Author Archives: mrdrivein

May 23: Moonlight Movies Drive-In Theater, Lumsden SK

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Inflatable drive-in screen at night

photo from the Midnight Movies Facebook page

It’s Day 143 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. Driving from Kyle SK, it only took about three hours to reach Lumsden, current home of the Moonlight Movies Drive-In Theater. That was a different location that I had planned for when I drew up this trip last fall.

Here’s a question I’ve explored before: What is a drive-in movie theater? There are a few factors, but the most relevant to Moonlight Movies is that you do not need a screen tower but you do need a fixed, “permanent” location. Last year, Moonlight Movies had a screen tower, but for the 2017 season, they’re doing fine in a park.

According to Cinema Treasures, the Jubilee Drive-In up the road in Manitou Beach was built in 1951. That site has a permanent outdoor screen and an indoor 24-seat theatre. For at least the past several years, the Moonlight Movies folks ran the Jubilee. Then in February, Global News reported that they had been unable to get their lease renewed at the Jubilee, so they found a new place to show movies, at the River Park Campground in Lumsden. Moonlight Movies co-owner Shawn Barrett told CTV Regina, “Honestly, it’s a match made in heaven. It’s awesome out there.” The theater company signed a two-year deal with Lumsden.

At this time of year, Moonlight Movies is active only on Fridays and Saturdays, leaving me out of luck on a Tuesday night.

Miles Today / Total:  188 / 17241 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 63

Nearby Restaurant: At the Lumsden Valley Restaurant, you’re supposed to order pizza, so I did. Mine was just the way I like it, with homemade crust, a heap of toppings, and next to a beer. Sometimes the simple things are best.

Where I Virtually Stayed: The place to stay in Lumsden is, of course, the Lumsden Hotel, or as they call it, the Lumsden Hotel & Steak Pit. I was just glad to have a roof over my head, a comfortable bed, decent wifi and cable TV, and a bathroom to myself.

Only in Lumsden: If you get here in July or August, you might be able to check out the Lumsden Historical Museum. It’s made up of five pioneer buildings, a modern machine shed, a livery stable and blacksmith shop. Four of the pioneer buildings – church, house, school and community hall – contain artifacts that depict early district history. “Of special interest are our Bill Ogilvie Memorial Lily Garden and Arnie Robinson’s John Deere tractor collection.”

Next stop: Big Island Drive In Theater, Flin Flon MB.

May 22: Clearwater Drive-In Theater, Kyle SK

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Clearwater Drive-in box office with screen in background

photo by Canada Good, from the Carload Flickr pool

It’s Day 142 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. I returned to Canada, driving almost seven hours (not counting the time waiting to cross at the border) almost due north from Billings MT to the Clearwater Drive-In Theater north of Kyle SK.

According to a YouTube video by Craig Baird, the Clearwater, named for nearby Clearwater Lake, opened in 1957. The original screen blew down in 1987. A post on BigDoer said the replacement screen came from “a closed drive-in found in another Saskatchewan town.”

(That BigDoer post includes a description of a typical night at the Clearwater, which happened to include a visit from the Northern Lights. And they have photos to prove it!)

Current owners Denise and Ken bought the place in 1988, upgraded to platters in 1999, then upgraded to digital projection in 2013.

At this time of year, the Clearwater is only open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays leaving me out of luck on a Monday night. But here’s that YouTube video to remind us what it looks like when it’s running.

Miles Today / Total:  417 / 17053 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 63

Nearby Restaurant: What do you expect at a place called Heidi’s Burger? Chinese food, of course. This humble little place on the main highway through town serves up some solid Shanghai noodles. There were a lot more items on the menu, but I can only eat so much at once.

Where I Virtually Stayed: There really isn’t a lot to choose from in remote Kyle, so I got a two-bedroom suite at the Kyle Hotel. It had a kitchen with a fridge and a microwave, and there’s a cafe on-site for breakfast. I was just glad to have a roof over my head and a bathroom all to myself.

Only in Kyle: On the north side of town in Kinsmen Park. there’s a 10-foot-high cement replica of a woolly mammoth. According to Big Things, the Monuments of Canada, “Wally” is a replica of the actual mammoth that was unearthed nearby in 1964 by a scraper blade during road construction. It was built in 1981 and restored in 2001.

Next stop: Moonlight Movies Drive-In Theater, Lumsden SK.

May 21: Amusement Park Drive-in Theatre, Billings MT

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It’s Day 141 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. I drove across state lines for the sixth straight day, but it was the shortest of that bunch. In just an hour and a half, I motored from Powell WY to the Amusement Park Drive-in Theatre in Billings MT.

According to the Amusement Park’s history page, currently inactive but captured by the Internet Archive, the screen, marquee and sign are from the Park Drive-In, which operated in Cody WY from 1946 to 2003. Owners Riley and Vickie Cooke rebuilt the screen and opened in Billings in July 2005.

Like the Admiral Twin Drive-In in Tulsa, only smaller, the Amusement Park uses both sides of a single screen for two viewing areas. The front projection booth is a 1909 caboose, and the back projection booth is a 1938 circus truck purchased for $300.

There are amusement park rides at the base of the screen, along with a small mini-golf course, but it’s unclear whether they’re still in operation.

The Amusement Park installed two digital projectors in 2013, and Billings’ News Leader KULR was on hand, resulting in the video embedded above.

Riley Cooke told the Billings Gazette in 2015 that he was trying to recover the cost of those digital projectors. “It was go digital or go dark,” Cooke said. “I figure I’m not a businessman, I’m a showman, like P.T. Barnum or Buffalo Bill, but didn’t they die destitute or drunk?”

At this time of year, the Amusement Park is only open Fridays and Saturdays, leaving me out of luck on a Sunday night.

Miles Today / Total:  85 / 16636 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 63

Nearby Restaurant: Oh yes, I was ready for this. The Oktoberfest German Restaurant serves up the kind of cuisine I hadn’t been able to find for weeks. The “Montana Schnitzel” tasted just like the pork cutlet schnitzels I’ve grown to love. Served with Hofbräu Original beer, my favorite. What a great way to spend a Sunday!

Where I Virtually Stayed: Even though it’s supposed to be nice, I’m too superstitious to stay at a place called the Boothill Inn. Instead, I chose a good old Hilton Garden Inn, which is closer to the Amusement Park rather than an old cemetery. My room had a fridge, a microwave, and good wifi. There was a bar for unwinding in the evening and a free (for us Hilton Gold folks) breakfast in the morning. It left me ready for another trip across the border.

Only in Billings: Over a month ago, in Cuba MO, we found one of the old shoes of Robert Wadlow, the World’s Tallest Man. There’s another one in Billings at Al’s Bootery. Unlike that Cuba shoe store, Al’s opened after Wadlow passed away, so it didn’t get the shoe during one of his promotional tours. How did they acquire it? I just don’t know. Update: From the horse’s mouth: Al’s Bootery was a spinoff from Depner’s Shoe Repair that goes back into the early 1900’s. The shoe was acquired by someone at Depners then handed off to Al Jenkins who started Al’s Bootery and Repair Shop in 1946.

Next stop: Clearwater Drive-In Theater, Kyle SK.