Back in the Day Drive In Movie Theater

[340challconvert]

My mom was born in a small town in Vermont named Bellows Falls where I follow the town's history. I found a pic of the long gone drive in movie theater there with the marque at the entrance. Some noted movies played that night!

 

[tonysrt]

The last outdoor movie I went to was when we drove out to California and saw Forest Gump. I believe it was 1992. When they were the "in thing" back in the 60's and 70's spent many a Sat. night in the back seat with a female companion. Sometimes too lazy to go in the back because front seats were pretty good as long as the stick was pushed all the way forward.

 

[Bobby Sixkiller]

There is still one in operation in the small Oklahoma town of Shattuck. Elco drive in. I’ve actually only seen cartoons there. Yea I have kids that age.

 

[BuckeyeCuda]

Still have one about a 1/2 mile from my house and maybe a half dozen within 30 miles in Ohio. The local one had Tom Cruise last week and Dinosaurs this week. Both are showing one the two screens if you want to watch both and listen to one or have an FM radio, as all sound id broadcast, so you can watch one and get the sound from another with two screens. $25 per car, so if you pack it full, not a bad deal.

 

[moparmarks]

We still a two in the next county over.

 

[340challconvert]

Wish we still had one locally now by me in Northern New Jersey.
Problem is that the property became more valuable for development then the revenue from a drive in movie theater!

 

[340challconvert]

This is what happened to the nearest drive in theater by my parents house; the last marque

Located on the southeast corner of the intersection of Route 3 and Route 17. The S-3 Drive-In was opened April 20, 1951 with Maureen O'Hara in “Tripoli” & Joel McRea in “Saddle Tramp”. By August 1957 it was operated by Liggett-Florin Booking Service and had been renamed Route 3 Drive-In. It was closed in 1982, and in 1984 was demolished to build the Kingsbridge office building and parking lot which now stand where the Route 3 Drive-In used to be

 

[Cuda Hunter]

That's pretty cool!
We have a drive-in here in my county.

https://www.google.com/maps/uv?pb=!1s0x87154cbe5498e95b%3A0x3f5b5ec41868f41b!3m1!7e115!4shttps%3A%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipNdJAO64ZMfGynWLWxzbWD7Zx75EF5yUO2KFCUD%3Dw320-h320-k-no!5scomanche%20drive%20in%20-%20Google%20Search!15sCgIgAQ&imagekey=!1e10!2sAF1QipNdJAO64ZMfGynWLWxzbWD7Zx75EF5yUO2KFCUD&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjfv5a5ya_4AhU6HjQIHf1cBqoQoip6BAhoEAM

It has one of the most beautiful back drops. Mt. Princeton, Mt. Harvard and Mt. Yale. and of course to the side you can see buffalo peaks, the mosquito range and behind you the Sangre De Cristo range and the San Juan range.

 

[DY31970]

Thanks for posting the picture of the Route 3 Drive - In marque. I went there a number of times. Going into the cool vintage snack bar building was like stepping back in time. I remember seeing Mel Brook's Silent Movie there.

 

[hemi71x]

We still got one out here in Sacramento, Commiefornia, right down the street from me.

 

[moparleo]

There were many more that we used to go to in the 50-60's in So Cal but can't find pictures of them. some are still around, most are gone...

 

[heminut]

The last one I went to was in Twentynine Palms CA back about 7 years ago when my son was stationed at the Marine base there. I don't know if that one is still in operation but back then it was doing a pretty good business!

 

[Dfr3604cuda]

When I was a kid, we went every couple weeks. Mom, dad and 5 kids. We got in free. The guy that ran the place worked with my dad at Westinghouse. On the way home, we would stop at the slag pile along Route 51 where Century 3 mall is now. US Steel would dump slag at night and the whole area would light up.

 

[Dfr3604cuda]

Years later another drive in along Route 88 had an impact on my life. But it was in the backseat of a Camaro, not a Mopar

 

[MoparCarGuy]

Still open and shows movies WED-THU-FRI-SAT-SUN in Ruskin, FL (South of Tampa).

 

[340challconvert]

Very cool that a number of drive ins still exist in California and in other places