#214: Edward Jones Dome

Of all the cakes, this one was THE hardest one to get. That is, if you were picky about how you wanted to take the picture of this cake. I'm not gonna lie, this was my third attempt to get the cake, and I was able to do it at the right time. As you probably already know, I wasn't already a fan of indoor cakes. Luckily it's not just me. There's a lot of cake-hunting people out there wondering why this one is over-secured.

The Edward Jones Dome has been the home of the St. Louis Rams, the city's professional football team. It has been that way since 1995, back when the place was known as the Trans World Dome, or 'the TWA dome'. The name changed in 2001 after the ill-fated company was acquired by American Airlines. The Edward Jones company purchased the naming rights in 2002. It is in question if the Rams will be playing in St. Louis for the 2015 season.

The Rams were brought to St. Louis from Los Angeles, where they played starting in 1946. The team was born in Cleveland in 1937. The Los Angeles Rams were iconic during their stay in the 'City of Angels', with several championship appearances and bringing notable players including Bob Waterfield and Merlin Olsen. The team, because of its grand location, was featured in many movies and TV shows, notably in Warren Beatty's movie Heaven Can Wait. When it was announced in 1995 they were re-locating to St. Louis, it definitely wasn't a popular move among Southern Californians and team fans, as well as former players. Actor Fred Dryer (best known for TV's Hunter, who played defensive end from 1972 to 1981) was very bitter about the move, criticizing Georgia Frontiere (the team's then-owner) and the organization. To this day, the city of Los Angeles has not had a pro-football team. There have been rumors that the Rams will come back there, but no confirmation.

The Rams are St. Louis's fourth pro-football team, the first since the St. Louis Cardinals left in 1987. The first St. Louis football team was the St. Louis All Stars, who played one lone season at Sportsman's Park in 1923. In 1931, the St. Louis Gunners had a short-lived time as well, ending in 1940.

Since moving to St. Louis in 1995, the team has brought quite a legacy to its hometown. But in most ways, it was short-lived, as we saw a rise-and-fall glory. St. Louis had their first football championship in 2000 when the Rams won their first (and so far, only) Super Bowl winning title. Led by Kurt Warner, Isaac Bruce and Marshall Faulk, the team was very unstoppable during their 1999 season. They would return to the Super Bowl in 2002, but were defeated by the New England Patriots. Their last playoff appearance was in 2004, but since then the team has suffered a major slump. As noted above, due to many things, the team's stay in St. Louis is in question.

The dome has hosted many events, including the religious convention, the Promise Keepers. Billy Graham and his 'Billy Graham Crusade' brought 200,000 to the Dome in 1999. A monster truck show was featured there. College basketball and football have been played there as well. Concerts included U2's PopMart tour in 1997, the Rolling Stones that same year, and in 2001 the boy band N' Sync brought their Pop Odyssey Tour there. The most recent concert was OneDirection in 2014.

The cake, which focuses on the heritage of St. Louis:

Wikipedia link

701 Convention Plaza, ST. LOUIS, MO, 63101
Cake artists: Stacey Sandweg and Gary Lang