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drive in movies (thanx to Molfan)Get Rating Widget!

Overall Rating: 4.42 based on 19 ratings

not sure if this would count but you almost never see a drive in movie. they were all over the place when i was a kid and teen. (Add picture)



This item was submitted by Molfan (53) on 2/28/2006 10:55:54 AM.

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Reviews for drive in movies (thanx to Molfan)  1-17 OF 17

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SharonParry (44)
09/14/2006
I'm pretty sure they will come back to being popular again because so many people miss them. I know there's still a few left but they are hard to find right now. Thing is, when they do get popular again, the price will probably be outrageous6
MissPackRat (33)
09/01/2006
The last movie I saw at a drive-in was "ET". I was eight. I'll admit, it was a great childhood memory of good times with the family.

Drive-ins seemed to have died during the '80s, though. Now we have DVDs and video tapes available to build our own private movie libraries with a variety of favorites, old and new. Get a delicious snack and enjoy our favorite screen gems in the comfort of our own homes. This works just as well for me.		3
VirileVagabond (31)
08/04/2006
Like most of the other reviewers, I too miss the drive-in theaters that once thundered across the American suburban plains. This experience was more of a social event rather than watching cinema, whether it be a family night out (I had a (now shameful) childhood crush on of all people Barbara Streisand after "What's Up Doc") or piling as many friends and contraband into your high school piece of junk of a car. Certainly home video and pressures from land developers were the cause of their ultimate demise, but they do appear to be experiencing some resurrection (hence the 3 stars), as people are always drawn to retro eventually and there is a rather popular one in Atlanta (with multiple screens).5
Silver Eagle 252 (12)
05/09/2006
Many great drive-in memories. My favorite drive-in was demolished to make way for a Wal-Mart (may explain my immediate distaste for Wal-Mart without ever having stepped foot in one). Even though most drive-ins are gone, I guess I can always go to one of the many drive-in churches.4
JohnSpina (20)
04/29/2006
Movies in general are becoming obsolete due to videos.Drive ins were neat.You can see a movie from the comfort of your car.The wait staff would come out and serve you in some cases.A nice little slice of Americana that I do miss.5
twinmom101 (32)
03/02/2006
My grandfather owned two of them out in the small Iowa town where my family is from. He went bankrupt when the whole drive-in theater market collapsed and he then passed away a couple years later. The ruins of the drive-in still exist on the outskirts of town and a couple of times my brothers and cousins and I have gone out there just to remember it all. Funny thing is, I still run into people from that small town and they all have great stories of sneaking in, first kisses and first dates out at the drive-ins. Most of the crap on this list we're better off without, but drive-in movies- there is something that will always tug at my heart of good times long past.9
edt4 (88)
03/01/2006
Can't tell you how much I miss these. Being from NJ, where they first appeared in the 1930's, that's perhaps understandable. My parents took me there from the time of my infancy, and I continued going right up until the early 80's, when they seemed to virtually disappear. My most vivid memory from childhood was seeing "Planet Of The Apes" in 1968 at the Anthony Wayne drive-in next to the Willowbrook Mall (it's now an office complex). There was a lunar eclipse that night, and they also ran Laurel and Hardy shorts. There used to be the Rt. 3 drive-in in Rutherford (I saw "Clockwork Orange" there), which faced the highway, and you could catch scenes from various movies on the drive home from NY (again, there are office complexes now where the drive-in used to be). When I turned 18, my friends and I went to the Somerville drive-in, where they were running several Hammer horror movies, and gave out free coffee and donuts at midnight to those hardy souls like ourselves who managed to stay right through to the bitter end. We managed to see everything there, from Grade-A Hollywood blockbusters to the cheesiest of independent horror flicks, taking a break only to avail ourselves of the greasy eggrolls, parched popcorn, and cardboard pizza. And as terrible as the food might have been, or the movie we were watching, or the date we were watching (or not watching) the movie with, it was all a wonderful (and sometimes not so wonderful) experience that lives on in the memory and that I regret the kids of today can no longer partake of. There are some drive-in theatres in upstate NY and Pennsylvania that I've seen but the magic is gone...they're playing the same insipid, multi-million dollar epics that play in the local multiplex. All the former drive-in theatres in NJ now seem to be office complexes. I guess the theatres just couldn't afford the real estate any longer. Like a ghost in the graveyard created by rampant, unbridled capitalism (Reagan-style), their memory remains.9
Franks_Wild_Years (36)
03/01/2006
There is still one in the small town where my family has a cottage. A couple of summers ago we were at the cottage in the spring time and we noticed that later that summer the drive-in was going to feature "Spirit, Stallion of the Cimaron", an animated feature our kids wanted to see. We planned our whole summer vacation around getting to the Killarney Drive-in for August 1st. That day we were about 250 miles away camping with some friends. We woke up early packed up our gear and drove across the province to the cottage. As we drove the weather turned foul, the sky blackened, lightning cracked and it rained the biggest fattest rain I'd seen in years. But we pushed on. We got to the cottage, emptied the van of the camping gear (except the pillows and sleeping bags), made a huge bag of contraband popcorn and stashed soda pop in the smuggler's hatch in the back of the van. In spite of the heavy rain, we drove to the drive-in on the edge of town, and pulled into a great spot in the front row. As the coming attractions were playing the rain broke, the clouds cleared and the kids cheered. We had a gorgeous starry night. I don't even remember if the movie was any good, but the whole family still talks about the night. The Kilarney Drive-in still has the big cast metal speaker boxes that you hang inside your car on your window.7
IgnatiusJReilly (78)
03/01/2006
Thyere are two still in the phoenix area. Only problem is that they have modernized at now use low power to broadcast through your car radio. The Reillymoblie has no radio, so I never go. The only reason to go to the drive in now is the swap meat on the week-ends.4
BugahaNE (20)
02/28/2006
What a sad tragedy these have gone to the wayside. All of us maybe mid 30's to 60 something have some great memories of drive-inns. There is one still in my area, and I'm happy to say it's packed in the summer. Unfortunately it's in a booming suburban area and developers are dying to buy this land.8
HistoryFan (87)
02/28/2006
There's still a drive-in movie theater about a couple of miles away from home and I remember my parents taking me there to watch a couple of movies when I was about 15 or so. The first one was the live action version of "101 Dalmations" with Glenn Close, which I liked very much. The second was "Mars Attacks" which was an "Indepencence Day" rip off that put me to sleep.4
trebon1038 (55)
02/28/2006
I say kind of miss them because we have one near here and the one I went to all the time in my home town is still open. I havent been to one in awhile but they sure were a great way to spend a summer night.5
Drummond (56)
02/28/2006
It was great for families. The kids would get their movies early, then fall asleep in the back while the grown ups watched theirs. First you'd get one of their radio boxes, then later you could simply receive the sound on your AM radio. Some drive ins would send girls around to sell you treats. I believe there is one drive-in remaining in the Bay Area. A handful around the country.6
Molfan (53)
02/28/2006
I had some nice memories of the drive in movie places when I was a kid and teenager in the 60 and 70s.my mother would make some popcorn and we might get to buy some food from the concession stand. I loved the warm weather when they were open in Michigan. always a double feature and we never made it to second movie or were asleep while my parents watched it.i still remember those silly commercials that encouraged you to visit the concession stand with the dancing hotdogs, and popcups. Sadly by the time I was about 16 they were starting to leave and they were not quite as safe to go to. too bad. my kids never got that chance to experience a drive in movie.3
frogio (50)
02/28/2006
Ridge, your story reminds me of my fun days at the drive-in. I had this old Caprice Classic, and in order to save money we used to only put two or three people in the inside of car, but block it's huge trunk with most of my buddies. The drive-in was off this long and extremely bumpy road, so it was really uncomfortable for the half dozen or so stow-aways bouncing, and moaning in back. One summer the Drive-in, sick of being ripped off by people sneaking in, decided to go from a "pay per person" arrangement to a "pay per car" arrangement. However, being in the trunk, the rest had no idea...and we never told them. So, every Saturday night, right on time, you would see this old Caprice rolling through the cow pasture...with the passengers in the trunk kicking and screaming, and the passengers in the front howling with laughter. They still don't know to this day.8
oscargamblesfro (70)
02/28/2006
I miss them too, because they also had flea markets on Sunday. They were phasing them out by 1980, but they were cheap and fun.6
Ridgewalker (116)
02/28/2006
Oh...what great memories I have of sneaking into the drive-in movie theater that was mere blocks from where I grew up. I saw my first monster movie at a drive-in...Rodan. I can remember seeing the feet of the guy inside Rodan sticking out. There was a playground under the screen if we got there early. Even then, the food was so crappy that we brought our own. Making our "bones", back then, was being the guy who got in the trunk for a free pass in. This was high intrigue...getting the guy out without being caught. Yes, the drive-in is on it's last exhale...BUT...Stark and I found a drive-in multiplex in Auburn, Washington not too long ago...and it was PACKED. We had to park way in the back, because we pulled in, in our RV. What went wrong here? They were so magical... Anyone want to form an RIA Investment Group and revamp an old drive-in? "B" movies with a cartoon. Th-th-th-th-that's all folks!11
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