Drive in Theaters I miss them.

Thank you so much for sharing your memories of drive-ins, Iwinder (and everyone else on this thread). It has been my life-long DREAM to visit a drive-in one day, but unfortunately I was born too late...there may still be a couple of them in Canada, however they are nowhere near me at present.

I truly feel society is missing out on so much socializing, being mostly shut-up in their homes with entertainment; the drive-in days seem like wonderful times for sure.

The closest thing I have experienced was a movie on the beach; they set up a big screen in the shallow part of the water, and everyone scooped out beach "chairs" in the sand. It happened to coincide with a full moon, and was a pretty magical evening all in all.

I still hold out hope that for nostalgia's sake, drive-ins will make a come-back. Don't even get me started on the gorgeous cars of the 50's, 60's & 70's as compared to today - perchance I was born in the wrong time or have serious nostalgia for a past life...

Man, I miss them.
We always thought we were so cool, because we got to lay up on top of the blazer! Dad always had all kinds of goodies stashed too.

They have a nice three screen in Lubbock, Tx. We go a couple times a year. They still play the same intermission cartoon. The concession house has really good diner style food.

a reply to: Iwinder

Ummm...There's one about ten minutes from my house...it's always a double feature...the food sucks in a good way...(gotta love the sauteed onion, pepper, mushroom and cheese stacked hot sausage)...

I love that it uses my sound system in the car through the radio...You can usually find the family and I there when something decent plays...




YouSir

I remember going to drive-ins with my parents and siblings. We'd play in the playground in the front of the big screen then the movie would start right at twilight and we'd rush back to the car and get cozy under a blanket.

When I was a teenager, we teens would couple up and then hide a couple of kids in the trunk of the car so they would not have to pay, well, we were teens and didn't have a lot of money. We went often and they never checked the trunk.

a reply to: InTheLight
I can't believe how many parents hid their kids lol.

Nowadays the police would be called for free-range-imprisonment-parenting or some nonsense.

originally posted by: zazzafrazz
a reply to: InTheLight
I can't believe how many parents hid their kids lol.

Nowadays the police would be called for free-range-imprisonment-parenting or some nonsense.

I believe the drive-in staff weren't stupid and just let people in. I mean, why not, allow kids for free? It would have made a good business lure for more parents to bring their children. Like restaurants nowadays, with their kids eat free deals.

The intermission ads were hilarious. We had a favorite ad we always made fun of.
The one where they tried to lure you to the snack bar by showing people eating and drinking,
with the 'narrator' talking non-stop. There were two narrators. A guy with a deep, confident voice, and a
woman with a pleasant, "fun" voice. They over-hyped the snacks and drinks to a degree that bordered on insane.

"Delicious drinks served ice cold, sure to quench your thirst, and mouth-watering treats and snacks of every kind!
Whatever you're in the mood for, we're sure to have it at our snack bar! Always fresh and delicious! None better
anywhere!"


This isn't the specific ad, but it's close. It goes from the :30 mark to the :50 mark.
"Richly coated, taste-filled candy bars that are sure to please you."

I have a theater about 5 minutes from my house. They recently added a nice miniature golf course. They are Nazis about sneaking people/food in but if you pay $20 a car you can bring a cooler full of anything except booze.

We had one in town that when I was little, I called "the un-finished sign". We could see the screen from my friends roof. Saw quite a few movies I have no idea what was said.

Incidentally, when we go to Pipestem State park in WVA for vacation, they have one that still appears to be open.

originally posted by: zazzafrazz
a reply to: InTheLight
I can't believe how many parents hid their kids lol.

Nowadays the police would be called for free-range-imprisonment-parenting or some nonsense.

LOL thanks for the big laugh zazzafrazz :-)
Probably closer to the truth than we think.

Regards, Iwinder

originally posted by: argentus
I fondly remember Drive-Ins. The last one I went to was with m'Bride before she was m'Bride -- more than 30 years ago. Don't remember the movie. I remember what she wore.

Remember the terribly crackly speaker? Music that sounded like an ant band? Those were the best, because they set people on a course to lampoon the movie, whatever it was.

Wonderfully greasy bacon cheeseburgers. Popcorn dripping with "butter flavoring" and those perfectly shriveled hot dogs, languishing in their over-steamed buns, flaccid and waiting for condiment embellishment.

Remember when people would convince the snack box that somebody MUST be paged or life itself would end? The crackly music would be interrupted by a crackly announcement....... "Fred Mortensen, call home immediately. Daisy is foaling."

I have lamented the extinction of the Drive-In for many years. Just ain't right.

Killer post and thanks for sharing your personal experiences combined with your writing skills its a good one for sure.
I totally forgot about the paging system and the funny thing is looking back I don't believe our drive in ever had a working phone or a toilet for that matter. :-)
I do remember they had no water fountain at all and thus you must purchase the plastic tasting liquid they called soda. No way in hell anyone would drink water out of one of the bathroom taps!
Regards, Iwinder

Such great memories of the drive-in.

My favourite was every season they would pull a "dusk to dawn" with 3 or 4 horror movies back to back.

One time the last movie was "The Car", and you could just see everyone start their car and then look around for this black car before pulling out. Was freaky when you were surrounded by cars.

edit: not the right video link (sorry)

Namaste,
YogaGinns

I recall one first date when I was young and virtuous. He took me to the drive in and pawed me relentlessly, so I asked him to stop and take me home. We left the drive in and then he forced me out of the car on a dark corner in a section of the city I did not know and so I had to make my own way home. Terrible experience.

originally posted by: network dude
We had one in town that when I was little, I called "the un-finished sign". We could see the screen from my friends roof. Saw quite a few movies I have no idea what was said.

Incidentally, when we go to Pipestem State park in WVA for vacation, they have one that still appears to be open.

It would have been the cat's ass for me in your situation, yes indeed I can read lips and figure out what is being said.
I would have spent all summer on your friends roof.....hell I would have pitched a tent and never left till fall.
Regards, Iwinder

a reply to: network dude

We could see the screen from my friends roof. Saw quite a few movies I have no idea what was said.

Ha !

That reminds me of the time hubby and I watched the Rolling Stones concert from the roof of our house way back in 1991. We only lived a couple of blocks from the stadium and were just starting out in life, so needless to say we couldn't afford to buy tickets.

The concert was at the Winnipeg football stadium (an open air stadium), so we invited a whole bunch of friends over, climbed on top of the house with our beers and sat there watching the entire concert for free... the music was loud enough to hear it like as if we were right there.

When you haven't got two nickels to rub together... desperate times call for desperate measures !

I live by one. to be honest, it took me a while to figure out what the heck it was when I moved here.

When you think about it though, kind of a flawed business model, which is why they died out.
A little rain or in-climate weather, and your customers are gone. Even fog would thwart you.

Of course, a sheet, a projector, and a laptop that can play a DVD, and pretty easy to recreate the experience at home. I have a lot of friends who like to do something like this, and show a movie in the backyard, etc, while everyone drinks around the fire pit.

a reply to: Gazrok

When you think about it though, kind of a flawed business model, which is why they died out. A little rain or in-climate weather, and your customers are gone. Even fog would thwart you.

Yep I agree just like tube TV's and my Moms ringer washer (That washer fascinated me when she put the wet laundry through the ringer mechanism. Our fist TV B&W and up on stilts for legs was a real treat, Dad was the only one allowed to operate it and it we only watched it for maybe 2 hours a week. At least back then things took years and years to become obsolete and even then they stuck around after the fact they were old.

I remember our original furnace that came with the new house my parents bought in the mid to early 50's. The thing was bigger than an older mini van and almost owned one end of our basement. That furnace ran like a top for 40 years and then some. Probably worth a fortune now for the scrap value:-)

I just checked it out and the closest drive in to us is just like I said in the OP about 55 miles away and I wanna go and drink waxed pop and eat withered soggy crappy hot dogs!
www.starlitedriveintheatre.com...

Regards, Iwinder

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

I was in a trunk a couple of times
Part of the drive in thrill


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