The Drive-in theater - Stories for my grandchildren

 

I was surprised to learn that there are still 370 operational drive-in theaters in the United States. Haven't given it much thought, but I know that it has been years since I have seen even a deserted theater, screen towering tall over an abandoned car park. Most have been torn down at this point.

Growing up, the drive-in was an integral part of the social fabric for me and my friends. It was the place to take a date because, not to put too fine a point on it, it was a great place to make out. Oh, and they showed movies, too. Mind you, we took dates to the down-town theaters, too, but those were...well, more formal dates. A certain decorum was expected there.

The drive-in had a broader appeal than just as a passion pit; it was a favorite family destination. There was a playground up front, just below the screen, and you could turn the kids loose for the evening, or bed them down in the back. Baby-sitters not needed. Though Barb and I found out that sometimes that didn't work out well. Our small son showed a great deal of  interest in the controversial (for the times) Midnight Cowboy while we desperately tried to get him to go to sleep. Some week-day nights were Dollar Nights - the whole car for one dollar. If you had a pickup, you backed into your space, and sat in lawn chairs in the bed of the pickup. 

And don't forget the concession stand, purveyor of some really bad food. It was in the building up front, usually dug into the ground somewhat so you could see over it. 

I am told that some kids, to avoid the cost of a ticket, would crawl in the trunk of the car and pass through the ticket line undetected, emerging only when the car had come to a stop. I assure you that it is an urban legend that sometimes the driver would circle completely through the drive-in and stop in the ticket line again, whereupon the hidden miscreant would emerge in full view of the ticket taker.

And if you forgot to put the speaker back on the pole when the movie was over, either the speaker or the window would lose the ensuing tug-of-war. At the drive-in of my youth, the speakers were connected with  steel cables in addition to audio wires. No contest.

In 1958, the year of my high school graduation, there were 4036 drive-ins open in the US; 382 of them were in Texas. This marked the zenith of the industry. Twenty years later there were only half that many drive-ins, and they were closiing at the rate of 150 theaters a year. In 2007, the latest year for statistics, there were 17 theaters in Texas; 18 in California.

Two things killed the drive-in theater; rising land values and daylight savings time. Most theaters were close to, if not in, the communities they served. Urban sprawl made the land so valuable the owners could not pass up the chance for a windfall profit. Daylight savings time, though enacted long before the heyday of the drive-in, was spotty at best until the 60's. Summertime was drive-in time, and waiting until dark meant a 9pm or so start. Too late for most folks.