Author Archives: mrdrivein

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.

NIMBYs block Kentucky drive-in

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A man who wanted to build a two-screen drive-in near Crestwood KY has withdrawn his rezoning application after strong opposition led by its prospective next-door neighbor. The story was extensively reported by the Louisville Courier-Journal, and the video above is from WHAS, Louisville’s news leader.

Stephen Sauerbeck of La Grange KY wanted to buy an 80-acre site on Old La Grange Road from the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, then rezone 40 acres for the drive-in. Tom Nelson, who lives in a nearby “historic home” on 270 acres called the plan “preposterous” and successfully organized neighbors to block the application. The Courier-Journal wrote that Nelson said he “doesn’t object to the concept of a drive-in” but noted that the proposed site had too many problems.

Of course, this is classic Not-In-My-Back-Yard (NIMBY) talk. Everyone knows that something is of value to the community, but no one wants to rub elbows with it. On the other hand, when this story first surfaced a few weeks ago, I looked at the proposed site (via Google Street View), and the roads there really are pretty thin and rural.

Sauerbeck says he’s continuing to scout locations, and I hope he finds something that works. (Psst, try sites next to highways.) Meanwhile, let this be a reminder that anyone trying to start a drive-in had better make sure he’s got the neighbors on board.