Ever been to a drive-in movie? I have good memories of me as a little kid wearing spaceship pajamas and watching a double feature from the back seat of our car. Maybe you have a treasured memory like that, and if so, you’ll be glad to know that drive-ins are experiencing a rebirth in the new millennium.
Almost 500 open, abandoned, and former sites of drive-ins in 49 states were visited in the making of this film. That alone is reason enough to want to watch, but April Wright also does an excellent job of tracking the rise and fall of this cultural icon in the context of American entertainment history. From the first bed sheets hung in the trees for a screen in 1933 (that was in Camden, New Jersey, and admission was only 25 cents a carload) through the heyday in 1958 when drive-ins boasted playgrounds and concessions that made the places more like theme parks (including pony rides, mini golf, and bumper cars) than outdoor cinema.
Interviews with cinema legend Roger Corman and Richard Hollingshead III, who is the son of the inventor of the drive-in, provide insight into how drive-ins evolved and changed with the times.
Daylight Savings Time changed the drive-ins, since when that was adopted, most parents didn’t want to bring their younger kids to see a movie that started when it got dark at 9 p.m. The introduction of the television certainly took a bite out of the drive-in market share, making it easier for families with younger children to stay home, watch their own movies and eat their own popcorn.
However, as parents stayed home with the little kids and the 60s brought youth unrest and the civil rights movement, the drive-ins began to feature fewer family films and more movies to attract a teenage and adult audience, which included beach/biker/gang movies, horror, science fiction, martial arts and exploitation films.
That seems ideal for those of us who love those kinds of movies (and for a while they enjoyed success and popularity at the drive-in), but new challenges to the drive-ins began to arrive every year, from the development of the VHS to the gas crisis. Many drive-ins fell into disrepair and faced insurance issues from neglected playgrounds, fire hazards in faulty speakers, and screens damaged by floods or high winds.
For a while, it looked as if the drive-in as an entertainment option would be gone forever. Then certain cities began to experiment with outdoor movie settings that brought groups of people away from home computers and televisions and put them on blankets and lawn chairs under the stars to watch movies together. As that began to happen, the drive-in audience as a viable market began to grow again, and some drive-ins have reopened, while others are opening for business for the first time.
Fans of both the drive-in and movie history will enjoy this documentary. It includes special features such as classic concession trailers and footage of the landmark Route 66 Admiral Twin in Tulsa, which won a $35,000 grant from Hampton Inns' Save-A-Landmark program.
More information is available at www.goingattractions.com.
Laura Long is a writer who lives in Sevierville, Tennessee. She owns and operates the website, Celebrate Knoxville.
Almost 500 open, abandoned, and former sites of drive-ins in 49 states were visited in the making of this film. That alone is reason enough to want to watch, but April Wright also does an excellent job of tracking the rise and fall of this cultural icon in the context of American entertainment history. From the first bed sheets hung in the trees for a screen in 1933 (that was in Camden, New Jersey, and admission was only 25 cents a carload) through the heyday in 1958 when drive-ins boasted playgrounds and concessions that made the places more like theme parks (including pony rides, mini golf, and bumper cars) than outdoor cinema.
Interviews with cinema legend Roger Corman and Richard Hollingshead III, who is the son of the inventor of the drive-in, provide insight into how drive-ins evolved and changed with the times.
Daylight Savings Time changed the drive-ins, since when that was adopted, most parents didn’t want to bring their younger kids to see a movie that started when it got dark at 9 p.m. The introduction of the television certainly took a bite out of the drive-in market share, making it easier for families with younger children to stay home, watch their own movies and eat their own popcorn.
However, as parents stayed home with the little kids and the 60s brought youth unrest and the civil rights movement, the drive-ins began to feature fewer family films and more movies to attract a teenage and adult audience, which included beach/biker/gang movies, horror, science fiction, martial arts and exploitation films.That seems ideal for those of us who love those kinds of movies (and for a while they enjoyed success and popularity at the drive-in), but new challenges to the drive-ins began to arrive every year, from the development of the VHS to the gas crisis. Many drive-ins fell into disrepair and faced insurance issues from neglected playgrounds, fire hazards in faulty speakers, and screens damaged by floods or high winds.
For a while, it looked as if the drive-in as an entertainment option would be gone forever. Then certain cities began to experiment with outdoor movie settings that brought groups of people away from home computers and televisions and put them on blankets and lawn chairs under the stars to watch movies together. As that began to happen, the drive-in audience as a viable market began to grow again, and some drive-ins have reopened, while others are opening for business for the first time.
Fans of both the drive-in and movie history will enjoy this documentary. It includes special features such as classic concession trailers and footage of the landmark Route 66 Admiral Twin in Tulsa, which won a $35,000 grant from Hampton Inns' Save-A-Landmark program.
More information is available at www.goingattractions.com.
Laura Long is a writer who lives in Sevierville, Tennessee. She owns and operates the website, Celebrate Knoxville.
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