Another new Texas drive-in about to open

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Drive-in view from inside a restaurant

Artist’s rendering from the Coyote web site

Is the Coyote model the future of drive-in theaters? After successful openings in Fort Worth TX and Leeds AL, another Coyote Drive-In is scheduled to open in Lewisville TX before the end of October. The Lewisville Texan Journal ran a story with plenty of the details.

The newest Coyote will open with five screens, and the Texan Journal says it’ll expand to six next year. It will include the Coyote signature touches of an indoor/outdoor restaurant and kids play area. The Lewisville drive-in has been under construction for months, and was originally scheduled to open in July.

Coyote Chief Operating Officer Steve Winn said the special reflective material on the screen will make the movies as easy to watch as indoors. “I think people will find it’s the brightest image they’ve seen on a drive-in ever,” he said.

In February, Lewisville granted over $300,000 in incentives to the Coyote in exchange for allowing the city to use it for special event parking and for hosting an annual city event. “We are thrilled (Coyote) chose Lewisville and think they have a lot to bring to our community,” city spokesman James Kunke said, “and we want to support their success.”

It’s great to see another city recognize the value of a good drive-in. The Lewisville Texan Journal has a lot more on the story, including a fine photo, so go read it!

Ohio documentary debuts at drive-in

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Here’s a great example of community support. Local business leaders bankrolled a local documentary highlighting just how great it is to be in Shelby County OH. And the World Premiere of that documentary will be October 15-16 at the Auto Vue Drive-In in Sidney OH.

The Gateway Arts Council of Sidney is the driving force behind Moving A Nation: Made in Shelby County, produced and directed by Columbus documentary filmmaker John Ondo. According to the Sidney Daily News, the film is inspired by “the courtsquare sculpture by George Danhires that commemorates industry.”

In the story announcing the premiere date, the Daily News wrote that the finished product “is a tribute to the rich and inspiring story of Shelby County industry and its essential role in the county’s past, present and future.” Even the Sidney Civic Band was enlisted to provide some of the music for the film.

It’s great to see an intersection of civic pride and the local drive-in, considering that a lot of the appeal of the first drive-ins was to blue-collar workers who didn’t want to dress up for an indoor movie. I hope that lots of locals turn out to see themselves on the really big screen.

Carload’s grand re-opening

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Driving America drive-in type sign at The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn MI

This Douglas Auto Theatre sign spent over 30 years at a Kalamazoo MI drive-in. Now it hangs at The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn. Photo by PunkToad

In case you haven’t noticed, Carload.com is active again. The graphics are prettier, the news is as timely as ever, but there are a few changes.

Carload began as a way to keep track of what was showing at Colorado drive-in theaters. Way back then, there were 12 active drive-ins in the state, most of them didn’t have web pages, Facebook didn’t exist, and long-distance calls cost money. Listing the theaters and what they had planned for the weekend was helpful.

Now that’s all different. At this writing, only one drive-in in the US or Canada doesn’t have its own site or at least a Facebook page. Everybody’s got a cell phone, and long distance is free or dirt cheap. Having one more site with movie listings isn’t helpful any longer.

Instead, Carload has been redesigned as a mobile-first site. The front-page emphasis on drive-in news is still strong, but now we also keep track of every active drive-in in the US and Canada. If you’re still curious about what’s showing, just call the phone number or click through to the theater’s official web page.

Thanks for your support during this transition. If you have a great drive-in photo, please add it to the Carload Flickr Pool.