Drive-Ins on a Rebound?

This year, the venerable American institution called drive-ins celebrated its 75th anniversary. However, they face a dismal future with encroaching suburban sprawl, VCRs, and DVDs. Yet, in Charleston, Illinois, there is going to be a new drive-in opened this year by Mark and Carl McSparin.


A HISTORY

Drive-ins started as an experiment by Richard M. Hollingshead in Riverton, NJ, around 1930. He placed a Kodak projector on the hood of the family car and nailed a screen to a tree.

By June 6, 1933, he had gotten partners and opened the "Drive-In Theatre" in Camden, NJ. "Wives Beware," was the first film with tickets selling at 25 cents apiece.

By the end of the thirties, there were about 20 drive-ins. By 1949, the number stood at 820. Returning GIs were looking for affordable family entertainment. The 1950s are regarded as the golden age of the drive-in. Most historians regard 1958 as the high point with 4,063 around the US.

During the 1960s and 1970s, the number remained around 4,000. Original owners began retiring and theaters had problems getting first-run movies. The biggest wallop came from the growth of VCRs, cable TV, and indoor multiplexes. By 1990, the number was down to below 1000. In 1999 the number stood at 447 and today is 383.


TODAY

That number is stabilizing. People are returning to the drive-ins. Partly because of the low price which will often get you a twin feature of current movies. Also. many return for the nostalgia and want their kids to experience it.

Illinois has a dozen, including the McHenry Outdoor Theater, about six miles from my house. Plus, there is a fairly new one a few miles off Route 66 in Springfield, Illinois, and the Skyview in Litchfield, an original one.

Every year, I go to a nearby Dog 'N Suds and then to the Drive-in for a Retro Night. This last year it cost $7 to see two first-run movies. Not a bad deal, but getting a bit too late for these tired old bones.

Glad to See Drive-Ins on the Rebound. --Da Coot

June 8th Chicago Tribune "Drive-ins find hope in twilight years" by Ted Gregory.