Drive-ins?

Stormin-Normin gave me a great idea for a thread in his reply to mine in the Intros thread. Does anyone have any drive-ins by them? We have atleast three around here that I know of. One even just added a second screen. We used to go in the minivan(pre-wagons). But now I have my wagon and I had to add the rear facing seat as mine did not come with one. I hope it's a good year for movies.

 

We just lost our last one! But I've got a whole new idea for that. Put a few of the old 8MM pull-down screens on the back wall of the house and run one of the new Panasonic media projectors on it! A whole new revival in Drive-in theatre. Just use headphones so the neighbours don't get too pi$$ed off! I'm just missing the greasy butter...

 

But back to your topic. I've been to some fine drive-ins over my time. Dad had a new 1958 Ford Ranchwagon and that was the break of the week for my mother and myself. We were five kids and I was the expert cloth-diaper changer. Anyway, for some reason, my sibblings didn't load up there diapers while were at the Drive-In! We'd just line them up in the cargo area on a mattress, and watch the flick!

Did you ever wonder why you could pull out the speaker without breaking the window? They were 1/4" thick with a vinyl laminate! Today, they're 1/8" tempered class with no laminate sandwiched in between. I think we pulled 3 out over the years we had that car.

 

ive got a few. i plan on taking the wagon this summer. i want to add a rear facing seat that folds flat into the cargo floor with speakers just for the drive inns!

 

Not too many left here in Southern California. I guess the land got to be worth too much for the drive-in owners. Most appear to have been sold to developers.

The Olympic Drive-In where I used to go as a kid (corner of Olympic and Bundy in West L.A.) is now a big Cadillac (and other makes) dealer

Highway 39 Drive-In on Beach Bl. at the 22 freeway in Westminster (Orange County) is now the site of a Wal-Mart, Burger King, and I think a Home Depot.

The Stadium Drive-In on Katella near where I now live was actually turned into a mega-theater complex with 25 screens, restaurants and falderal.

The Orange Drive-In on State College was the last to go. It is currently under development as an apartment complex, part of a much larger redevelopment complex near Anaheim Staduim.

What we do have (and what I see being offered elsewhaere) are fair-weather temporary drive-in locations. Our local county fairgrounds puts up a temporary inflatable screen and shows 'classic' type movies. I believe you get the audio over your radio on a low-power FM transmitter at the site. Haven't been yet, but I think the wifey might try it sometime.

 

We have two in the Chicago area that I know of. One is in McHenry, IL and the other is in West Chicago (not the west side of Chicago). I brought my '78 wagon to the one in McHenry, it was a first for me to be at a drive in.

It's sad, McHenry was a nice country are, low traffic, low crime, no one was in a hurry, and then time cought up. You can see all the home developments around the drive in. It's only a matter of time when this theater vanishes like anything else that "makes sence".

As for me and the '78 Ford wagon. When I pulled in to the drive in, I parked "Clark" backward but before I could get settled in, some kid about 17ish asked if I could move my car. I asked why. His reply "Well when you flip open your tailgate, it will be in the way of ppl behind you"

So I said "come here, let me show you how a station wagon like this works". I showed him, his eyes got wide, then he brought over some of his coworkers to show.........If I had a clamshell, that kid would have lost his mind.

Jonny

 

My parents loved movies and there were seven kids in my family so it was off to the drive-in every couple of weeks when it was nice out, in the wagon of course.
My favorite part was the playground they all had just below the screen, one had a train and a mini roller coaster.
There are a few drive-ins left here, an old one with the best flea market around closed a couple of years ago.
A couple were showing X-rated movies in their last years but even that couldn't keep the developers away.
I would say there are four within an hour of me, one's about 20 minutes away, all out in the sticks.

 

yea i have to drive 45 mins away to get to the closest one here. its sad that all the drive ins are shutting down....

 

There used to be one right by the house my mom grew up in, it was called the StarLite and they would watch the movies (with no sound) from the bedroom window.

 

That's funny we used to go to one called the Starlite drive-in. You didn't happen to grow up in Pa did you?

 

They just tore down the one near me to build apartments. I've never been to a drive in in my 40 years on this Earth.

 

Ahh the memories, as a teen growing up in St. Louis i would visit 4 drive inns in my dads datsun 710 wagon. sadly i watched them all close and become strip malls. the last one to go was the rought 66. an american classic. if my memory is correct the last movie i saw there was terminator, or maybe raw deal? i was with my girl friend, now my wife. dang that was a long time ago.

 

No, it was in Menomonee Falls, WI. I beleive it got torn down in 04

 

We had 3 drive-ins here on the westside of Cincinnati within our little area. They were all lined up along the railroad tracks. This did pose a slight problem when a big freight came roaring by. They are all gone and so is the railroad. Life sucks!

 

P.S. We had a Starlight Drive In on the other side of Cincinnati.