00:09:07,360 Speaker 1: in partnership with how Stuff Works. I make another award 145 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:10,959 Speaker 1: winning show called Lore, which is a podcast, book series, 146 00:09:11,040 --> 00:09:13,640 Speaker 1: and television show, and you can learn all about it 147 00:09:13,720 --> 00:09:19,640 Speaker 1: over at Theworldoflore dot com. And until next time, stay curious.