Ah, the drive-in. Where else can you find scratchy cheesy awesome to the MAX movies? Its the ONLY way to see your favorite b-movie of choice! Or so I've heard....
Unfortunatly, Ive never been able to experience the awsomeness that is the drive-in. Not many exist anymore. I dont evenknow if theres any around where I live. It's really sad. I wonder why they're so scarce nowadays? I dunno. maybe I didn't miss anything. It was before my time.
Well I remember the Drive-In and the there are a couple around here that only show movies on the weekend and only in the summer. The Multi-Plex killed the Drive In with their THX dolby digital surround sound and comfy seats. Unlike the theater of my youth with the hard wooden seats and mono sound.
The Drive-In was not so much for watching movies as it was for necking and hanging out, kids snuck in by hiding in the trunk and it was only like 25 cents a head, so often one person would drive in and pay and the rest would hope the fence and meet you on the back row. You'd have the crappy little speaker you'd put in the window and some of them even broadcast the movie on the radio.
And if the kids got board there was a play ground right down in front of the screen were the kids could play, back in the day when you could let you young kids go play alone and not have to worry about if they'd return or not or if some prev was waiting for them.
And don't forget the concession stand up by the projector room (where kids would try to jump up and get their shadow om the screen) They had everything you needed, hotdogs, hamburgers, popcorn, candy, smokes and the one we went to had beer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BW1VluGucyI
Oh those were the days ... and if you never had the funny of hanging out at the drive (and sometimes waking up in one which was a flea market by day) then yeah, I'd have to say you missed out. I have tons of fond memories of the drive in and watching crappy double features. The Drive In is not gone, but it's on life support. Much like many of the old downtown theaters they to are fading away and but some are still around. The world is a changing place and it's not always for the better.
There are still a few near where I live. They certainly have gotten scarce over the last few years. It's been a long time since I actually went to one though that's more a factor of where I have to drive to get to one. I remember loving the experience of going to the drive-in as a kid in the early 80's.
I really wish that they would make a comeback but the demographics are against them. However, I think those demographics hurt mom & pop establishments with little management experience.
Personally I enjoyed the drive-in more than the theater. In your car you could bring your own food, throw back the seat and relax. Modern cinema seating arrangements have much to be desired. It feels like flying coach. All are packed in tiny seats with no room to spread out. Give me that outdoors open-air experience.
Theres a few left around here-one in Hartford,the 3-Mile Drive In.
The first movie I saw at a drive in was NOT a cheezy flik...it was 2001:A SPACE ODDESSY! I dumped a soda pop in Deads rear window radio speaker...boy was he p**sed!!!! the last drive in I went to was ion Long Island NY...saw RETURN of the LIVING DEAD with my brother Glen,while sitting onna hill outside of it...drinking Jim Beam and smoking ciggerettes.
Like cheezy said...the small town movie houses are going out too. Happily-the rinky dink one in Paw Paw,the Strand,is still with us. I seen MANY double features there. Lotsa good times...they even have a balcony! It's not open now...in bad shape...and kids (like me once) usta throw popcorn down at people on occasion... :wink:
Quote from: KYGOTC on March 05, 2008, 01:07:58 AM
I dunno. maybe I didn't miss anything. It was before my time.
Unfortunately, you missed a lot. Drive-ins were wonderful. There are still a couple in my area (about 1 hour drive from my house), but they aren't the same as they were years ago.
Most of them closed because the property was too valuable to devote to a business that was only open at night and (in my area, New England, could only be open a few months during the year when the weather was favorable). Also, current audio technology is difficult to reproduce through car stereo speakers, so the sound is better in a theater than at a drive-in.
But I wish they would make a comeback.
The only problem with drive ins was that I rarely remember the movies. Darned girls :hatred: You basically parked and made out. And drank and got high. I honestly have no idea what movies were playing. But I have memories of other things :bouncegiggle:
When I was a little kid (before girls) I remember going to a lot of them with my parents. The Poseidon Adventure, The Graduate, Clockwork Orange, etc. I loved that metal speaker you'd hang on the window. What high fidelity! The one in our town closed a looooong time ago. The old theater closed a long time ago too, now it's a pizza place and the local DFL political office. All replaced by the multiplex.
We used to have a drive-in a few streets away when I was a kid. I could actually see the screen from my house ... at an angle and through a tree.
It closed down when I was very young but I still went a few times. The screen and all the poles with speakers on them sat around abandoned for years. I wish it was still there. Would be great to take a laptop and a portable projector to :smile:
I had many good times at the drive-in in Malvern Arkansas where I grew. Our folks used to take us there. When I was in high school and started driving it was pretty much every weekend thing. I saw Night of the Living Dead, The Wild Bunch, and numerous hell angels sagas there.
A few years later when I got out of the Navy, I worked as the cashier there while going to electronics school. By this time they had started occasionally running X-rated marathons. Sometimes we ran out of speakers and just sold parking spots. For some reason the patrons didn't seem to mind.
I would love to go to a drive-in. My dad tells me when the shining came out, i was there in the back of a van in a playpen..but never got to go when i got older. Recently it came to my attention though, that in the town of Waverly, TN, there is a drive in that is open during the summer months. Its about a two hour drive from here, but its definitely on my to-do list this summer. I just hope they play something that is drive-in worthy.
Speaking of drive-ins, I love the movie Dead End Drive-In, too bad they wont be showing it.. i love the pure cheese of it..
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 05, 2008, 09:09:49 AM
I would love to go to a drive-in. My dad tells me when the shining came out, i was there in the back of a van in a playpen..but never got to go when i got older. Recently it came to my attention though, that in the town of Waverly, TN, there is a drive in that is open during the summer months. Its about a two hour drive from here, but its definitely on my to-do list this summer. I just hope they play something that is drive-in worthy.
Speaking of drive-ins, I love the movie Dead End Drive-In, too bad they wont be showing it.. i love the pure cheese of it..
Waverly, TN? That's not far from here. In what direction are you away from there? There is also 2 drive-in's Memphis and a few others around TN, KY, AL, MS, AR, and GA.
Oh I think there is one in Dickson TN too ... Broadway Drive-In Theatre.
Ah drive-ins...the quintessential American movie experience. If you've never been, then yes, you have missed out.
For teens, the advantages need not be mentioned.
For adults with children, they are better than a regular theatre. We go a few times a year to the one about 1 hour away. If either of the children start to get fussy, they pretty much disturb only us.
The social aspects before the show are a lot of fun. Folks play frisbee or football, there is a playground, a fair amount of tailgating and well, everyone is JUST FRIENDLY. It reminds me of how neighborhoods used to be and how I wish mine were today.
One thing I don't get, though, is all the comments that the demographics are not there. The one we go to generally fills up or very nearly so. They are open Friday, Saturday and Sunday during the summer. Sometimes the line to get in is about a mile long. Last summer, they added a second screen. It is in a rural location not particularly close to any big city. It is by far the cheapest way for a family to go see a movie, and it is just a TON more fun than regular movie houses. (Note on cost: they show double features on BOTH screens every night...so for LESS than you pay at a regular movie for ONE flick, you get TWO at this drive-in - on holidays like Labor Day, they show triple features, for the same entrace fee!!). Like us, a lot of folks make the drive to this out-of-the-way place.
By the way, I HATE multiplexes. HATE them. I feel too much like a sheep herded in by corporate bean counters whose interest in me ends the moment I buy the ticket. I don't get this at the drive-in. It's very friendly, the folks that run it are very cool, and believe me, it is the personal touch.
So, do some research - find one. An hour drive or even more is NOTHING to give for the experience. Support any drive-in you can find to keep this bit of Americana alive. It will be worth it.
When my brothers and sisters and I were very young we went to the DRIVE-IN as a special treat, wore our pajamas, brought our pillows, drank lemonade or soda, ate chips and hot dogs. We rarely watched the movie, though I do remember seeing LT. ROBIN CRUSOE, U.S.N. (1966) CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG(1968) (you can guess what my Dad called that one...) COLD TURKEY (1971)... funny, my parents must have been assuming any DICK VAN DYKE movie was family friendly. :smile:
Years later, I nearly lived at the DRIVE-IN in Union, New Jersey in my youth. Last time I saw a film at that (or any) drive-in was at least 25 years ago, probably a year or two more. The last pic may have been, believe it or not, STAR WARS, 4 or 5 years after it had been first released, so 1981 or '82. It was the first time I had seen it (had not been interested at all up to that point, but loved it immediately.) It was the Summer or two before JEDI opened up, there was a preview for REVENGE OF THE JEDI (yeh, before the name changed - I remembered that tidbit because I was so buzzed to see the "final" film that I made a point to see EMPIRE while it was in re-release shortly after I saw STAR WARS.)
We saw so many wretched movies, sometimes more than once (like STROKER ACE, SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT III, METALSTORM: THE DESTRUCTION OF JARED SIN...) We drank, smoked dope, ate junk food.
I can relate to all of the memories cited, the playground, the refreshment stand, the crappy speakers (once I was too buzzed to drive so my date drove, prob'ly more wasted, and neglected to remove the speaker. She hit the accelerator and ripped the damned thing right off... :bouncegiggle:)
Like some others of my age group, I have fond movies of dressing up in pajamas, playing on the playground, and easting hot buttered popcorn in the backseat of my parents car. Usually, the first feature was some adult themed (yet PG rated) movie of no interest to an 8 year old boy, so me brother and me usually paid no attention and were already zonked out by the time the 2nd R-rated feature started. The only film I remember actually watching and enjoying at the drive in was YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974): and boy, did that leave an impression!
By the time I was a teenager we'd moved from South Texas to the Northeast, where drive-ins were not prevalent. Still, we managed to do the usual teenage drive-in activities in parked cars, just without the aid of a movie or hot buttered popcorn.
If you're thinking of going to one of America's few remaining drive-ins, you owe it to yourself to read Joe Bob's Impeccable Guide to Drive-In Etiquette (http://www.carload.com/joebob.htm) first.
The movies I remember most in our drive-in were JAWS, MAD MAX, THE BLUES BROTHERS, THE GONG SHOW: THE MOVIE, and many more. They also had films from dust till dawn, but we were driven home once the films became a bit to risque later in the night. They also had swing sets and playground under the big screen where kids would play.
Found this picture of one of the many Drive-Ins that I use to go to in the Elmira, New York area when I was a kid. Their was actually a river behind the screen at the one in the photo below. People would fish before the sun went down while the cars where still coming in. Not sure when the photo was taken, but last I knew it was still open.
(http://www.shs58.org/graphics/elmira_drive_in.jpg)
Elmira Drive-In
I've missed so much. This summer, i'm hunting down a drive-in and enjoying the hell out of it.
I've got not one but two Drive-ins that are near my house. I haven't been in years. I know I should be enjoying them while they're still open but I can't find a bunch of people who want go on a Fri or Sat night.
QuoteOh I think there is one in Dickson TN too ... Broadway Drive-In Theatre.
There's actually a fairly new theater near me in Watertown, TN called the Stardust Drive-In, which they opened just a couple of years ago. They now have two screens and on each screen they show double features!
It doesn't have the delicious sleaziness of the drive-ins of our youth, but it pretty close for these days.
Here's the link to their website:
http://www.stardustdrivein.com/ (http://www.stardustdrivein.com/)
Quote from: CheezeFlixz on March 05, 2008, 09:34:46 AM
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 05, 2008, 09:09:49 AM
I would love to go to a drive-in. My dad tells me when the shining came out, i was there in the back of a van in a playpen..but never got to go when i got older. Recently it came to my attention though, that in the town of Waverly, TN, there is a drive in that is open during the summer months. Its about a two hour drive from here, but its definitely on my to-do list this summer. I just hope they play something that is drive-in worthy.
Speaking of drive-ins, I love the movie Dead End Drive-In, too bad they wont be showing it.. i love the pure cheese of it..
Waverly, TN? That's not far from here. In what direction are you away from there? There is also 2 drive-in's Memphis and a few others around TN, KY, AL, MS, AR, and GA.
Oh I think there is one in Dickson TN too ... Broadway Drive-In Theatre.
I live in Dresden, which is right outside of martin, tn where university of tn is, guess you could say i'm a little north to the halfway point between nashville and memphis...close enough to pay high prices but too faraway to have anything to do....hahha
Quote from: KYGOTC on March 05, 2008, 01:07:58 AM
Ah, the drive-in. Where else can you find scratchy cheesy awesome to the MAX movies? Its the ONLY way to see your favorite b-movie of choice! Or so I've heard....
Unfortunatly, Ive never been able to experience the awsomeness that is the drive-in. Not many exist anymore. I dont evenknow if theres any around where I live. It's really sad. I wonder why they're so scarce nowadays? I dunno. maybe I didn't miss anything. It was before my time.
I used to go to ione in Western Iowa, it is still open. Try this":
http://find.mapmuse.com/interest/driveins
Maybe there is one near you, or where you will be sometime.
-Ed
Don't feel bad...
I've never been to a drive-in either.
We used to have one here on the southern edge of town but it's been closed since the mid 80's.
At the spot where it sat, you can vaguely make out that a drive-in used to be there. (nothing was ever built on the site)
Strangely, my parents never took me to it. They always went to regular theaters.
The nearest drive-in for me is like 200 miles away.
Maybe one of these days some friends and I will make a road trip out of it and check it out.
Here's another interesting site:
http://www.driveinworkshop.com/
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 05, 2008, 03:09:46 PM
Quote from: CheezeFlixz on March 05, 2008, 09:34:46 AM
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 05, 2008, 09:09:49 AM
I would love to go to a drive-in. My dad tells me when the shining came out, i was there in the back of a van in a playpen..but never got to go when i got older. Recently it came to my attention though, that in the town of Waverly, TN, there is a drive in that is open during the summer months. Its about a two hour drive from here, but its definitely on my to-do list this summer. I just hope they play something that is drive-in worthy.
Speaking of drive-ins, I love the movie Dead End Drive-In, too bad they wont be showing it.. i love the pure cheese of it..
Waverly, TN? That's not far from here. In what direction are you away from there? There is also 2 drive-in's Memphis and a few others around TN, KY, AL, MS, AR, and GA.
Oh I think there is one in Dickson TN too ... Broadway Drive-In Theatre.
I live in Dresden, which is right outside of martin, tn where university of tn is, guess you could say i'm a little north to the halfway point between nashville and memphis...close enough to pay high prices but too faraway to have anything to do....hahha
I know exactly where Dresden is at (been there many times), I'm in Farmington, KY half way between Murray and Mayfield KY. I think you are closer to the Drive-In in Calvert City, KY up by KY Dam Village. There a few thinkg do to around here, this weekend at the Maiden Alley Cinema in Paducah they played Citizen Kane and Blade Runner. Ever go there?
Quote from: Ash on March 05, 2008, 05:55:11 PM
The nearest drive-in for me is like 200 miles away.
Maybe one of these days some friends and I will make a road trip out of it and check it out.
It was fun, but not at all sure the experience would be worth a 200 mile roadtrip unless it was really about the "road trip." Remember, you guys who haven't been to a DRIVE-IN, that it's a nostalgic experience for us who grew up with it. I think it's better in memory than in actuality, but we've all also grown into lovers of BAD MOVIES, and that's one thing you could count on the DRIVE-IN for. I can remember mosquitoes and gnats flying in your ear... Many times, if you wanted to look at the movie, there would be some brat or a**hole trying to make shadows on the screen (during the movie and repeatedly that gets annoying) or the radio listening partiers who are not there for the movie and get louder the more you ignore them, or the out-of-focus image, torn screen, underpowered projector, broken speaker after broken speaker... they actually had signs that said: "If speaker is accidentally ripped loose, leave on top of post." :lookingup:
Man, I
am making the DRIVE-IN sound good!
Here is a list of drive in theaters, I don't know how current the list is or how complete, but it's better than nothing.
http://www.driveintheater.com/drivlist.htm (http://www.driveintheater.com/drivlist.htm)
Drive-Ins are best IMHO in the back of a pick up truck, with a lawn chair and a cooler. We use to take a grill and cook burgers and hotdogs while there. I don't know if it would be anything near what it use to be like, somehow, sadly I don't think it would. The world is not the same place it was in the 50's, 60's and 70's.
The last movie I saw was at a Starlite Drive In on a date I she wanted to see Blue Lagoon so we went to Drive In and saw ... I don't think we watch a single minute of the movie.
The Drive-ins in my area don't use speakers. They broadcast the audio on low range AM radio. You can listen in the car or bring a portable radio and listen outside. Much cheaper than replacing broken off speakers.
Quote from: KYGOTC on March 05, 2008, 12:40:35 PM
I've missed so much. This summer, i'm hunting down a drive-in and enjoying the hell out of it.
You really ought to give it try. It may not be the nostalgic experience we're all remembering, but I think that you'll enjoy it.
The one I used to go to almost had a carnival atmosphere to it. There would be people hanging out and talking. Kids would be running around. Everyone was waiting for dusk for the film to start. I still remember the popcorn that my parents made. They would pop it at home and fill a whole grocery bag with it.
If you do go this summer you'll have to give us a report of you experience.
Quote from: Justy on March 05, 2008, 08:30:59 PM
If you do go this summer you'll have to give us a report of you experience.
Don't worry, i plan to.
Be sure to visit the SNACK BAR. This one does go on...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyMgavL2zVE
These are classic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gz5DrzdBHRg
It's best HOT...! It's best COLD...! It tastes... kinda OLD...!
Quote from: Allhallowsday on March 05, 2008, 11:48:53 PM
Be sure to visit the SNACK BAR. This one does go on...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyMgavL2zVE
I feel sorry for the guy who did the drawing and animation for that thing.
Employer- "So tell me why we should hire you to work for us here at (major animation studio)"
Guy- "Well, ya know those lousy intermission things that played inbetween movies at drive-ins durring the 60's and 70s? That was all me, baby!"
Quote from: CheezeFlixz on March 05, 2008, 06:45:29 PM
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 05, 2008, 03:09:46 PM
Quote from: CheezeFlixz on March 05, 2008, 09:34:46 AM
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 05, 2008, 09:09:49 AM
I would love to go to a drive-in. My dad tells me when the shining came out, i was there in the back of a van in a playpen..but never got to go when i got older. Recently it came to my attention though, that in the town of Waverly, TN, there is a drive in that is open during the summer months. Its about a two hour drive from here, but its definitely on my to-do list this summer. I just hope they play something that is drive-in worthy.
Speaking of drive-ins, I love the movie Dead End Drive-In, too bad they wont be showing it.. i love the pure cheese of it..
Waverly, TN? That's not far from here. In what direction are you away from there? There is also 2 drive-in's Memphis and a few others around TN, KY, AL, MS, AR, and GA.
Oh I think there is one in Dickson TN too ... Broadway Drive-In Theatre.
I live in Dresden, which is right outside of martin, tn where university of tn is, guess you could say i'm a little north to the halfway point between nashville and memphis...close enough to pay high prices but too faraway to have anything to do....hahha
I know exactly where Dresden is at (been there many times), I'm in Farmington, KY half way between Murray and Mayfield KY. I think you are closer to the Drive-In in Calvert City, KY up by KY Dam Village. There a few thinkg do to around here, this weekend at the Maiden Alley Cinema in Paducah they played Citizen Kane and Blade Runner. Ever go there?
I've never been to Maiden Alley Cinema, i think i've been to paducah twice since i moved down here. funny how its such a small world. i usually do all my shopping in mayfield or murray, and sometimes Fulton. You can't find atmosphere like the Whistin Pig just anywhere ya know! lol
i'll definetely check out maiden alley though..
:bluesad:
There is only one drive-in left in Pretoria at www.menlynpark.co.za (http://www.menlynpark.co.za) and this one is not on the ground at all: it is on top of the parking garage, seven stories up. Great if you get drunk or high and decide to go for a walk..... :buggedout:
There is another in Johannesburg, the "Velskoen", about 50 miles south of us and that is officially the oldest drive-in cinema in Africa.
The hundreds of drive-ins in South Africa have gone: sadly buried under housing complexes and strip malls. Sad, damn sad. :bluesad:
First drivein movie I saw that I remember was Disney's "Lady and The Tramp". To this day, I can see the back seat of our old Ford whenever they play a clip on TV or some such --
Went to see "Cinderella" there in a driving rainstorm. Had to watch through flapping windshield wipers.
Growing up in The South (Kilmarnock, Virginia), there were the obligitory 4 restrooms: 2 White & 2 Colored.
* * *
There is a drivein across the street from a motel out here in some small Colorado
town, whose name escapes me as I write this, but the screen faces the picture-windows of the motel rooms. You can tune in the sound through that same low-end AM band referred to here earlier. I know people who DO drive hundreds of miles to experience that!
peter johnson/denny crane
I remember in the early 80's our local drive-in (where, just a couple of years earlier we had seen the GO APE! marathon of all five Planet of the Ape movies!) went to showing X-Rated films only. The interesting point, at least for us teenagers, was the fact the screen faced a rural road -that you could dive down and get a load of the movie for free. There would be steady traffic on that road at showtime!
For the record - the last non-porno movie I remember playing there was SCANNERS (1981).
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 06, 2008, 05:03:01 AM
I've never been to Maiden Alley Cinema, i think i've been to paducah twice since i moved down here. funny how its such a small world. i usually do all my shopping in mayfield or murray, and sometimes Fulton. You can't find atmosphere like the Whistin Pig just anywhere ya know! lol
i'll definetely check out maiden alley though..
Paducah has quite a bit going on, as does Murray at the college they have the Cinema International on campus ... it doesn't run all year but each semester and is open to all to view, the cost is cheap. If you're artsy Paducah has a good art district lot's of galleries and studios
Maiden Alley (http://www.maidenalleycinema.com/)
Cinema International (http://www.murraystate.edu/chfa/ModernLanguages/cinema.htm)
And here is the link to the glorious Calvert City Drive-In
Calvert City Drive-In (http://www.calvertdrivein.com/)
Oh and you have your standard set down theaters in Murray (Cheri), Mayfield (Princess), Paducah (Cinemark), Union City (Hollywood) and Paris (Parisian) don't forget to see the Eiffel Tower over by Lowe's.
Quote from: CheezeFlixz on March 06, 2008, 08:42:21 PM
Quote from: SisterGrace on March 06, 2008, 05:03:01 AM
I've never been to Maiden Alley Cinema, i think i've been to paducah twice since i moved down here. funny how its such a small world. i usually do all my shopping in mayfield or murray, and sometimes Fulton. You can't find atmosphere like the Whistin Pig just anywhere ya know! lol
i'll definetely check out maiden alley though..
Paducah has quite a bit going on, as does Murray at the college they have the Cinema International on campus ... it doesn't run all year but each semester and is open to all to view, the cost is cheap. If you're artsy Paducah has a good art district lot's of galleries and studios
Maiden Alley (http://www.maidenalleycinema.com/)
Cinema International (http://www.murraystate.edu/chfa/ModernLanguages/cinema.htm)
And here is the link to the glorious Calvert City Drive-In
Calvert City Drive-In (http://www.calvertdrivein.com/)
Oh and you have your standard set down theaters in Murray (Cheri), Mayfield (Princess), Paducah (Cinemark), Union City (Hollywood) and Paris (Parisian) don't forget to see the Eiffel Tower over by Lowe's.
I'm quite familiar with paris, I came down here once before to stay with my father for a brief time during highschool. Naturally i fell right in with the neighborhood hoodlums and once in a drunken state, watched several of them climb the tower...or rather attempt to climb it.
As far as Union City goes, I've been to their theatre once..recently i found a cool little place to eat over there called PV's. check them out, its kinda dingy in there but they have AWESOME chili dogs!!