Category Archives: 2017 Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey

This is the virtual tour that will imagine what it would be like to visit every North American drive-in theater in 2017 by visiting one or two every day. While the drive-ins, restaurants, and hotels are real, all the events in this section are fiction. But it’s fun to dream!

Apr. 5: Skyview Drive-In, Belleville IL

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Skyview Drive-In marquee

photo by artistmac from the Carload Flickr pool

It’s Day 95 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. Thanks to I-70, It less than two and a half hours to drive faster than a mile a minute between the the Drive N Theatre in Newton and the Skyview Drive-In in Belleville IL.

I just wrote about the Skyview less than a month ago. That’s when the Belleview (IL) News-Democrat posted a little article with video showing how nice the Skyview sign used to look before the city outlawed flashing signs.

According to the history posted on the Skyview site, it’s persevered through plenty of trials. It first opened in July 1949, then widened its screen in 1953. A tornado caused extensive damage to the screen in 1955, was the screen was rebuilt “better than ever”. Another windstorm knocked out the screen in 1981, but it was rebuilt again and a second screen added for the 1982 season.

It’s rare to have both screens in a drive-in face roughly the same compass direction, but that’s the way they laid it out at the Skyview. The main screen faces the concession stand to its southeast, and the second screen looks south-southeast to a smaller projection booth.

The Skyview is only open on Fridays and Saturdays this time of year, so I missed out by arriving on a Wednesday. Oh well.

Miles Today / Total:  133 / 10646 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 46

Nearby Restaurant: The Tavern on Main is, as you would expect, a tavern on Main Street in Belleville. What isn’t as obvious is its extensive menu. I enjoyed a “New York Napoleon” steak topped with tomatoes and mozzarella. And since it is also a tavern, there were plenty of beer and wine selections to keep me entertained as I watched some sports on their big screens.

Where I Virtually Stayed: The Super 8 in Belleville is a pretty nice place, just a short stagger away from the Tavern on Main. My room had a mini-fridge and microwave, decent wifi, and a comfy bed. Breakfast was a bit spartan, but the amazing low price for my stay left me with plenty of cash for a heftier lunch.

Only in Belleville: Belleville is home to a really big shoe. According to Roadside America, it’s the Delilah Shoe, a seven-foot-tall red pump with a stiletto heel. Delilah, a nationally syndicated night-time radio host, wears a size 11 shoe.

Next stop: 19 Drive-In, Cuba MO.

Apr. 4: Drive N Theatre, Newton IL

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It’s Day 94 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. It took about two and a half hours to drive the shortest route between the the Holiday Drive-In in Rockport IN and the Drive N Theatre in Newton IL.

According to the theater web site, the Drive N opened as the Fairview Drive-in Theatre in 1953. In the early 1990’s, the Fairview briefly closed after the screen was damaged by a storm. It soon reopened under new management and was eventually remodeled in 2002 boasting a new concession area and screen.

The Fairview closed after the 2014 season and was sold. In June 2015, its new owners reopened it as the Drive N.

Although it’s been open for a full month this season, the Drive N is only open on Fridays and Saturdays this time of year, so I missed out by arriving on a Tuesday. I won’t even be able to stick around for this Saturday’s Easter egg hunt. Oh well.

Miles Today / Total:  121 / 10513 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 46

Nearby Restaurant: There aren’t many drive-ins as remote as the Drive N. Back in Newton, I picked the Filler Up Buffet because, you know, it says buffet right in the name. All you can eat home cooked meals and made from scratch desserts including pecan pie. Yum!

Where I Virtually Stayed: If you’re going to stay in Newton, you’re definitely going to want to stay at the Cobblestone Hotel and Suites. Cobblestone is a smaller hotel chain in the Midwest, but if they’re all like the one in Newton, I’ll keep searching them out. There was wine and beer in the evening, a refrigerator in my room, and a great breakfast buffet. In between, a little casino! First time I’ve run into that at a small-town hotel.

Only in Newton: The grave of beloved actor, Rudolph narrator and folk singer Burl Ives is in the Mound Church Cemetery between the towns of Oblong and Newton.

Next Stop: Skyview Drive-In, Belleville IL.

Apr. 3: Holiday Drive-In, Rockport IN

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It’s Day 93 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. It took about an hour and a half to drive the fastest route between the Georgetown Drive-In and the Holiday Drive-In in Rockport IN.

The Holiday opened its first screen in 1955 and added a second screen in 1980. Screens 3 and 4 arrived in 1992, screen 5 in 1995, and screen 6 just last year.

The Tristate HomePage had a September 2014 article about the Holiday’s conversion to digital projection. “We gotta move with the times to stay alive, so we gotta change,” said Georgia Decker. “You gotta change. Which I hate, but it’s all part of life.”

The Holiday is only open on weekends this time of year, so I missed out by arriving on a Monday. They just had their season-opening weekend, too. Oh well.

Miles Today / Total:  87 / 10392 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 46

Nearby Restaurant: I chose McKenzie’s, which is connected to the Rockport Inn, which was built in the 1850s as a private home, and is rumored to have been part of the Underground Railroad. I didn’t see any ghosts, just nice service and hometown food like steaks and green beans. Loved the decor, though.

Where I Virtually Stayed: It was clean. The wifi worked. Everything was just fine with the Comfort Inn in Rockport, especially the breakfast with sausage, biscuits and gravy, and the ubiquitous waffle maker. All at a good price for a chain hotel.

Only in Rockport: Abraham Lincoln grew up in Rockport. It has a Lincoln Landing monument that commemorates where he launched a flatboat in 1828 to visit New Orleans. That’s where he first encountered the horrors of slavery; the plaque carries the quote, “If I ever get a chance to hit that thing, I’ll hit it hard.” There’s also a WPA-built Lincoln Pioneer Village in a city park.

Next Stop: Drive N Theatre, Newton IL.