Life Do you still go to a Drive in to watch movies? - Page 2

Deberg_1990 · 08-31-2011, 07:48 AM

Just curious, i know KC still has a couple right? Havent been in years, but i would if they had one around here.....

http://www.kcconfidential.com/full_c...full=yes&pbr=1

Summer's almost done, but it's still not too late to check out your friendly, neighborhood drive in movie theater...

You're out under the stars, holding court in the front of your car, the bed of your pickup and/or in the lawn chair of your choice. The massive outdoor movie screen glaring back at you.

Kind of like a poor man's Starlight Theatre...

Or as the Web site driveinmovie.com describes it - celebrating "the presence of the past." Which worked for me since my trip to KCK's Boulevard Drive In Saturday entailed watching a sendup to the 60s sci-fi hit, "Planet of the Apes."

While affording me the opportunity to grill the longtime owner of the "world's greatest drive in theatre," octogenarian Wes Neal.

Starting with the quadruple bypass heart surgery he had on his 82nd birthday.

"I told the surgeon I was going to draw a cartoon of me on the operating table," Neal says. "And him swinging an ax and saying, 'Happy Birthday!' "

Speaking of memorable moments...

"In two more years it'll be our 60th birthday at the drive in," Neal says. "If I'm still living then. I'm sort of easing into retirement."

Neal says the first ever drive in movie theater in this country went downin 1933 with a sheet for a screen and a projector on a car hood. Which doesn't exactly explain why Americans fell in love with the concept in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.

"Drive ins didn't become prominent until after World War II and all these soldiers came home and bought cars," Neal explains. "And people didn't want to give up their cars - they wanted to be in their cars."

Might that have had something to do with the stricter morals of the day and the need for young men and women to find a getaway for some romantic quality time? After all, they didn't call drive in theaters called "passion pits" for nothing, right?

"Well, you just told me," Neal quips.

So did Neal have to patrol the parking lot with flashlights back then to limit the in-car hanky-panky to an R-rating?

"No, we didn't," Neal says. "We didn't want to run away half of our customers - or a third, anyway."

These days, "There's not as much smooching going on," Neal says. "People don't care what their kids do (at home)."

Translation: nobdody needs to go to a drive in to find love.

The wildest thing that ever went down at the Boulevard over the years?

"A lot of people for one reason or another - mostly because they could - put their hands up in front of the projector so it showed on the screen," Neal says. "People used to like to do that."

Man, that's what I call wild!

How about the sneak in factor? Looks like it might not be that hard to pull off.

They used to come over the fence in droves," Neal says. "Now you can't pay 'em to sneak in. People ask me, do people still sneak in and I say, 'No, I wish they would.' Because they pay $8 to get in and it costs me $9 to put on the show. So I'd make a dollar."

Neal's had his share of celebrity visits as well. No Academy Award winners, but people like actress Elizabeth James, the motorcycle-riding hottie/damsel in distress in the 1967 Billy Jack movie "The Born Losers."

"I asked her if she liked riding motocycles," Neal says. "And she said, 'Never been on one.' "

Now a little empirical wisdom gleaned from Neal's 50 years of operating a drive in theater.

"Drive ins are noted for three things," he muses "Corndogs, mosquitoes and trains - I don't know why so many drive ins are built near train tracks ."

Estimates peg the number of drive ins in the US at between 4,000 and 5,000 in the late 1950s. However, less than 500 still exist, according to drive-ins.com.

Are they here to stay?

"I don't think so," Neal says. "Because eventually the property's going to get too (valuable). And a lot of 'em are owned by mom and pops like me. And when they die off..."

The first wave of drive ins dying off followed their wildly popular run in the 50s, 60s and early 70s, Neal says.

"Then in the 80s, the bottom just dropped out," Neal says.

The drive in customers of today are "middle class people, mostly 20 to 40,"he says. "And several older people come. They like it because they remember how drive ins used to be."

Speaking of which, did the Boulevard ever show X-Rated movies?

"We did way back when all the drive ins were closing," Neal says. "Everybody tried X-rated movies, but it didn't work."

These days the Boulevard's weekend swap meets help keep the wolf away from the door.

"That's been the salvation of this drive in," Neal says.

Dayze · 08-31-2011, 08:35 AM

my first date with my wife was at a Drive In..I think in Independence.

**Nzoner** · 08-31-2011, 08:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seclark

my grandmother lived about half mile from a drive-in theater in st. louis. when we were kids, my cousin and i would climb to the top of a big pine tree in her yard and watch the r-rated flicks.
sec

Speaking of R movies,we had another drive-in that was on the busiest strip in town and you could see the screen as you topped a hill.They eventually had to do away showing any kind of movie with nudity because there were so many rear end crashes on the strip

Deberg_1990 · 08-31-2011, 08:47 AM

heh, i remember going to the Crest in Grandview and 63rd in Raytown when i was a kid. The sound was always crap.

I think there used to be one at 40 highway and Noland Road as well?

Valiant · 08-31-2011, 08:49 AM

Still go to twin once a year. It is a great value. That and you use the radio now to listen.

NewChief · 08-31-2011, 08:50 AM

We went to our local one recently to see Cars 2. It was a fun experience for the kids. That being said, it's a great value... but the crowd shows it. I could probably start a rival website to People of Wal-Mart called People of the Drive-In.

MOhillbilly · 08-31-2011, 08:59 AM

Only one around here in is aurora. Think they only show pg movies, but damn is it packed.

**mlyonsd** · 08-31-2011, 09:02 AM

Sioux City used to have 3 different drive-ins, two of them twins. None now, sad. One of the highlights and things you remember from growing up.

philfree · 08-31-2011, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MOhillbilly

Only one around here in is aurora. Think they only show pg movies, but damn is it packed.

We went down to Arurora with the "kids" to see 'Cars II' and they had to turn people away. Traffic was backed up all the way to the HWY. We made it in and they had us park in the drive because the parking places were full.

Nothing like a real Cherry Coke and some buttery popcorn.

**sd4chiefs** · 08-31-2011, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

heh, i remember going to the Crest in Grandview and 63rd in Raytown when i was a kid. The sound was always crap.

I think there used to be one at 40 highway and Noland Road as well?

I used to go to the Leawood Drive-in when I was a kid about a million years ago.

http://www.drive-ins.com/gallery/kstleaw

ToxSocks · 08-31-2011, 09:54 AM

We have one down here and we still go. I prefer it actually. The cost of admission is SOOOO much cheaper than a theater.

Monty · 08-31-2011, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

heh, i remember going to the Crest in Grandview and 63rd in Raytown when i was a kid. The sound was always crap.

I think there used to be one at 40 highway and Noland Road as well?

Yeah, it is still there but I haven't been to a movie there since the early 90s.

There is one in Ennis, TX that opened a few years ago. We go there on occasion with the kids so they can experience it for themselves. It's a cool part of Americana IMO.

vailpass · 08-31-2011, 09:57 AM

Took my boys a few years back to see WallE; wanted them to know what it was like to see a drive-in movie before they went extinct.
They loved sitting outside watching the show.
The crowd was probably 90% mexicans. They were all outside their cars, running and talking the whole movie through, throwing glow sticks all over .
It was fun.

Coogs · 08-31-2011, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Detoxing

The cost of admission is SOOOO much cheaper than a theater.

Crammin' the trunk full with kids and firiends huh! Good times!

mnchiefsguy · 08-31-2011, 10:16 AM

Yes. I work at one in fact.

There are three Drive-Ins left in Kansas City. The Boulevard (the one mentioned in the article posted), The I-70 Drive-In, which is by the stadiums, one block west of Stadium Drive on 40 Highway, and the Twin Drive-In, which is out in Independence at Highway 291 and Kentucky.

If you have kids, you can't beat the value. Everyone 12 and up costs 8 bucks, kids 11 and under are free. So a family of four can see two movies for $16.

**hometeam** · 08-31-2011, 10:34 AM

I wish we had one here in central mo

08-31-2011, 07:48 AM
Deberg_1990 In Search of a Life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: San Antonio Tx. Casino cash: $294454	Do you still go to a Drive in to watch movies? Just curious, i know KC still has a couple right? Havent been in years, but i would if they had one around here..... http://www.kcconfidential.com/full_c...full=yes&pbr=1 Summer's almost done, but it's still not too late to check out your friendly, neighborhood drive in movie theater... You're out under the stars, holding court in the front of your car, the bed of your pickup and/or in the lawn chair of your choice. The massive outdoor movie screen glaring back at you. Kind of like a poor man's Starlight Theatre... Or as the Web site driveinmovie.com describes it - celebrating "the presence of the past." Which worked for me since my trip to KCK's Boulevard Drive In Saturday entailed watching a sendup to the 60s sci-fi hit, "Planet of the Apes." While affording me the opportunity to grill the longtime owner of the "world's greatest drive in theatre," octogenarian Wes Neal. Starting with the quadruple bypass heart surgery he had on his 82nd birthday. "I told the surgeon I was going to draw a cartoon of me on the operating table," Neal says. "And him swinging an ax and saying, 'Happy Birthday!' " Speaking of memorable moments... "In two more years it'll be our 60th birthday at the drive in," Neal says. "If I'm still living then. I'm sort of easing into retirement." Neal says the first ever drive in movie theater in this country went downin 1933 with a sheet for a screen and a projector on a car hood. Which doesn't exactly explain why Americans fell in love with the concept in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. "Drive ins didn't become prominent until after World War II and all these soldiers came home and bought cars," Neal explains. "And people didn't want to give up their cars - they wanted to be in their cars." Might that have had something to do with the stricter morals of the day and the need for young men and women to find a getaway for some romantic quality time? After all, they didn't call drive in theaters called "passion pits" for nothing, right? "Well, you just told me," Neal quips. So did Neal have to patrol the parking lot with flashlights back then to limit the in-car hanky-panky to an R-rating? "No, we didn't," Neal says. "We didn't want to run away half of our customers - or a third, anyway." These days, "There's not as much smooching going on," Neal says. "People don't care what their kids do (at home)." Translation: nobdody needs to go to a drive in to find love. The wildest thing that ever went down at the Boulevard over the years? "A lot of people for one reason or another - mostly because they could - put their hands up in front of the projector so it showed on the screen," Neal says. "People used to like to do that." Man, that's what I call wild! How about the sneak in factor? Looks like it might not be that hard to pull off. They used to come over the fence in droves," Neal says. "Now you can't pay 'em to sneak in. People ask me, do people still sneak in and I say, 'No, I wish they would.' Because they pay $8 to get in and it costs me $9 to put on the show. So I'd make a dollar." Neal's had his share of celebrity visits as well. No Academy Award winners, but people like actress Elizabeth James, the motorcycle-riding hottie/damsel in distress in the 1967 Billy Jack movie "The Born Losers." "I asked her if she liked riding motocycles," Neal says. "And she said, 'Never been on one.' " Now a little empirical wisdom gleaned from Neal's 50 years of operating a drive in theater. "Drive ins are noted for three things," he muses "Corndogs, mosquitoes and trains - I don't know why so many drive ins are built near train tracks ." Estimates peg the number of drive ins in the US at between 4,000 and 5,000 in the late 1950s. However, less than 500 still exist, according to drive-ins.com. Are they here to stay? "I don't think so," Neal says. "Because eventually the property's going to get too (valuable). And a lot of 'em are owned by mom and pops like me. And when they die off..." The first wave of drive ins dying off followed their wildly popular run in the 50s, 60s and early 70s, Neal says. "Then in the 80s, the bottom just dropped out," Neal says. The drive in customers of today are "middle class people, mostly 20 to 40,"he says. "And several older people come. They like it because they remember how drive ins used to be." Speaking of which, did the Boulevard ever show X-Rated movies? "We did way back when all the drive ins were closing," Neal says. "Everybody tried X-rated movies, but it didn't work." These days the Boulevard's weekend swap meets help keep the wolf away from the door. "That's been the salvation of this drive in," Neal says.
Posts: 68,448

08-31-2011, 08:35 AM	#16
Dayze Resident Glue Sniffer Join Date: Nov 2003 Casino cash: $1919358	my first date with my wife was at a Drive In..I think in Independence.
Posts: 37,452

08-31-2011, 08:47 AM	#18
Deberg_1990 In Search of a Life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: San Antonio Tx. Casino cash: $294454	heh, i remember going to the Crest in Grandview and 63rd in Raytown when i was a kid. The sound was always crap. I think there used to be one at 40 highway and Noland Road as well?
Posts: 68,448

08-31-2011, 08:49 AM	#19
Valiant Valiant 'The Thread Killer' Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Kansas City Casino cash: $4572380	Still go to twin once a year. It is a great value. That and you use the radio now to listen.
Posts: 18,550

08-31-2011, 08:50 AM	#20
NewChief In Search of a Life Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Fayetteville, AR Casino cash: $7270204	We went to our local one recently to see Cars 2. It was a fun experience for the kids. That being said, it's a great value... but the crowd shows it. I could probably start a rival website to People of Wal-Mart called People of the Drive-In. __________________ In this world of sin and sorrow there is always something to be thankful for; as for me, I rejoice that I am not a Republican. - H. L. Mencken
Posts: 21,845

08-31-2011, 08:59 AM	#21
MOhillbilly Mama Tried Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Missouri Casino cash: $9949903	Only one around here in is aurora. Think they only show pg movies, but damn is it packed. __________________ True Son of Liberty
Posts: 23,371

08-31-2011, 09:02 AM	#22
mlyonsd Supporter Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Spink, SD Casino cash: $-2036238	Sioux City used to have 3 different drive-ins, two of them twins. None now, sad. One of the highlights and things you remember from growing up.
Posts: 39,465

08-31-2011, 09:54 AM	#25
ToxSocks Needs more middle fingers Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Diego Casino cash: $2123063	We have one down here and we still go. I prefer it actually. The cost of admission is SOOOO much cheaper than a theater. __________________ Life is like a dick. Sometimes it gets hard for no reason, but it can't stay hard forever.
Posts: 65,925

08-31-2011, 09:57 AM	#27
vailpass Psycho Bag Of Squanch Join Date: Sep 2001 Casino cash: $9594244	Took my boys a few years back to see WallE; wanted them to know what it was like to see a drive-in movie before they went extinct. They loved sitting outside watching the show. The crowd was probably 90% mexicans. They were all outside their cars, running and talking the whole movie through, throwing glow sticks all over . It was fun. __________________ “Education is a weapon whose effect depends on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed.” Joseph Stalin
Posts: 69,591

08-31-2011, 10:16 AM	#29
mnchiefsguy MVP Join Date: Dec 2003 Casino cash: $1256206	Yes. I work at one in fact. There are three Drive-Ins left in Kansas City. The Boulevard (the one mentioned in the article posted), The I-70 Drive-In, which is by the stadiums, one block west of Stadium Drive on 40 Highway, and the Twin Drive-In, which is out in Independence at Highway 291 and Kentucky. If you have kids, you can't beat the value. Everyone 12 and up costs 8 bucks, kids 11 and under are free. So a family of four can see two movies for $16.
Posts: 10,336

08-31-2011, 10:34 AM	#30
hometeam Supporter Join Date: Jul 2011 Casino cash: $1601956	I wish we had one here in central mo
Posts: 10,764