Drive-in theaters

They are a dying breed. They used to be everywhere and now only a handful remain. I'm talking about drive-in movie theaters. For we old folks, drive-in theaters probably hold a special place in our hearts. I remember as a kid mom and dad would pile the kids into the car on a warm summer evening and head to the drive-in. We usually went to the Twin Drive-In in Norwood or the Oakley Drive-In on Madison Rd. Mom would pack a picnic basket of snacks and load a cooler full of pop. Dad would back the station wagon into a prime viewing spot and would hook the speaker onto the window. Mom would spread blankets on the ground and we would settle in for the double feature. I remember the pre-movie advertisements for the concession stand and watching with delight as the dancing hot dog, popcorn and soda would prance across the screen. I remember the crackly, low quality sound of the antiquated speaker, but it didn't bother us. We were at the drive-in, and that is all that mattered. Once the movie started, the real fun began. It didn't matter if it was some cheesy Disney movie (I specifically remember watching Escape from Witch Mountain and Gus, the field goal kicking mule) or some cruddy "B" movie. The night was more about the experience of the evening and less about the movie itself. I remember fighting sleep as the second movie began and seriously doubt I ever made it even halfway through the second movie. I'm guessing mom and dad probably headed for home as soon as the three kids were asleep. Those were magical times that I will never forget.

Why all this talk about the drive-in theater? It's because Tami came up with the brilliant idea to take our (nearly grown) children to the drive-in. They loved the idea and so did I. We were going to go tomorrow night, but the forecast for thunderstorms nixed the idea (at least for tomorrow). We will go sometime this summer... guaranteed. The only problem is the sheer distance we'll have to travel to get there. There are only three in our area and those happen to be 45-70 minutes away. Because of the distance, the trip to the drive-in will take some advance planning. It's not like years ago when you could go on the spur of the moment. That was easy to do when the drive-in was 10 minutes from the house.

In this age of digital technology, special effects and computer generated images, the drive-in has no appeal for young people. It's so sad that the drive-in is a thing of the past and is all but dead. We live in the age of Netflix and a time when every kid has a smart phone that doubles as a television and on-demand movie viewing device. The thought of driving somewhere to watch a movie in your car must seem about as appealing as root canal surgery. What a shame today's kids will never know the joy of the drive-in theater.

I will always, always remember our trips to the drive-in. Even when the last one closes (and I firmly believe it's only a matter of time), they will live forever in my mind. Technology is a wonderful thing, but sometimes the old ways aren't necessarily bad. I sincerely hope that drive-in movies will somehow carve out a niche in today's fast moving, technology-laden, age of instant information. I hope the drive-in theaters never die.

                                                           The Oakley Drive-In

                                                This is NOT the Twin in Cincinnati

Aerial View of the Twin Drive-In- Cincinnati