Parks Magic
A Vamp '55 Helmet Labeled 'for Kenneth' Now Sits Inside an HHN 35 House, Universal's Tribute to a Late Team Member
News

A Vamp '55 Helmet Labeled 'for Kenneth' Now Sits Inside an HHN 35 House, Universal's Tribute to a Late Team Member

Michael Travels
·
Published

If you walk through H.R. Bloodengutz Presents at Halloween Horror Nights 35 this fall, look for a gold football helmet sitting on top of an old TV. It was placed there in memory of a team member.

Universal Orlando has added a tribute to Kenneth Leeming, a team member who died in early September, WDW News Today reported on Tuesday, September 22. The helmet carries the Vamp '55 logo and the words "for Kenneth."

The main stage of the Midnight Horror Show set inside the H.R. Bloodengutz haunted house at Halloween Horror Nights 35.

The main stage of the Midnight Horror Show set inside H.R. Bloodengutz Presents. Image credit: Universal Orlando Resort.

Why a Vamp '55 helmet

According to WDWNT, Leeming joined Universal in 2015, working as a scareactor in that year's Insidious house. The following year he performed as a Vampire Football Player in the Vamp '55 scare zone. WDWNT reports he died after a lightning strike as he was heading home from work.

The setting has meaning as well. H.R. Bloodengutz Presents: A Halloween Fright-Tacular! sits where the Insidious house stood in 2015, according to WDWNT, so the tribute is in the spot where he started at Universal.

A gold football helmet reading Vamp 55 for Kenneth sits on top of a wood-cabinet console TV with rabbit ear antennas, a clock radio and vintage Halloween cutouts on the wall behind it

The Vamp '55 helmet on top of a TV inside the house. Photo via WDW News Today.

What his friend said

Kyle Fleming, who co-hosted the podcast Big Dumb Stuff with Leeming, shared a post on Instagram that WDWNT quoted in its report. "Kenneth was so excited for this 35th year of HHN, and it's very cool to know that he is there in spirit every night," Fleming wrote. "We love you Kenneth, and we miss you every day, and now you are in the fog with us."

Fleming credited Mike Aiello, Ramon Paradoa and others with making the tribute possible. Paradoa is the show director of H.R. Bloodengutz Presents, according to the Universal Orlando blog.

WDWNT's report does not include a statement from Universal.

Close-up of a gold football helmet with a black facemask, printed with a script Vamp logo, a block-numeral 55 and the words for Kenneth below it

A closer look at the helmet. Photo via WDW News Today.

If you are going: Halloween Horror Nights 35 runs on select nights at Universal Studios Florida through November 1.

Sources

Image credits: Main stage image by Universal Orlando Resort. Helmet photos via WDW News Today.

Mentioned in this story

Check out our guides for more on each place in this story:

Universal Studios Florida Halloween Horror Nights 35

Related News

Universal Studios Hollywood Adds a $19.95 to $24.95 Ticket to Ride Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift During Halloween Horror Nights

Universal Studios Hollywood Adds a $19.95 to $24.95 Ticket to Ride Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift During Halloween Horror Nights

Universal Studios Hollywood is selling a new Halloween Horror Nights add-on ticket for nighttime access to its week-old coaster, which the park had been opening during the event only to select guests. Theme Park Insider reports the price moves with the night, from $19.95 to $24.95, and the coaster runs only from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Event admission is still separate, and Orlando gets its own version in 2027.

September 23, 2026 News
The Middle of the Maya Pyramid Is Filled In at Animal Kingdom, and the Encanto Casita Now Reads as a House From the Air

The Middle of the Maya Pyramid Is Filled In at Animal Kingdom, and the Encanto Casita Now Reads as a House From the Air

New aerial photos published this week show a third carved section now seated in the center of the Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent facade, closing the gap that was open steel at the start of this month. Across the site, the steel skeleton of the Casita has risen far enough that the outline of the house is readable, with faux rockwork climbing the show building behind it.

September 23, 2026 News
The Turf Club Reopens September 30 With a Menu That Drops the New York Strip, the Pork Chop and the Scallop Pasta

The Turf Club Reopens September 30 With a Menu That Drops the New York Strip, the Pork Chop and the Scallop Pasta

Disney says The Turf Club Bar and Grill reopens at Saratoga Springs on September 30 and published the new menu without prices. Set against the pre-refurbishment menu Disney's own dining page is still showing, five of the eight entrees are being replaced, there is no scallop left in what Disney published, and the number of dishes credited to The Land pavilion at EPCOT falls from seven to two.

September 23, 2026 News
Sunday Morning You Can Run Through SeaWorld Orlando Before It Opens, Past the Manatees and Dolphin Cove, for the MADD Monster Mash & Dash

Sunday Morning You Can Run Through SeaWorld Orlando Before It Opens, Past the Manatees and Dolphin Cove, for the MADD Monster Mash & Dash

The 2026 MADD Monster Mash & Dash takes over SeaWorld Orlando on Sunday, September 27. It is an untimed three mile course through the park before the gates open to the public, with a costume contest, a Memory Mile honoring victims of impaired driving, and a surprise animal ambassador. Registration closes at 7 a.m. race morning, and MADD says security check in closes at 6:30.

September 23, 2026 News