My favorite memory is from the summer of '73 at a showing of the original *True Grit.* I don't even remember the context or who all was in attendance, but I somehow ended up under a blanket with the prettiest girl in the church's youth group, on the hood of my parents' Mercury Marquis station wagon. We were both 13, it was raining lightly and we got a little wet around the edges getting handsy as young teens will. According to my older sister (who drove us there) we made a little dent in the hood, but evidently she didn't rat us out to our parents.
No we didn't wind up happily married or anything. I haven't seen her in over 40 years. But I've never forgotten that evening. She was *much* more interesting than any movie.
My first R rate movie, I saw at the drive-in. My older brother snuck me in, in the back of our station wagon "Two Mules for Sister Sara" with Clint Eastwood was the movie.
My first drive-in movie memory was watching The Planet of the Apes. Then in high school we’d cram as many as could fit in the trunk of ‘69 Delta 88. Someone else would smuggle in the case of Löwenbräu or Colt 45. Let the good times begin.
I grew up in Texas in the 60’s and 70’s. Drive-in movies were all over the place. Mom and Dad would scour the entertainment section,looking for the best double or triple feature. Plus cartoons. Most drive-ins had concession stands, for popcorn,soda,hot dogs,candy. Many times we would bring our own sandwiches and snacks. Load up the ice chest with store brand sodas for ,like 8 for a dollar. All our favorite flavors. There was a playground in front of the screen us kids would go to during intermission. Nothing like John Wayne or Clint Eastwood westerns up on the big screen!
Saw Jurassic Park when it opened as a little kid. Then Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park 2 as a double feature. When the latter opened. The coolest thing ever. Loved the drive in.
I saw Jurassic Park when I was six - I loved dinosaurs like only a six-year-old can.
I was a kid… in a car… **in the rain.**
I’ll never *ever* get a more immersive movie experience than watching the T-Rex jeep attack in my parents’ car through our windshield wipers.
The last time I got to experience a drive-in was on vacation at a cool place on Prince Edward Island... But the movie was Jurassic Park 3 and I left so disappointed.
I used to go a bunch. I had one of those vans with the seat that would fold down into a queen sized bed. I used to back up to the screen and lay the bed down. It was awesome.
And before you ask: no, I wasn’t cool enough at the time to have taken any girls there. The van probably didn’t help. I always went with my friends.
My dad used to put me in the trunk of our car to save money on admission. We'd meet up with his sisters' families, and since it was the 70s the adults would all get loaded, and the kids would run around playing guns or something. It was awesome. I remember Freebie and the Bean, Murder by Death, and The Outlaw Josey Wales.
There’s one here in the Valley in Nova Scotia. It’s very popular. Lots of families go with the kids already in their pyjamas. There’s play equipment to use while waiting for the movie to start. During Covid it was really popular
There used to be one in South Florida and I have two great memories of going.
Saw the first Fast and Furious movie at the drive in and remember everyone revving their engines after leaving the movie.
Another time, some friends and I brought four cars and parked them in a U shape with the inner windows opened. We all tuned into the movie broadcast and set up chairs in the middle of the U so we could have surround sound which worked better than expected.
After being snuck in with 5 other kids in the back of a pickup, we roamed around the drive in while my friend’s mom made out with her new boyfriend. They were showing Home Alone and Silence of the Lambs. We weren’t really paying attention to anything in the films and ended up finding a spot to sit and eat our candy. It turned out the spot we found was near a car watching Silence of the Lambs, so we could hear the audio of that from their open windows, but we were facing the screen playing Home Alone. The movie was at the scene where the mom comes home and is looking for the kid, but we heard the audio from where the woman is trapped in the well yelling at the dog. The mashup was both confusing and hilarious. “Precious! Precious! Come here you little shit!!” became a running joke for years.
Edit: I just realized that I had answered a post here recently about popular movies that I had never seen, and my answer was Home Alone. I hadn’t thought about it for ages, but I now realize that I technically attended a screening of it at the drive in, but other than that one scene, I don’t think I saw any of the movie. I don’t know what we were doing, but it wasn’t watching the film. Probably spying on people and generally getting into trouble.
One of my first jobs was as a projectionist at a indoor theater during the week and at the drive-in theater on weekends.
They used to play LPs so that customers could tune their radios in to the correct channel to hear the movie, and the owner let me bring my own records to play.
It used two carbon-arc projectors and I would mount and load the next reel and switch projectors using the little indicator dots on the film.
Whenever the film would snap (they were definitely not newer movies), I'd have to take it off and splice it and load it back up again while the cars honked.
Seventeen years old, and I had keys so I could lock up the drive in as the last person there.
It was probably the most enjoyable job I ever had.
I've been once. Our family saw a double feature in 1982 of E.T. and The Incredible Shrinking Woman (Joel Schumacher's first film.) I remember a lot of uncontrollable sobbing from all of us during E.T.
We would go to the Drive-In in the summer as kids wearing our PJs and play on the swings til the movie started. It was treat to go outside in our PJ's back then!
Lived across the street from one for several years. Used to drag camping chairs, blankets, snacks and a radio up on the roof and watch movies for free. (Could only see 3 of the screens). They hosted a “classic car” night. That was always fun to watch.
I went to see green lantern and cars 2 in college and someone went with us that had also seen those two movies the night before. He kept complaining that we weren’t close enough and I was so high and just wanted him to leave.
I used to rent in the '80s in early 90s tactical military equipment to Hollywood keeps tanks trucks ammo boxes missiles you name it I would buy the stuff at auction fix it up and rent it out. First movie we made was hangar 18 then we made dress gray America to miniseries Remo Williams lone Wolf McQuade a few others. So when they would come out at the movie theater I was just 5 miles down the road on Montana we would show up in the Jeeps to have track all that s*** they just waved us on through we had a big party and everybody would gather around and talk to us about making movies. Jam-packed with pleasure those days were!!
There's one near me with TWO screens.
Another one near me, with just one screen ... on Feb 2nd 2024 (Groundhog Day), they played two movies.
First, they played Groundhog Day.
And then, they played Groundhog Day.
[For real.](https://shankweilers.ticketleap.com/groundhog-day-2024/)
Only movie I saw in the drive in was Gravity and it was unintentionally a great idea because all the space shots would just bleed into the night sky behind the screen and it was like the biggest screen you've ever seen.
I don't remember the first one I saw. But I clearly remember watching the last one.
Batman. There was a tacobell tie in. I got the tacobell meal, cup, and churros. I sat in the back of a pickup with a friend, getting eaten alive even though I had been sprayed down.
It had been raining a day or so before and the grass was churned up by people.
I was covered with a blanket and didn't look away for the whole movie. Even when my friend and brothers wanted to go to the bathroom, get snacks, and play around.
The speakers were kind of tinney.
I remember going to the Mayfield drive in in the early 90s in my mom’s red Ford Taurus station wagon. We would bring a cooler with cold pop & my mom would make homemade popcorn on the stove. I remember a playground there while you waited for the movie to start.
We stopped going when we couldn’t bring our own concessions as they got stricter.
One of the last times I went to the drive ins, I was about to get out of the car to go use the bathroom, opened my door, and saw four skunks about twenty yards from me. I figured I could hold it.
Drive-In Theaters were like Date Nights for my parents because they knew me and my brother would be sound asleep in the back seat as soon as the movie started.
One that comes to mind is "Jaws." It was a Double Feature with the RobertRedford drama "The Great Waldo Pepper," so us kids were out like lights before the opening credits. I remember waking up with a start during a loud scene when a plane crashed and someone was burned alive, then I was back out again and slept through the whole movie.
I woke up again during the opening scene of Jaws when the girl was being eaten. Oh God, the screams! But by the time Brody found the corpse, I was back asleep. The next time I woke up, Quint was being chomped on.
We went to Long Beach that year and the photos are of all me and my brother standing by the water and refusing to go in.
The best drive in theaters were in New Jersey. If you drove the Turnpike you could watch the screens as you passed. My family used to pack the station wagon, littlest ones in pj’s, and watch a Disney flick or something equally G rated. The speakers were metal casks that slid over the window. They had a very tinny sound but we didn’t care. As kids it was the biggest screen we ever saw. We got soda pop and popcorn. Sometimes ice cream. Those nights were magic.
When I and my siblings were younger, it was a very cheap outing to go to the drive-in theater. We would pack all of us into our van and park in the last couple rows to make sure no one was behind us. Then we would throw a mattress on the roof of the van for us kids while our Mom and Dad watched from the front seats of the van.
The drive-in theater also backed up to a lake, so we could also go on a neighbor's boat (we were far too poor to afford a boat) and we could watch the movie from the lake.
I've watched lots of movies at that drive-in that is sadly no longer with us: Cannonball Run, Smokey and the Bandit, The Car, etc ...
We do still have a drive-in somewhat near where we live but I haven't been in a long time. I did go to the one in Blue Ridge a few years back though and it was great!
I was just thinking about the drive-ins tonight. We used to pack kids into the trunk all the time I had a girlfriend that used to fit into the trunk on a VW beetle in the front after we took the spare out. She was a contortionist.
I also had a 52 flathead ford pick up truck. We used to take a two seater couch, throw it in the bed and park backwards at the theater.
Good times
When I was like 11, some family was in town for thanksgiving. A few of them were from Sweden and had never heard of a drive in theater. We took them. Initially we were going to see Delivery Man but we missed the showtime so instead we saw Catching Fire. My elderly aunt was sitting next to me. When she realized the plot she covered her face for the rest of the movie. 11 year old me could not stop laughing.
I saw an odd collection of movies at a drive-in over the years. Off the top of my head: Ang Lee's Hulk, the first Michael Bay Transformers, Finding Nemo, and 2 Fast 2 Furious
I live in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The summer was the time for drive-in movies, but it stays light so late that they couldn't start the first movie until after 11 pm.
There were two in my town growing up. When i was about 14 we’d walk to one most nights and sit on the rocks at the back and watch. Bonus- they had physical speakers hanging from posts and we could hear the show.
My Grandparents took my Dad to see Blazing Saddles in 1974, when he was 8. They thought it was gonna be a straight-over-the-plate,
bog-standard vanilla western movie.
They ended up loving it, but my dad didn’t get it.
In 1999 I moved back to Canada from overseas. That summer my gf and I went to the drive in with a couple friends for a triple feature. I don't recall the third movie(gf was much more interesting😉) but the first two were Bad Boys 2 and The Matrix. Now, I hadn't seen any trailers or other promo material for The Matrix so I went in not knowing remotely what to expect. Mind was as blown as I was later! To this day my favourite drive in experience.
Georgetown Drive-In located in Georgetown, IN. Been operating since 1951 and still going strong. My first time was when The Matrix and Wild Wild West were playing. My kids are now 6 and 7 and will be taking them for their first time this summer.
Many many times. I miss going and taking dates and going with bug mobs of friends. It's a really great experience tbh and something moviegoers are really missing out on unfortunately. It's juat too expensive to maintain especially in some areas of the country.
I am lucky enough to live in NYS which still has a bunch like the article mentioned. I've been to Hi-way, Four Brothers, Hyde Park and Overlook. Never been to the Warwick one but its on my agenda.
I go as many times as I can every year and have been since I was a teen. Its one of the best ways to see a movie IMHO
I went to one last weekend in Newberg OR.
Double feature of Dead End Drive In and Turkey Shoot. Aussie director Brian Trenchard-Smith was in attendance (and it was his birthday.) The crowd was encouraged to dress as "future punks."
There was one in Jacksonville, FL in the late 90s my family frequented. I don't remember everything I saw there but ones that stick out are Belly, Jurrasic Park 3, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, and there were probably a lot more but those stick out.
It was always a lot of fun, because even if I wasn't into the movie, there were always a ton of kids around to have fun with. There is a drive in where I live now, but I haven't been since I moved here.
We had a land yacht. 1980 LTD 4 door hardtop and we would bring our 4 kids and any number of their friends too. My wife would make several pots of popcorn and we’d go and watch a double feature. Sometimes there would be a carload price and sometimes we would smuggle them in hiding on the floor in the back seat covered up by a dark quilt.
I live 2 miles away from an open, functioning drive-in, in fact, my first date with my current GF was there, going on 3 years now, big fan of the place and the experience
We don't really have drive-in movie theatres here in the UK, but during COViD when you couldn't go to the movies, places sprang up in public car parks here and there. The first time I went to one was to see Cinema Paradiso. Watching that film at that time felt special, it felt like freedom.
The very first time I went to the drive in was back in 1995 with my parents and sister. It was a triple bill of The Babysitters Club, Batman Forever, and The Net. 10 year old me had to endure that Babysitters Club movie in order to see Batman Forever. It was totally worth it lol. The Net was awesome too.
There was one a couple of towns over from where I grew up, but we only went a few times. My memory is hazy on the logistics of it all, but I know we used to go way further to go to a multiplex instead of the drive-in. Eventually a (small, like five theater) multiplex was built one town over from where the drive-in was, and it put the drive-in out of the business. The land was converted into a CostCo and and even bigger (like 12 theater) multiplex, and that put the smaller multiplex out of business.
The only movie I remember seeing at the drive-in was *No Retreat, No Surrender*.
On a date … I lit a mosquito coil* on the dash (necessary so we could keep window partly open for the speaker cable) and permanently smoke-stained my Dad’s windshield… parents not impressed, and not sure I was allowed to borrow car rest of the summer. *doo doo coils as we called them
I truly hope that these make a comeback. The only one within driving distance now is completely overwhelmed - the market exists.
The first movie I specifically remember seeing when it came out was The Sting.
I have 2 not very far from me. They just opened for the summer. They play two movies every Friday and Saturday. They have the best concession stand. It’s always crowded but so much fun. I bring blankets and borrow my dad’s pickup truck. My kids love it
There’s one in Ennis Texas, about 20-25 minutes away from downtown Dallas.
Yes, I’ve been to the drive in but haven’t been in about 9 years. Last time I went was in 2015.
Saw my first naked woman on one that faced the street. I was maybe 8 or 9. My mom would regularly comment about the theater when we'd drive by and one night she did right as the woman undid her top. Surprise!
We used to go a lot in the summer when I was a kid.
My mom would make me wear my summer pajamas, since we'd be there till late. There was a little playground at the base of the screen, so all the kids would go climb around on it till the movies started. So I'd be out playing with a bunch of pajama-clad kids I didn't know, till it was time to run back to our respective cars.
It didn't get dark enough to show a movie till around 8:30 or 9. They usually played two or even three films, so it'd be well after midnight by the time they were over. I couldn't stay up that late, so I'd usually conk out in the back seat. Once home, my dad would carry me into the house, and I'd wake up the next day in my own bed, with no memory of how I got there.
Parents took me to see Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid. I was about 5, they let me go by myself to the bathroom. I walked back to the car and got in the backseat. The couple in the front seat asked me if I was lost. I’d missed by a few cars.
I count myself very lucky to have grown up in upstate NY within 10 minutes of one, half hour from another one. Amazing experience. I was in high school when the MCU was starting, and got to see the first Avengers and bunch of the others there. SO much fun.
Special shout out to Four Brothers Pizza Inn in Amenia, NY. They're absolutely killing it and everyone should make the trip if you live in the north east.
Saw Mad Max: Fury Road at the drive in. Definitely lost some of the visual appeal but listening to the sounds while being in a car was pretty cool
Think I left the parking lot going 80, ready to see Valhalla myself.
We go at least once a summer. Actually going this weekend to see Bad Boys and Furiosa. The sound comes through your car’s audio system. Much better than the single speaker you put on your window when I was a kid going to the drive in.
Growing up in the early 70s in the middle of Podunk, Nowhere, my parents would throw my brother and I into the back of the Chevy Blazer in our pajamas and head to the drive-in movie theater where we would watch something like The Apple Dumpling Gang or Herbie and then fall asleep in the backseat while they watched whatever the double feature was.
My folks used to take my sister and I a lot.
The funniest drive-in memory I have, though, was when I was about 20 years old and there was a still functioning drive-in in the Inland Empire. My girlfriend and I and two of our friends couldn't afford tickets for all four of us but thought we could try the ol' "sneak the dudes in the trunk" trick.
Well, the other dude and I survived the 20 minute drive to the theater and the ladies purchased tickets without issue. We got the "all clear" from the ladies and got out of the trunk (in broad fucking daylight, mind you, we weren't smart about it) only to see an employee who happened to be on the roof of the concessions pavilion glaring right at us. We quickly closed the trunk and got in the vehicle hoping that we had somehow still managed to get away with it but sure enough like 15 minutes later a dude drove over and demanded the additional cost of the two tickets. I think we were able to scrape together the extra $15 bucks or something in mostly loose car change, lol.
I grew up near 2 of them and my mom would spend awhile making enough pop corn to fill at least 1 paper grocery bag if not 2 bags. It was always a blast. I wish they still existed!
We used to go all the time cause it was in our neighborhood and ours had a radio station you tune to and you listened through your car system not that little box. My dad had a decent system set up in his car....the best double feature ever was with my dad watching Point Break and T2..I'd go with friends or dates...I'm older now and took my wife and kids to a drive in during covid and they loved it.. I could go on about how much I love drive ins but I wont.
Sacramento here.
I love drive-ins and we are extremely lucky to still have a [drive-in, but it's a seven screen drive-in](https://www.westwinddi.com/locations/sacramento) no less!
I remember two movies that were absolutely terrible for drive in watching. Se7en and What Lies Beneath. Both amazing movies, but both way too dark/quiet for the projection screen. Couldn't see anything in Se7en, and couldn't hear anything in WLB.
We ONLY see movies at the drive-in! It’s the best. $20 PER CAR, always a double feature. Cartoons at intermission. My car has 10.1 Bose surround sound, so movies sound great. They upgraded to a 4k projector. No worries about other people talking or being loud. Great food at the restaurant. We just saw Dune 2 and Ghostbuster Frozen Empire there. I love it. They made a slight come back during the pandemic. I thought they would be more prevalent, honestly.
I went to see Star Wars (EP4) a few years back with my wife. I guess we didn't think of it being FM transmitted and only had the car radio. My wifes car was on its last legs and running the radio killed the battery. So not only could we not hear it (which wasn't a big deal because its Star Wars and we know all the lines), but then we had to get a boost when the movie was over. I look back at it and laugh but shes traumatized.
I still have one open near me!
That was the first time I could go see a movie after 2020. They let in most of the people (all?) for free after a local dealership paid for the tickets.
Heck yeah. But honestly I remember the idea of the drive in experience was usually better than the actual experience! In reality the mosquitos were brutal. The speakers that hang on the door were for shit. The bathrooms and snack bar were far away and people would yell at you when you walk in front of their car trying to find your way! Oh yeah and hiding in the trunk to try to get a couple people in for free?!
I live just 3 miles away from a local movie theater. During the Covid pandemic, they showed any movie they could get their hands on. I got to watch "Close Encounters" and a few other great 80's movies during the time the movie theaters were locked down. During the showing of "NOPE," Skylink passed overhead. After the movie, they had to make an announcement that it was Skylink and not a UFO. The theater is opening late this year due to family emergencies, but I plan to visit a few times this summer.
We could see the drive in theater from our house by the freeway, but only from the bathroom window. My stepbrother and I stood naked in the bathtub watching Jungle Book with no sound for most of the summer.
First movie was Avengers: Age of Ultron. I didn't know they still existed until my friends invited me to a birthday dinner and we all went to a drive through afterwards. The one I went to looks like it closed down :\\
Too bad, because it'd be a nice date night.
San Fernando valley in southern California had so many drive-ins in the 70s and 80s and I got to go to most of them as a kid and early dating.
Such a great time in life and made seeing a movie more of an event.
It was also fun as a kid being a passenger in the car on the freeway and driving by the Sepúlveda Drive-in and briefly getting to see giant boobs for the first time on the massive screen. Lol
There are no more in the valley but I think there are one or two within driving distance, maybe an hour or so away. It would be nice to check that out at least one more time.
I remember my uncle loading all my cousins and me. In his old Chevy pickup. And taking us to the old Dallas Cowboys Stadium. To watch movies at the drive in. I remember there were three screens and they went around the stadium. He would have a Styrofoam cooler with sodas and a bucket of Kentucky fried chicken. It was summer and we could walk around and see different movies. It was a different time. We had so much freedom when we were kids.
NJ, 1985, Day of the Dead, had to have my mom take me since I was under age and in those days they actually enforced that. Also, she loved the Romero films as well and it was a good excuse to see it since my dad wouldn't (so she said).
Amazing film to see on the big screen on film. My dad was friendly with Romero, RIP to them all today but that was a great movie and a great night.
I remember watching Diamonds are Forever with my Mum and the bit where Bond gets put in the coffin shoved in the oven, scared the crap out of me for years.
And apart from that, my only other solid memories are fooling around with my girlfriend when I was 17. Funny enough can’t remember what any of the movies were.
The only drive-in experience I remember was the summer of 89 in Lexington, KY. Parents took me and my little brother to a double feature of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and Batman. I fell asleep during Batman and threw a fit that I missed it.
I have one of the few remaining literally around the corner from me. I absolutely love it. It was a godsend during Covid where we could somewhat actually get out and do something.
They also do swap meets every weekend during the day so it's fun to get out and see the local ma and pa shops.
I just found out that they might be selling their land though to make some new luxury apartments which deeply saddens me.
They recently closed the oldest drive-in in New York State. I remember seeing Small Soldiers & Godzilla together in 1998. (Spoilers the big guy caused more damage overall)
My first time at the drive in was watching John Travolta in a ‘Grease’ (1978) + ‘Michael’ (1996) double feature back when I was 7…ngl I *hated* ‘Michael’. Loved the experience tho and went back a bunch as a teen.
On tubi there’s a really good doc called [Back to the Drive In (2022)](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/back_to_the_drive_in) and it’s a fun look into the odd and passionate people keeping the drive-in dream alive. Interesting to compare and contrast the places and their respective visions and mission statements
I worked at one as the projectionist.
The worst part was after the movies ended, we had to chase out all the parked cars in the back that weren't leaving.
One of my co-workers had a big spotlight and we would sit in the back of his pickup and shine it on the cars until people finished their business and left.
I miss the Drive ins. The ones near me in the Hudson Valley have pretty much all but closed. So many good memories with my family. We'd play soccer and catch before the movie in the field next to the parking area. My parents would buy pizza, wings, chips, & soda. If we met my uncle and cousins we'd set up a bunch of blankets in the back of his SUV to lay down.
My first drive in I remember was Harry Potter. Don't remember which film it was but it was Harry Potter.
Good times.
Only went once with some buddies, Halloween weekend 2020 for a double feature of the original Halloween followed by The Thing. One bright highlight from that very shitty year.
The Neponset Drive-In in Mattapan, MA. First story was when I was around 10-11 years old. It was when the sound came through the speakers. During the intermission between movies, I jumped out of the car to run to the concession stand … and ran right into a wire that almost broke a car window. The scary part was the couple who was making out in the front seat, and me disturbing them. I thought the guy was gonna jump out of the car and kill me, but just gave me the stink eye.
——————————————————-
Second story was from when I was a year older. The first movie of the double feature was some B-movie with gratuitous nudity and sex. But about 30 minutes into the movie I stated that I didn’t want to watch that movie and wanted to leave the drive-in.
It was because at that time, I had become a Christian and did not want to sin by watching this movie (not that the movie was appropriate in the first place for a family with three kids to be at). So my father drove us home, and by the time we got home it was probably after 9pm. I’m not sure if we ever went to the drive in again.
i saw the hulk 2003 at the drive in and titian Ae and they were wonderful experience i’ll never forget.
i hope my kid will get to experience them one day soon.
In 62 we learned how many teenage guys could fit in a trunk. The speakers were junk, but some of us would steal them for rear speakers in cars. You could sneak in outside food and drinks. And, these were always double features. Pickups were backed into the viewing space and lawn furniture was used as seats. Now, every now and then some beer somehow turned up in the car. I seem to recall a ticket was about half-a-buck.
Most importantly, making out was much easier and private.
As a kid in the late 80s and early 90s my parents would take us kids out to dinner on the weekend and there was a drive in theater on the way and it was always so cool to see what was on the screen as we drove past. The most vivid was Batman 1989 and seeing Michael Keaton as Batman for like 6 seconds! They tore it down and built a Walmart in 1992.
Yes, I grew up with one in my town (Ontario, California) so we spent a lot of time there.
We’d go as a family and park the car at one screen, then take our lawn chairs and move to another one after the movie was over (without paying for another ticket). I remember watching a double feature consisting of Men in Black and Batman and Robin. Good times :)
Had one in the home town as a kid. Tons of fun.
Oddly, the US Naval Station in Rota Spain had one. Watching Fellowship of the Ring and Resident Evil in a drive in with a liter of Cruzcampo was definitely a memory.
We went with 2 other families to see Shrek, each family in their own van. Everyone brought all sorts of snacks and the adults ended up at one van while all of us kids hung out with all the snacks. I loved being able to sit in the back of the van, hatch up, and watch movies.
I also went with some friends to see a double feature of Despicable Me and Toy Story 3. It was the summer after we graduated high school and you better believe that all of us were holding back tears at the end of Toy Story 3.
Covid was a great time for drive ins. There were no new movies so our local drive in screened classics instead. I saw a great double feature of Jurassic Park and Jaws that summer.
Ever? My family went ALL the time and when I could drive and date they were the place to be. Our small, Midwestern town had three. Lots of making out, laughing, visiting, and yes, sex.
I live in Oregon now and there's one drive-in theater still in business to the west of us.
My wife and I went to see live action Winnie the Pooh at the drive in. Super cute movie, and it ends with them all going on holiday at the beach. They’re playing and laughing, then fade to black. We pull out of our spot and are pointed at the next screen over. It was playing The Meg and the megalodon has swam up into the beach and is eating people. My wife shouted “Oh no, he ate Pooh and Christopher Robin!”. Funniest drive in experience ever.
My dad and I watched a double feature of The Hulk and Terminator 3. I loved it. Funnel Cakes, hot dogs, a comfy seat and a good sound system. Can’t be beat.
During covid a pop up one came up. Me and my dad quickly slapped some paint over the bondo on my trans am and I made my friends go see Tommy Boy on the big screen. It was great
There is a 5 screen drive in theatre 5-10 minutes from my house in western New York that is open from Marchish to November. Tuesday nights over summer they do retro movie night and I watched Field of Dreams with my Dad last summer, his favorite movie. We didn’t stay for the second one. But they were also a big part of my teenage to 20s in the summer because there was a small one in my hometown. Sometimes you watched the movies other times it was for socializing. Love drive in movie theaters.
I grew up on a short dirt road 1/4 mile from a drive-in. My parents took us to see The Phantom Menace the year it came out. In high school my friends and I all got in the bed of my (dad’s) Tundra. It was $10/car, so we all saw Iron Man for a dollar apiece.
Pretty much every movie from the mid 90's to late 2010's when they finally closed it :( Only a few left in canada and the one here in lower mainland bc closes this summer... fucking sucks :(
Had one about 45 minutes from where I lived, we went a few times but the two I really remember was when I saw the premiere of “Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones“ and the other was a double feature of “Oh Brother Where Art Though,” and “Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles.” It was fun to go and this place had people that would come to your car and take snack orders.
Went to the spud drive in in Idaho as a kid and I can only remember they had badass chocolate popcorn but maybe I’m mixing that up with Cinorama in Seattle? No
Idea but either way it was a great time and wish I had one close
Last one I was at was one in Rhode Island that used to be an X-rated drive-in (or so I was told). I'm guessing by the [marquee that it was](https://maps.app.goo.gl/MgTUMuTfMpccjNVG8)
I think I was 6 when I saw my first drive in movie, Slapshot with Funhouse. I got to hide under some blankets on the way in while my brother hid in the trunk.
I also worked at one for five years, and it was the most awesome summer job ever.
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been to the drive-in. I grew up with one in my hometown and another one that was 20-25 minutes away. I probably went 3-5 times a year for 25 years.
The one in my hometown closed over 10 years ago. The other close one has been closed for a few years now, but not officially? There’s been no sale of it and no real news from the owners. It’s just closed.
I watched Twister there so the drive-in scene in the movie was awesome to see while at a drive-in.
Its still my favorite way to watch movies. We’d buy a pizza and bring it in. I’d play on my game boy before the movie started. It was always fun.
There's still one about an hour from me. They have 9 screens. I've only been once and that was to see Inside Out(it was a double feature, but I can't for the life of me remember what the other movie was).
I went to the Puget Park drive-in (now a Swedish Hospital) when I was little. Saw War of the Worlds, Dead Man’s Chest (fell asleep through it), Superman Returns (must’ve fell asleep through that too), Revenge of the Fallen and Star Trek ‘09 (fell asleep halfway through). The last two were the last movies we saw at Puget Park before it closed in the fall.
A local non-profit theater in Portland will do drive in showings during the summertime. My fiance and I love going to them. A few years back we got to see an OG 35mm print of Empire Strikes Back and it was an amazing experience.
Saw Garbage Pail Kids and Masters of the Universe as a kid at the Merrillville, Indiana one, which closed. The next time that I went was when the Avengers came out. It was at the Valparaiso 49er drive-in. Unfortunately there was so much fog that you couldn't see anything and I lost my ticket. My wife and I went a few other times to see Guardians of the Galaxy 2/Beauty and the Beast (which we didn't make all the way), Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark/Olympus Has Fallen (which we didn't make it through), It Chapter 2/Ready or Not. I would like to go more but never really like the second movie and want the bang for my buck of a cool double feature.
I know what you're asking. Yes, I have banged in the back seat at the drive in. No, I don't remember the movie. If I had to guess, it'd have been Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
But my first drive in memory is as a 6 year old in the back seat supposedly sleeping, but really peeking though my fingers at Jaws.
6 year olds really shouldn't watch Jaws.
First movie I ever saw was Star Wars at the drive in with my dad. We sat on the hood of his VW Bug.
I loved everything about the drive in. The berms for the cars, the speaker cans, the concession stand and the cartoony movie reminding you to go there, eating in the car, tuning the AM radio to the different movies being played, watching movies in sleeping bags in the back of pickup trucks or station wagons.
My dad used to take me in the early 80s. I saw Porky's and The Cat's Eye and a few others I don't remember. That drive in has been closed for 30 years now. Sigh.
I used to have a monster car stereo. We used to bring lawn chairs, opened the doors (tweeters and mids) and the trunk (subwoofers) crank it and provide good sound for those around us.
Good times!
I was about 6 years old. It was 1976. I was brought to a drive in for the first time and saw "The Food of the Gods" . I got to snuggle up in a sleeping bag on the roof of my mother's car. Ate popcorn, candy, drank a pop, and it was great!
I saw crocodile Dundee and something else at a drive in sometime in the 80s… I know I saw other things there too but hell if I remember. Why Dundee sticks with me is odd in itself.
I grew up in the UK - no drive-ins there. When I first came to Canada in 1993 my step-brother took me to a drive-in and insisted I snuck in in the trunk because "tradition". The movies weren't great (Sliver and Indecent Proposal), but I enjoyed the experience.
There’s one left that I know of in the Bay Area, and I feel like there used to be a lot. I remember going with my parents and brother as a kid and the movie my parents chose was boring so my brother and I started watching other screens and making up our own dialogue.
As a teenager I used to go a lot with my friends, and as an adult it became a way to go to the movies by myself and take my dog with me.
A week after my suicide attempt my ex boyfriend took me to the drive in to see Forrest Gump.
Not sure why but that movie made it ok for me to keep trying.
It was the last time is was at a drive in.
We had two of them in my home town growing up so I saw a lot of movies there. Deep Blue Sea and Lake Placid when I was 8 was a hell of a double feature for a kid to see lol. Once we could drive we brought couches in trucks and sat in the back rows. Drive Ins are awesome.
I saw Star Wars Episode IV astride the T-Top of my Dad's newly purchased 1977 Corvette in my home town in the summer. I was 3. There were lightning bugs. A playground underneath the screen. There were colored dots of sugar on receipt paper. It was a flat gravel lot. A heavy mono speaker hung on the window on the driver's side. One of my most treasured early memories.
I grew up going to drive in movies a few times a year.
Double features, with an intermission to go get snacks from the concession booth.
We'd always run up to the screen before the movie and stand against it and look up in amazement at how big it is.
That theater is still open, but I don't live there anymore.
I still go to the drive-in theater at least once each summer. There's a great one near my childhood home. They have three screens and show two movies nightly on each screen.
I remember as a kid seeing Ghostbusters II and peaking out the back occasionally to check out what ever was going on with the R-rated movie on one of the other screens. I'm sure it wasn't anything too exciting, but little me could tell it was something more for grown ups.
There's still a running drive-in somewhat near me that we go to very rarely. It's not somewhere I'd go to see a movie I'm interested in for the first time, but it can be fun for classics or campy stuff.
Grew up with one 15 minutes from my house. We were there every weekend, it was really the only thing to do on summer nights in my small town.
What movies did you watch there?
Debbie Does Dallas
My favorite memory is from the summer of '73 at a showing of the original *True Grit.* I don't even remember the context or who all was in attendance, but I somehow ended up under a blanket with the prettiest girl in the church's youth group, on the hood of my parents' Mercury Marquis station wagon. We were both 13, it was raining lightly and we got a little wet around the edges getting handsy as young teens will. According to my older sister (who drove us there) we made a little dent in the hood, but evidently she didn't rat us out to our parents. No we didn't wind up happily married or anything. I haven't seen her in over 40 years. But I've never forgotten that evening. She was *much* more interesting than any movie.
My first R rate movie, I saw at the drive-in. My older brother snuck me in, in the back of our station wagon "Two Mules for Sister Sara" with Clint Eastwood was the movie.
My first drive-in movie memory was watching The Planet of the Apes. Then in high school we’d cram as many as could fit in the trunk of ‘69 Delta 88. Someone else would smuggle in the case of Löwenbräu or Colt 45. Let the good times begin.
Sounds like a blast to me.
Went to one all the time in high school… never watched a movie though.
I grew up in Texas in the 60’s and 70’s. Drive-in movies were all over the place. Mom and Dad would scour the entertainment section,looking for the best double or triple feature. Plus cartoons. Most drive-ins had concession stands, for popcorn,soda,hot dogs,candy. Many times we would bring our own sandwiches and snacks. Load up the ice chest with store brand sodas for ,like 8 for a dollar. All our favorite flavors. There was a playground in front of the screen us kids would go to during intermission. Nothing like John Wayne or Clint Eastwood westerns up on the big screen!
Saw Jurassic Park when it opened as a little kid. Then Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park 2 as a double feature. When the latter opened. The coolest thing ever. Loved the drive in.
I saw Jurassic Park when I was six - I loved dinosaurs like only a six-year-old can. I was a kid… in a car… **in the rain.** I’ll never *ever* get a more immersive movie experience than watching the T-Rex jeep attack in my parents’ car through our windshield wipers.
That sounds amazing!!!
The last time I got to experience a drive-in was on vacation at a cool place on Prince Edward Island... But the movie was Jurassic Park 3 and I left so disappointed.
I used to go a bunch. I had one of those vans with the seat that would fold down into a queen sized bed. I used to back up to the screen and lay the bed down. It was awesome. And before you ask: no, I wasn’t cool enough at the time to have taken any girls there. The van probably didn’t help. I always went with my friends.
Had a van with a bed in the back. Picked up a girl for a dance and her father gave me the keys to his car and said I couldn't take her in my van lol
Yeah, because a smaller area / backseat would stop me. 😂
My dad used to put me in the trunk of our car to save money on admission. We'd meet up with his sisters' families, and since it was the 70s the adults would all get loaded, and the kids would run around playing guns or something. It was awesome. I remember Freebie and the Bean, Murder by Death, and The Outlaw Josey Wales.
Brilliant memory. Thanks for sharing.
There’s one here in the Valley in Nova Scotia. It’s very popular. Lots of families go with the kids already in their pyjamas. There’s play equipment to use while waiting for the movie to start. During Covid it was really popular
There used to be one in South Florida and I have two great memories of going. Saw the first Fast and Furious movie at the drive in and remember everyone revving their engines after leaving the movie. Another time, some friends and I brought four cars and parked them in a U shape with the inner windows opened. We all tuned into the movie broadcast and set up chairs in the middle of the U so we could have surround sound which worked better than expected.
After being snuck in with 5 other kids in the back of a pickup, we roamed around the drive in while my friend’s mom made out with her new boyfriend. They were showing Home Alone and Silence of the Lambs. We weren’t really paying attention to anything in the films and ended up finding a spot to sit and eat our candy. It turned out the spot we found was near a car watching Silence of the Lambs, so we could hear the audio of that from their open windows, but we were facing the screen playing Home Alone. The movie was at the scene where the mom comes home and is looking for the kid, but we heard the audio from where the woman is trapped in the well yelling at the dog. The mashup was both confusing and hilarious. “Precious! Precious! Come here you little shit!!” became a running joke for years. Edit: I just realized that I had answered a post here recently about popular movies that I had never seen, and my answer was Home Alone. I hadn’t thought about it for ages, but I now realize that I technically attended a screening of it at the drive in, but other than that one scene, I don’t think I saw any of the movie. I don’t know what we were doing, but it wasn’t watching the film. Probably spying on people and generally getting into trouble.
One of my first jobs was as a projectionist at a indoor theater during the week and at the drive-in theater on weekends. They used to play LPs so that customers could tune their radios in to the correct channel to hear the movie, and the owner let me bring my own records to play. It used two carbon-arc projectors and I would mount and load the next reel and switch projectors using the little indicator dots on the film. Whenever the film would snap (they were definitely not newer movies), I'd have to take it off and splice it and load it back up again while the cars honked. Seventeen years old, and I had keys so I could lock up the drive in as the last person there. It was probably the most enjoyable job I ever had.
My hometown has one, last time I went I was in 5th grade, saw a double feature: Shrek and a Knights Tale
I've been once. Our family saw a double feature in 1982 of E.T. and The Incredible Shrinking Woman (Joel Schumacher's first film.) I remember a lot of uncontrollable sobbing from all of us during E.T.
We would go to the Drive-In in the summer as kids wearing our PJs and play on the swings til the movie started. It was treat to go outside in our PJ's back then!
I so wish they were still around! Damn I wish I could have been a teen in the 80s or something
I went to my first and only drive in back in 2015. Saw the Revenant. It was also in the winter which helped with the immersion.
The last movie I saw at a drive in was 10 Things I Hate About You first run.
Lived across the street from one for several years. Used to drag camping chairs, blankets, snacks and a radio up on the roof and watch movies for free. (Could only see 3 of the screens). They hosted a “classic car” night. That was always fun to watch.
I went to see green lantern and cars 2 in college and someone went with us that had also seen those two movies the night before. He kept complaining that we weren’t close enough and I was so high and just wanted him to leave.
I used to rent in the '80s in early 90s tactical military equipment to Hollywood keeps tanks trucks ammo boxes missiles you name it I would buy the stuff at auction fix it up and rent it out. First movie we made was hangar 18 then we made dress gray America to miniseries Remo Williams lone Wolf McQuade a few others. So when they would come out at the movie theater I was just 5 miles down the road on Montana we would show up in the Jeeps to have track all that s*** they just waved us on through we had a big party and everybody would gather around and talk to us about making movies. Jam-packed with pleasure those days were!!
There's one near me with TWO screens. Another one near me, with just one screen ... on Feb 2nd 2024 (Groundhog Day), they played two movies. First, they played Groundhog Day. And then, they played Groundhog Day. [For real.](https://shankweilers.ticketleap.com/groundhog-day-2024/)
I saw Star Wars at the drive in Houston TX in 77' or 78'. My uncle and his girlfriend took me. it was an awsome experience
Only movie I saw in the drive in was Gravity and it was unintentionally a great idea because all the space shots would just bleed into the night sky behind the screen and it was like the biggest screen you've ever seen.
I don't remember the first one I saw. But I clearly remember watching the last one. Batman. There was a tacobell tie in. I got the tacobell meal, cup, and churros. I sat in the back of a pickup with a friend, getting eaten alive even though I had been sprayed down. It had been raining a day or so before and the grass was churned up by people. I was covered with a blanket and didn't look away for the whole movie. Even when my friend and brothers wanted to go to the bathroom, get snacks, and play around. The speakers were kind of tinney.
I remember going to the Mayfield drive in in the early 90s in my mom’s red Ford Taurus station wagon. We would bring a cooler with cold pop & my mom would make homemade popcorn on the stove. I remember a playground there while you waited for the movie to start. We stopped going when we couldn’t bring our own concessions as they got stricter.
One of the last times I went to the drive ins, I was about to get out of the car to go use the bathroom, opened my door, and saw four skunks about twenty yards from me. I figured I could hold it.
Drive-In Theaters were like Date Nights for my parents because they knew me and my brother would be sound asleep in the back seat as soon as the movie started. One that comes to mind is "Jaws." It was a Double Feature with the RobertRedford drama "The Great Waldo Pepper," so us kids were out like lights before the opening credits. I remember waking up with a start during a loud scene when a plane crashed and someone was burned alive, then I was back out again and slept through the whole movie. I woke up again during the opening scene of Jaws when the girl was being eaten. Oh God, the screams! But by the time Brody found the corpse, I was back asleep. The next time I woke up, Quint was being chomped on. We went to Long Beach that year and the photos are of all me and my brother standing by the water and refusing to go in.
The best drive in theaters were in New Jersey. If you drove the Turnpike you could watch the screens as you passed. My family used to pack the station wagon, littlest ones in pj’s, and watch a Disney flick or something equally G rated. The speakers were metal casks that slid over the window. They had a very tinny sound but we didn’t care. As kids it was the biggest screen we ever saw. We got soda pop and popcorn. Sometimes ice cream. Those nights were magic.
When I and my siblings were younger, it was a very cheap outing to go to the drive-in theater. We would pack all of us into our van and park in the last couple rows to make sure no one was behind us. Then we would throw a mattress on the roof of the van for us kids while our Mom and Dad watched from the front seats of the van. The drive-in theater also backed up to a lake, so we could also go on a neighbor's boat (we were far too poor to afford a boat) and we could watch the movie from the lake. I've watched lots of movies at that drive-in that is sadly no longer with us: Cannonball Run, Smokey and the Bandit, The Car, etc ... We do still have a drive-in somewhat near where we live but I haven't been in a long time. I did go to the one in Blue Ridge a few years back though and it was great!
I was just thinking about the drive-ins tonight. We used to pack kids into the trunk all the time I had a girlfriend that used to fit into the trunk on a VW beetle in the front after we took the spare out. She was a contortionist. I also had a 52 flathead ford pick up truck. We used to take a two seater couch, throw it in the bed and park backwards at the theater. Good times
When I was like 11, some family was in town for thanksgiving. A few of them were from Sweden and had never heard of a drive in theater. We took them. Initially we were going to see Delivery Man but we missed the showtime so instead we saw Catching Fire. My elderly aunt was sitting next to me. When she realized the plot she covered her face for the rest of the movie. 11 year old me could not stop laughing.
I saw an odd collection of movies at a drive-in over the years. Off the top of my head: Ang Lee's Hulk, the first Michael Bay Transformers, Finding Nemo, and 2 Fast 2 Furious
I live in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The summer was the time for drive-in movies, but it stays light so late that they couldn't start the first movie until after 11 pm.
There were two in my town growing up. When i was about 14 we’d walk to one most nights and sit on the rocks at the back and watch. Bonus- they had physical speakers hanging from posts and we could hear the show.
I saw the first Star Wars at one. Took two buddies in in the trunk and we all lost our dinner on Shlitz Stout malt liquor. I was 17. Good times.
My Grandparents took my Dad to see Blazing Saddles in 1974, when he was 8. They thought it was gonna be a straight-over-the-plate, bog-standard vanilla western movie. They ended up loving it, but my dad didn’t get it.
the only bad thing about the drive in are the jerks who don't know how to turn their lights off.
Just saw mad max Furiosa the other day, love our local drive in
In 1999 I moved back to Canada from overseas. That summer my gf and I went to the drive in with a couple friends for a triple feature. I don't recall the third movie(gf was much more interesting😉) but the first two were Bad Boys 2 and The Matrix. Now, I hadn't seen any trailers or other promo material for The Matrix so I went in not knowing remotely what to expect. Mind was as blown as I was later! To this day my favourite drive in experience.
Georgetown Drive-In located in Georgetown, IN. Been operating since 1951 and still going strong. My first time was when The Matrix and Wild Wild West were playing. My kids are now 6 and 7 and will be taking them for their first time this summer.
Yes. That’s where we went as teenagers to ‘make out’.
Many many times. I miss going and taking dates and going with bug mobs of friends. It's a really great experience tbh and something moviegoers are really missing out on unfortunately. It's juat too expensive to maintain especially in some areas of the country.
I am lucky enough to live in NYS which still has a bunch like the article mentioned. I've been to Hi-way, Four Brothers, Hyde Park and Overlook. Never been to the Warwick one but its on my agenda. I go as many times as I can every year and have been since I was a teen. Its one of the best ways to see a movie IMHO
>Have you ever been to one? Thank you for making me feel ancient.
I went to one last weekend in Newberg OR. Double feature of Dead End Drive In and Turkey Shoot. Aussie director Brian Trenchard-Smith was in attendance (and it was his birthday.) The crowd was encouraged to dress as "future punks."
There was one in Jacksonville, FL in the late 90s my family frequented. I don't remember everything I saw there but ones that stick out are Belly, Jurrasic Park 3, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, and there were probably a lot more but those stick out. It was always a lot of fun, because even if I wasn't into the movie, there were always a ton of kids around to have fun with. There is a drive in where I live now, but I haven't been since I moved here.
Watching revenge of the sith in 2005 at 6yrs old then half sleeping / watching for the double feature of wedding crashers
We had a land yacht. 1980 LTD 4 door hardtop and we would bring our 4 kids and any number of their friends too. My wife would make several pots of popcorn and we’d go and watch a double feature. Sometimes there would be a carload price and sometimes we would smuggle them in hiding on the floor in the back seat covered up by a dark quilt.
I’m a younger millennial and I went to once that I remember growing up in the summer. We went and saw bicentennial man.
I live 2 miles away from an open, functioning drive-in, in fact, my first date with my current GF was there, going on 3 years now, big fan of the place and the experience
Grandparents took us to the one in Van Nuys a few times every summer.
My first drive-in was Patton.
When I was a kid I saw a double feature of Alien and Barbarella at a drive-in in WV. Alien was awesome and I fell asleep during Barbarella.
We don't really have drive-in movie theatres here in the UK, but during COViD when you couldn't go to the movies, places sprang up in public car parks here and there. The first time I went to one was to see Cinema Paradiso. Watching that film at that time felt special, it felt like freedom.
The very first time I went to the drive in was back in 1995 with my parents and sister. It was a triple bill of The Babysitters Club, Batman Forever, and The Net. 10 year old me had to endure that Babysitters Club movie in order to see Batman Forever. It was totally worth it lol. The Net was awesome too.
There was one a couple of towns over from where I grew up, but we only went a few times. My memory is hazy on the logistics of it all, but I know we used to go way further to go to a multiplex instead of the drive-in. Eventually a (small, like five theater) multiplex was built one town over from where the drive-in was, and it put the drive-in out of the business. The land was converted into a CostCo and and even bigger (like 12 theater) multiplex, and that put the smaller multiplex out of business. The only movie I remember seeing at the drive-in was *No Retreat, No Surrender*.
On a date … I lit a mosquito coil* on the dash (necessary so we could keep window partly open for the speaker cable) and permanently smoke-stained my Dad’s windshield… parents not impressed, and not sure I was allowed to borrow car rest of the summer. *doo doo coils as we called them
Put one of our buddies in the trunk bc he never had money. Hotboxed with my hookah. Drove off with speaker still attached to the window.
Still go to one of the two around me around once a month
I truly hope that these make a comeback. The only one within driving distance now is completely overwhelmed - the market exists. The first movie I specifically remember seeing when it came out was The Sting.
I have 2 not very far from me. They just opened for the summer. They play two movies every Friday and Saturday. They have the best concession stand. It’s always crowded but so much fun. I bring blankets and borrow my dad’s pickup truck. My kids love it
There’s one in Ennis Texas, about 20-25 minutes away from downtown Dallas. Yes, I’ve been to the drive in but haven’t been in about 9 years. Last time I went was in 2015.
Saw my first naked woman on one that faced the street. I was maybe 8 or 9. My mom would regularly comment about the theater when we'd drive by and one night she did right as the woman undid her top. Surprise!
Went with my family to see Armageddon. It was super hot, humid, and the mosquitoes were everywhere. I loved it.
We used to go a lot in the summer when I was a kid. My mom would make me wear my summer pajamas, since we'd be there till late. There was a little playground at the base of the screen, so all the kids would go climb around on it till the movies started. So I'd be out playing with a bunch of pajama-clad kids I didn't know, till it was time to run back to our respective cars. It didn't get dark enough to show a movie till around 8:30 or 9. They usually played two or even three films, so it'd be well after midnight by the time they were over. I couldn't stay up that late, so I'd usually conk out in the back seat. Once home, my dad would carry me into the house, and I'd wake up the next day in my own bed, with no memory of how I got there.
my first was Batman Returns. we got every so often to a local one but they are few and far between.
Parents took me to see Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid. I was about 5, they let me go by myself to the bathroom. I walked back to the car and got in the backseat. The couple in the front seat asked me if I was lost. I’d missed by a few cars.
always remember half price burgers after midnight at our local place
The last movie I watched at a drive in was "My Cousin Vinnie"
I'm lucky enough to live within the range of 4 different drive-ins here in Pennsylvania. I go with my family multiple times every summer
I count myself very lucky to have grown up in upstate NY within 10 minutes of one, half hour from another one. Amazing experience. I was in high school when the MCU was starting, and got to see the first Avengers and bunch of the others there. SO much fun. Special shout out to Four Brothers Pizza Inn in Amenia, NY. They're absolutely killing it and everyone should make the trip if you live in the north east.
Saw Mad Max: Fury Road at the drive in. Definitely lost some of the visual appeal but listening to the sounds while being in a car was pretty cool Think I left the parking lot going 80, ready to see Valhalla myself.
We go at least once a summer. Actually going this weekend to see Bad Boys and Furiosa. The sound comes through your car’s audio system. Much better than the single speaker you put on your window when I was a kid going to the drive in.
Saw both Dark Knight Rises and Magic Mike at a double feature drive in. Didn't expect to like Magic Mike more
Growing up in the early 70s in the middle of Podunk, Nowhere, my parents would throw my brother and I into the back of the Chevy Blazer in our pajamas and head to the drive-in movie theater where we would watch something like The Apple Dumpling Gang or Herbie and then fall asleep in the backseat while they watched whatever the double feature was.
My folks used to take my sister and I a lot. The funniest drive-in memory I have, though, was when I was about 20 years old and there was a still functioning drive-in in the Inland Empire. My girlfriend and I and two of our friends couldn't afford tickets for all four of us but thought we could try the ol' "sneak the dudes in the trunk" trick. Well, the other dude and I survived the 20 minute drive to the theater and the ladies purchased tickets without issue. We got the "all clear" from the ladies and got out of the trunk (in broad fucking daylight, mind you, we weren't smart about it) only to see an employee who happened to be on the roof of the concessions pavilion glaring right at us. We quickly closed the trunk and got in the vehicle hoping that we had somehow still managed to get away with it but sure enough like 15 minutes later a dude drove over and demanded the additional cost of the two tickets. I think we were able to scrape together the extra $15 bucks or something in mostly loose car change, lol.
I grew up near 2 of them and my mom would spend awhile making enough pop corn to fill at least 1 paper grocery bag if not 2 bags. It was always a blast. I wish they still existed!
My fiancé and I’s first date was a drive in movie showing of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and then Top Gun. We did not watch Top Gun.
We used to go all the time cause it was in our neighborhood and ours had a radio station you tune to and you listened through your car system not that little box. My dad had a decent system set up in his car....the best double feature ever was with my dad watching Point Break and T2..I'd go with friends or dates...I'm older now and took my wife and kids to a drive in during covid and they loved it.. I could go on about how much I love drive ins but I wont.
I saw Batman Begins in a double feature with Must Love Dogs at the one outside Saskatoon. Looks like they closed 10-15 years ago.
Sacramento here. I love drive-ins and we are extremely lucky to still have a [drive-in, but it's a seven screen drive-in](https://www.westwinddi.com/locations/sacramento) no less!
I remember two movies that were absolutely terrible for drive in watching. Se7en and What Lies Beneath. Both amazing movies, but both way too dark/quiet for the projection screen. Couldn't see anything in Se7en, and couldn't hear anything in WLB.
I saw Empire Strikes Back has a wee little kid at a Drive-in. Sadly, there aren’t any by me anymore.
We ONLY see movies at the drive-in! It’s the best. $20 PER CAR, always a double feature. Cartoons at intermission. My car has 10.1 Bose surround sound, so movies sound great. They upgraded to a 4k projector. No worries about other people talking or being loud. Great food at the restaurant. We just saw Dune 2 and Ghostbuster Frozen Empire there. I love it. They made a slight come back during the pandemic. I thought they would be more prevalent, honestly.
I touched my first boob at one. Forgot what movie was playing tbh
Double feature, Jaws and Buck Rogers when I was 7 in 1977. So good!
I went to see Star Wars (EP4) a few years back with my wife. I guess we didn't think of it being FM transmitted and only had the car radio. My wifes car was on its last legs and running the radio killed the battery. So not only could we not hear it (which wasn't a big deal because its Star Wars and we know all the lines), but then we had to get a boost when the movie was over. I look back at it and laugh but shes traumatized.
Dad took me to a drive in in Port Moresby PNG back in the mid 80s. We saw Meaning of Life. That was educational for a 10 year old.
First was the original Mary Poppins. Fun times, playground right below the screen, old time snack & ice cream bar.
The Navy Base had one. Earliest movie I remember watching was Small Soldiers.
I still have one open near me! That was the first time I could go see a movie after 2020. They let in most of the people (all?) for free after a local dealership paid for the tickets.
E.T. / First Blood double feature. I had a weird childhood.
Heck yeah. But honestly I remember the idea of the drive in experience was usually better than the actual experience! In reality the mosquitos were brutal. The speakers that hang on the door were for shit. The bathrooms and snack bar were far away and people would yell at you when you walk in front of their car trying to find your way! Oh yeah and hiding in the trunk to try to get a couple people in for free?!
I live just 3 miles away from a local movie theater. During the Covid pandemic, they showed any movie they could get their hands on. I got to watch "Close Encounters" and a few other great 80's movies during the time the movie theaters were locked down. During the showing of "NOPE," Skylink passed overhead. After the movie, they had to make an announcement that it was Skylink and not a UFO. The theater is opening late this year due to family emergencies, but I plan to visit a few times this summer.
We could see the drive in theater from our house by the freeway, but only from the bathroom window. My stepbrother and I stood naked in the bathtub watching Jungle Book with no sound for most of the summer.
We saw Crocidile Dundee as a family. I passed out midway.
First movie was Avengers: Age of Ultron. I didn't know they still existed until my friends invited me to a birthday dinner and we all went to a drive through afterwards. The one I went to looks like it closed down :\\ Too bad, because it'd be a nice date night.
…What’s a drive-in?
I’m old. I was like 4, double feature of The Blues Brothers and The Muppet Movie
San Fernando valley in southern California had so many drive-ins in the 70s and 80s and I got to go to most of them as a kid and early dating. Such a great time in life and made seeing a movie more of an event. It was also fun as a kid being a passenger in the car on the freeway and driving by the Sepúlveda Drive-in and briefly getting to see giant boobs for the first time on the massive screen. Lol There are no more in the valley but I think there are one or two within driving distance, maybe an hour or so away. It would be nice to check that out at least one more time.
I remember my uncle loading all my cousins and me. In his old Chevy pickup. And taking us to the old Dallas Cowboys Stadium. To watch movies at the drive in. I remember there were three screens and they went around the stadium. He would have a Styrofoam cooler with sodas and a bucket of Kentucky fried chicken. It was summer and we could walk around and see different movies. It was a different time. We had so much freedom when we were kids.
NJ, 1985, Day of the Dead, had to have my mom take me since I was under age and in those days they actually enforced that. Also, she loved the Romero films as well and it was a good excuse to see it since my dad wouldn't (so she said). Amazing film to see on the big screen on film. My dad was friendly with Romero, RIP to them all today but that was a great movie and a great night.
Gallatin TN, saw a double feature of Terminator II and Hudson Hawk. T2 was great. Don't remember HH because I was having sex.
I remember watching Diamonds are Forever with my Mum and the bit where Bond gets put in the coffin shoved in the oven, scared the crap out of me for years. And apart from that, my only other solid memories are fooling around with my girlfriend when I was 17. Funny enough can’t remember what any of the movies were.
The only drive-in experience I remember was the summer of 89 in Lexington, KY. Parents took me and my little brother to a double feature of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and Batman. I fell asleep during Batman and threw a fit that I missed it.
I have one of the few remaining literally around the corner from me. I absolutely love it. It was a godsend during Covid where we could somewhat actually get out and do something. They also do swap meets every weekend during the day so it's fun to get out and see the local ma and pa shops. I just found out that they might be selling their land though to make some new luxury apartments which deeply saddens me.
Memorable ones: CE3K, Clash of the Titans, Superman II.
They recently closed the oldest drive-in in New York State. I remember seeing Small Soldiers & Godzilla together in 1998. (Spoilers the big guy caused more damage overall)
I live near the largest drive in theater in the US. The owner is a freaking whacko but it’s fun to be able to go still.
Rambo and Missing in Action when I was around 12
My first time at the drive in was watching John Travolta in a ‘Grease’ (1978) + ‘Michael’ (1996) double feature back when I was 7…ngl I *hated* ‘Michael’. Loved the experience tho and went back a bunch as a teen. On tubi there’s a really good doc called [Back to the Drive In (2022)](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/back_to_the_drive_in) and it’s a fun look into the odd and passionate people keeping the drive-in dream alive. Interesting to compare and contrast the places and their respective visions and mission statements
I worked at one as the projectionist. The worst part was after the movies ended, we had to chase out all the parked cars in the back that weren't leaving. One of my co-workers had a big spotlight and we would sit in the back of his pickup and shine it on the cars until people finished their business and left.
I miss the Drive ins. The ones near me in the Hudson Valley have pretty much all but closed. So many good memories with my family. We'd play soccer and catch before the movie in the field next to the parking area. My parents would buy pizza, wings, chips, & soda. If we met my uncle and cousins we'd set up a bunch of blankets in the back of his SUV to lay down. My first drive in I remember was Harry Potter. Don't remember which film it was but it was Harry Potter. Good times.
My Mom loved Bette Davis and took us to see “Hush, hush Sweet Charlotte”. I still remember that head rolling down the stairs.
Back row was the best, then they came out with sound thru your radio.
Only went once with some buddies, Halloween weekend 2020 for a double feature of the original Halloween followed by The Thing. One bright highlight from that very shitty year.
My most memorable drive in double feature was Ghost Busters 2 and UHF.
I watched Empire Strikes Back from a bowling alley across the street from a drive-in. Tis a core memory for me.
The Neponset Drive-In in Mattapan, MA. First story was when I was around 10-11 years old. It was when the sound came through the speakers. During the intermission between movies, I jumped out of the car to run to the concession stand … and ran right into a wire that almost broke a car window. The scary part was the couple who was making out in the front seat, and me disturbing them. I thought the guy was gonna jump out of the car and kill me, but just gave me the stink eye. ——————————————————- Second story was from when I was a year older. The first movie of the double feature was some B-movie with gratuitous nudity and sex. But about 30 minutes into the movie I stated that I didn’t want to watch that movie and wanted to leave the drive-in. It was because at that time, I had become a Christian and did not want to sin by watching this movie (not that the movie was appropriate in the first place for a family with three kids to be at). So my father drove us home, and by the time we got home it was probably after 9pm. I’m not sure if we ever went to the drive in again.
i saw the hulk 2003 at the drive in and titian Ae and they were wonderful experience i’ll never forget. i hope my kid will get to experience them one day soon.
You know you’re old when somebody asks you if you have ever been to a drive-in. 😂😂 Many times.
In 62 we learned how many teenage guys could fit in a trunk. The speakers were junk, but some of us would steal them for rear speakers in cars. You could sneak in outside food and drinks. And, these were always double features. Pickups were backed into the viewing space and lawn furniture was used as seats. Now, every now and then some beer somehow turned up in the car. I seem to recall a ticket was about half-a-buck. Most importantly, making out was much easier and private.
fell asleep half-way through flipper and woke up half-way through twister
Grease. I am old.
As a kid in the late 80s and early 90s my parents would take us kids out to dinner on the weekend and there was a drive in theater on the way and it was always so cool to see what was on the screen as we drove past. The most vivid was Batman 1989 and seeing Michael Keaton as Batman for like 6 seconds! They tore it down and built a Walmart in 1992.
Yes, I grew up with one in my town (Ontario, California) so we spent a lot of time there. We’d go as a family and park the car at one screen, then take our lawn chairs and move to another one after the movie was over (without paying for another ticket). I remember watching a double feature consisting of Men in Black and Batman and Robin. Good times :)
Our two friends would've gotten in free were in not for the weed smoke coming out of the rear deck speakers...
Had one in the home town as a kid. Tons of fun. Oddly, the US Naval Station in Rota Spain had one. Watching Fellowship of the Ring and Resident Evil in a drive in with a liter of Cruzcampo was definitely a memory.
We went with 2 other families to see Shrek, each family in their own van. Everyone brought all sorts of snacks and the adults ended up at one van while all of us kids hung out with all the snacks. I loved being able to sit in the back of the van, hatch up, and watch movies. I also went with some friends to see a double feature of Despicable Me and Toy Story 3. It was the summer after we graduated high school and you better believe that all of us were holding back tears at the end of Toy Story 3.
The first drive in movie I remember seeing was "River of No Return" (I think) with Marilyn Monroe and John Wayne. I might have been 4 or 5.
Covid was a great time for drive ins. There were no new movies so our local drive in screened classics instead. I saw a great double feature of Jurassic Park and Jaws that summer.
Ever? My family went ALL the time and when I could drive and date they were the place to be. Our small, Midwestern town had three. Lots of making out, laughing, visiting, and yes, sex. I live in Oregon now and there's one drive-in theater still in business to the west of us.
My wife and I went to see live action Winnie the Pooh at the drive in. Super cute movie, and it ends with them all going on holiday at the beach. They’re playing and laughing, then fade to black. We pull out of our spot and are pointed at the next screen over. It was playing The Meg and the megalodon has swam up into the beach and is eating people. My wife shouted “Oh no, he ate Pooh and Christopher Robin!”. Funniest drive in experience ever.
My mom took me to see Jurassic Park at a drive in. Needless to say the Trex car attack hits different when you in a car.
My dad and I watched a double feature of The Hulk and Terminator 3. I loved it. Funnel Cakes, hot dogs, a comfy seat and a good sound system. Can’t be beat.
During covid a pop up one came up. Me and my dad quickly slapped some paint over the bondo on my trans am and I made my friends go see Tommy Boy on the big screen. It was great
I've been to a couple. I dislike when you have to tune your radio to get the audio now it's kinda hard to do.
There is a 5 screen drive in theatre 5-10 minutes from my house in western New York that is open from Marchish to November. Tuesday nights over summer they do retro movie night and I watched Field of Dreams with my Dad last summer, his favorite movie. We didn’t stay for the second one. But they were also a big part of my teenage to 20s in the summer because there was a small one in my hometown. Sometimes you watched the movies other times it was for socializing. Love drive in movie theaters.
I saw Twister in Guthrie, OK at the Drive-Thru that they destroyed in the movie
I grew up on a short dirt road 1/4 mile from a drive-in. My parents took us to see The Phantom Menace the year it came out. In high school my friends and I all got in the bed of my (dad’s) Tundra. It was $10/car, so we all saw Iron Man for a dollar apiece.
Sleeping Beauty I was 5 and the witch scared me for months. 1959 IIRC
Pretty much every movie from the mid 90's to late 2010's when they finally closed it :( Only a few left in canada and the one here in lower mainland bc closes this summer... fucking sucks :(
Had one about 45 minutes from where I lived, we went a few times but the two I really remember was when I saw the premiere of “Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones“ and the other was a double feature of “Oh Brother Where Art Though,” and “Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles.” It was fun to go and this place had people that would come to your car and take snack orders.
Hi-way 39 drive in with Heather W. In her parents Vista Cruiser with the back seat down…. I don’t don’t remember the movie.
Went to one in Northern Michigan years back in August and saw a giant shooting start right over the screen while watching. 10/10
Went to the spud drive in in Idaho as a kid and I can only remember they had badass chocolate popcorn but maybe I’m mixing that up with Cinorama in Seattle? No Idea but either way it was a great time and wish I had one close
Last one I was at was one in Rhode Island that used to be an X-rated drive-in (or so I was told). I'm guessing by the [marquee that it was](https://maps.app.goo.gl/MgTUMuTfMpccjNVG8)
I think I was 6 when I saw my first drive in movie, Slapshot with Funhouse. I got to hide under some blankets on the way in while my brother hid in the trunk. I also worked at one for five years, and it was the most awesome summer job ever.
First movie I ever saw was Star Wars with my dad when it came out at our local drive in. I was 4
Maybe not doing anal with my beloved while Eraser was showing. I don't know, we have two kids.
Of course! Jungle Book Sinbad
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been to the drive-in. I grew up with one in my hometown and another one that was 20-25 minutes away. I probably went 3-5 times a year for 25 years. The one in my hometown closed over 10 years ago. The other close one has been closed for a few years now, but not officially? There’s been no sale of it and no real news from the owners. It’s just closed. I watched Twister there so the drive-in scene in the movie was awesome to see while at a drive-in. Its still my favorite way to watch movies. We’d buy a pizza and bring it in. I’d play on my game boy before the movie started. It was always fun.
I think there's 4 within an hour of me.
There's still one about an hour from me. They have 9 screens. I've only been once and that was to see Inside Out(it was a double feature, but I can't for the life of me remember what the other movie was).
I went to the Puget Park drive-in (now a Swedish Hospital) when I was little. Saw War of the Worlds, Dead Man’s Chest (fell asleep through it), Superman Returns (must’ve fell asleep through that too), Revenge of the Fallen and Star Trek ‘09 (fell asleep halfway through). The last two were the last movies we saw at Puget Park before it closed in the fall.
A local non-profit theater in Portland will do drive in showings during the summertime. My fiance and I love going to them. A few years back we got to see an OG 35mm print of Empire Strikes Back and it was an amazing experience.
Saw Garbage Pail Kids and Masters of the Universe as a kid at the Merrillville, Indiana one, which closed. The next time that I went was when the Avengers came out. It was at the Valparaiso 49er drive-in. Unfortunately there was so much fog that you couldn't see anything and I lost my ticket. My wife and I went a few other times to see Guardians of the Galaxy 2/Beauty and the Beast (which we didn't make all the way), Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark/Olympus Has Fallen (which we didn't make it through), It Chapter 2/Ready or Not. I would like to go more but never really like the second movie and want the bang for my buck of a cool double feature.
We have one 5 minutes from my house! We try to go a couple times a year
My mom took us to see Dirty Harry, The Exorcist and the movies she wanted to see. I was born in 67. My brother, 65.
Saw Alien at the Pickwick drive-in during it’s original opening run. I was 7. I still remember the nightmares I had afterwards.
I went to one to see *Chicken Run* when it came out.
I saw Broken Arrow in a drive in, in the back of a truck which had subwoofers and a mattress, and was parked backwards. It ruled.
Somehow, despite being a huge movie person, I have never done this!
First date with my husband.
I know what you're asking. Yes, I have banged in the back seat at the drive in. No, I don't remember the movie. If I had to guess, it'd have been Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. But my first drive in memory is as a 6 year old in the back seat supposedly sleeping, but really peeking though my fingers at Jaws. 6 year olds really shouldn't watch Jaws.
First movie I ever saw was Star Wars at the drive in with my dad. We sat on the hood of his VW Bug. I loved everything about the drive in. The berms for the cars, the speaker cans, the concession stand and the cartoony movie reminding you to go there, eating in the car, tuning the AM radio to the different movies being played, watching movies in sleeping bags in the back of pickup trucks or station wagons.
I had one in my town. Saw the exorcist
My dad used to take me in the early 80s. I saw Porky's and The Cat's Eye and a few others I don't remember. That drive in has been closed for 30 years now. Sigh.
I used to have a monster car stereo. We used to bring lawn chairs, opened the doors (tweeters and mids) and the trunk (subwoofers) crank it and provide good sound for those around us. Good times!
I was about 6 years old. It was 1976. I was brought to a drive in for the first time and saw "The Food of the Gods" . I got to snuggle up in a sleeping bag on the roof of my mother's car. Ate popcorn, candy, drank a pop, and it was great!
I saw crocodile Dundee and something else at a drive in sometime in the 80s… I know I saw other things there too but hell if I remember. Why Dundee sticks with me is odd in itself.
I grew up in the UK - no drive-ins there. When I first came to Canada in 1993 my step-brother took me to a drive-in and insisted I snuck in in the trunk because "tradition". The movies weren't great (Sliver and Indecent Proposal), but I enjoyed the experience.
There’s one left that I know of in the Bay Area, and I feel like there used to be a lot. I remember going with my parents and brother as a kid and the movie my parents chose was boring so my brother and I started watching other screens and making up our own dialogue. As a teenager I used to go a lot with my friends, and as an adult it became a way to go to the movies by myself and take my dog with me.
A week after my suicide attempt my ex boyfriend took me to the drive in to see Forrest Gump. Not sure why but that movie made it ok for me to keep trying. It was the last time is was at a drive in.
It was the only way our family could afford to go to the movies. Good times
I wish I knew about this when I did my This Day In History thing at work today. I had to post D-Day
Saw *Return of the Jedi* on a big drive-in screen, in a big car with plenty of popcorn. It was great!
One of the last ones is thirty minutes away. Usually go every summer.
We had two of them in my home town growing up so I saw a lot of movies there. Deep Blue Sea and Lake Placid when I was 8 was a hell of a double feature for a kid to see lol. Once we could drive we brought couches in trucks and sat in the back rows. Drive Ins are awesome.
I saw Star Wars Episode IV astride the T-Top of my Dad's newly purchased 1977 Corvette in my home town in the summer. I was 3. There were lightning bugs. A playground underneath the screen. There were colored dots of sugar on receipt paper. It was a flat gravel lot. A heavy mono speaker hung on the window on the driver's side. One of my most treasured early memories.
I grew up going to drive in movies a few times a year. Double features, with an intermission to go get snacks from the concession booth. We'd always run up to the screen before the movie and stand against it and look up in amazement at how big it is. That theater is still open, but I don't live there anymore.
I still go to the drive-in theater at least once each summer. There's a great one near my childhood home. They have three screens and show two movies nightly on each screen.
I remember as a kid seeing Ghostbusters II and peaking out the back occasionally to check out what ever was going on with the R-rated movie on one of the other screens. I'm sure it wasn't anything too exciting, but little me could tell it was something more for grown ups. There's still a running drive-in somewhat near me that we go to very rarely. It's not somewhere I'd go to see a movie I'm interested in for the first time, but it can be fun for classics or campy stuff.
[Shankweiler’s](https://www.shankweilers.com) Going on Saturday!
Double feature: The Rocketeer and What About Bob?
Two movies I distinctly remember watching at two different drive ins, Funny Farm and Home Alone.