Let's all go to the Drive-In

Amanda Aikman, Managing Editor

© you remember that scene in The Outsiders when Ponyboy chats up the lovely be- sweatered Cherry Valance for the first time? Or the one in Grease when Sandy is bummed ovet her recent discovery that Danny and Cha Cha had been up to more than just dancing—but ends up forgiving him when he asks her to go steady? Well, if you do, you'll probably remember that both of these scenes were set in drive-in movie theatres.

True, these films feature the glory days of the 1950s’ outdoor-theatre culture, but drive-ins aren’t just for the poodle-skirt- and-Bryll-Cream set.

I remember attending a Mr. Mom and Tootsie double feature in the ’80s with my the

Saskatoon. It was great. We had a van with

family at Sundown theatre in a bed in it, and I tried relish on a ham- burger for the first time (which I promptly scraped off and hid behind the make-shift van bed). Then there were the high-school years in Winnipeg when | would queue up with hordes of drunken, sunburned teenagers for the famous May- long-weekend all-nighters at the Odeon. Ah, “May Long” at the Odeon. Once the gates opened, we’d descend on the 998- vehicle-capacity grounds and eagerly take in the multitude of laughs, tears, and gory fight scenes. And then the films would begin. Good times.

But those good times, along with the

August 10/2005

drive-in theatre itself, are facing extinc- tion. And unlike the spotted owl, the drive-in is one endangered species I’m actually going to miss. I’m sorry, but c’mon. I’m sure the spotted owl is a love- ly creature, but you can’t exactly eat nachos, watch a horror flick, and makeout in one of them, now can you?

True, going to the drive-in is not the same as going to one of today’s hyper- mega-colossal-funplexes. No, you won’t have access to a state-of-the-art arcade at the drive-in. Nor will you have the pleas- ure of purchasing Burger King and Taco Bell products at three times their current street value. But you »#// get to take part in

a genuine movie-going tradition that dates back to 1933.

Tuesday, June 6, 1933, to be exact. That's. the day Hollingshead’s aptly named “Drive-in

when Richard Theatre” first screened W7fe Beware to car- loads of excited onlookers in Camden, New Jersey. It didn’t take long for the likes of Shankweiler’s Auto Park in Orefield, Pennsylvania and the Starlight Auto Theatre in Akron, Ohio, to open their (out)doors as well. In Canada, things began rolling in 1946, when the Skyway opened near Hamilton, Ontario. Throughout the ’50s, babies weren’t the only things booming in North America—the drive-in theatre industry was as well. And it wasn’t just the number of theatres that had increased (approxi- mately 5000 were in operation by 1958) the very concept of the drive-in had expanded, as well. Playgrounds, seating areas, and more elaborate concession stands began cropping up. One theatre in Copiague, New York, boasted enough space for 2,500 cars, 1,200 seated patrons, and a shuttle bus to shift everyone to and “Ed

Brown’s Drive-In and Fly-In” theatre in

from the various onsite attractions.

\sbury Park, New Jersey, even featured an airfield, which allowed the pilots of up to 25 small planes the opportunity to join in on the drive-in experience, too.

Here in BC, we’ve seen our fair share of drive-ins come and go. Of the 15 that once occupied the Lower Mainland, there is currently a grand total of zero in And with fewer handful remaining in the rest of BC— Prince George’s Park Drive-In and Enderby’s Starlight were the only two I could confirm still in active duty—the coming attractions for the drive-in theatre

operation. than a

www.theotherpress.ca

are looking bleak.

There is a possibility of hope on the horizon, however. The website for the Twilight Drive-In (a.k.a. “The Drive-In Formerly Known as Hillcrest’) claims their theatre will be opening this summer in Langley. Of course, they also claimed to be opening last summer, and a gal can only hold her breath for so long, You can visit members.shaw.ca/twilightdrivein for updates, or to submit a résumé. Imagine that, working at the drive-in. What could be more romantic? And I don’t mean in the steaming-up-the-car-windows kind of way, either.

No, I’m talking about the romance associated with the vintage drive-in expe- rience: looking up at the stars past the dancing hot dog on the screen, settling in with a popcorn and a Cherry Coke from the concession stand, holding hands with your sweetheart while your slutty best friend makes out with a greaser in the back seat...these are the things we’re los- ing, people. And it breaks my heart.

So why not take the opportunity while you still can, and find your way to a drive- in theatre this summer? Sure it might be a bit of a trek, but that just makes it all the more exciting. Of course, if you’d rather, by all means continue to embrace the modern cinematic experience. Go on pay ing your black-market popcorn prices. Keep oohing and ahhing over the latest advancements in giant-screened, Dolby- blasting, multiplexes. Go ahead, turn your back on the cultural significance and good times of the drive-in theatre, allowing something beautiful and valuable to be killed off. But don’t say I didn’t warn you when it dies.

| 19