In the spring of 2007, I had the pleasure of working on an article for my college magazine about a topic I had been interested in for a long time. When the opportunity presented itself to write about the history, demise and rising interest in drive-in theaters, I took it. After all, when again could I pick and choose what I wanted to write about? After the magazine was published, my article was cut down considerably, but I present to you in its entirety, “The Lost Days of Drive-Ins”
Like the record player, the cassette tape and the soon to be extinct VCR, the drive-in theater, despite its massive land circumference, seems like a forgotten art lost in the black hole of nostalgia. Decades ago, it alluded not only teenagers whose hormones were racing at the speed of light, but families who sought to enjoy the experience of watching a movie on a humongous screen while munching on popcorn in the comfort and confines of their cars. But while their popularity peaked in the late to early 50’s and 60’s, property values, technology and the aging baby boomer population led to their demise. First opened in 1933 by Richard Hollingshead Jr. in Camden, New Jersey Drive-In theaters were never really built to last says Frank Huttinger, a film buyer for De Anza Land & Leisure Corp., which owns drive-ins in Montclair and Riverside County as well as many others across the U.S. Huttinger says they were more or less built to last about 10 to 15 years.
“Until 4 or 5 years ago, we thought they were all going away. People’s habits changed, baby boomers got older. The family outing to movie got less of an important thing to do,” says Huttinger who added that the remaining drive-ins survived by having swap meets on their property.”
Though many were over taken by cinemas who boasted multiple screens or torn down to be replaced by shopping centers, RV Parks and hypermarkets such as Walmart, you may be surprised to learn that this iconic piece of American history was never fully driven out. In the last 5 years, drive-ins have seen a fascinating resurgence in audience attendance and many have used the opportunity to renovate and remodel the remaining theaters in hopes of attracting more movie-goers who are looking for a different or even a familiar experience that brings back memories of their childhood. With common movie theaters still around and high definition television and paper view, drive-ins, to the untrained business eye seem like a dead end investment for any company. Huttinger says otherwise.
“They’re a profitable business,” he says. In fact, since the resurgence began about 5 years ago, Huttinger says he’s seen attendance steadily increase five to seven percent each year for the last 3 years.
One major reason for this is because studios began making more horror and family oriented films-genres that are well suited for drive-in theaters. Indeed, the movie industry has seen a significant resurgence in horror and suspense thrillers, which were the ultimate choice at drive-ins back in the day. Movies like “Saw,” “The Ring,” “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “28 Days Later” have dominated the box office and their graphic violence and stunning visuals have made them perfect for the big screen.
