Category Archives: California

Ceres Drive-In may reopen this year

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Ceres CA fall sunset

photo by Mouse209

According to an article in the Modesto (CA) Bee, the Ceres Theatre may reopen some time in 2013. The drive-in had closed after the 2008 season, then suffered extensive damage in a “suspicious” fire in June 2010. But its new owners, Diego Castillo and family, say the local community wants to see it reopen.

For now, the site operates as a flea market on weekends. Starting in April, a farmers market will operate alongside the flea market. There’s a new concession area, but Castillo said a separate projection booth still needs to be built.

Bee columnist Jeff Jardine also voiced his support for the drive-in. “A nostalgic night out,” he wrote, “just like the olden days. The kids might find they actually like leaving the house to watch a movie beneath the stars.” Here’s hoping!

LA Times profiles Rubidoux’s digital conversion

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Rubidoux Drive-in screenThe Los Angeles Times ran a great story last weekend about the digital projection conversion and the problems it is giving drive-ins in general and the Rubidoux Drive-In (Riverside CA) in particular.

I don’t want to bury the lead, so the good news is that the Rubidoux plans to make the conversion. We also learn that the Cascade (West Chicago IL) will also convert despite the failure of its Kickstarter campaign. Writer Laura J. Nelson sets this positive news in a grim setting, that the switch will be difficult for more drive-ins and fatal to some.

Nelson gives the best description of the economics of digital projection, including Hollywood’s plan and the special problems posed by the drive-in projection booth. That’s just another part of a great, sweeping article that touches on the history of drive-ins, its recent casualties, and the appeal of seeing movies under the stars.

If you’re a drive-in fan at all, you’ve got to check out the full article with its 19 accompanying photos. It’s also got two great graphs using United Drive-In Theatre Owners Association data showing the rise and decline of drive-ins by year and the current drive-in population by state. Go read it!

Kings is closed for the season, maybe for good

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As we reported recently, the Kings Drive-In (Armona CA) was suffering the effects of vandalism and was hoping to find enough support to keep going. Now there’s a new story from KFSN, Fresno’s news leader, that it may all be for naught.

The report says that switching to a digital projection system would require more than swapping in new equipment. “It’s an old building. They’d have to tear down this wall and rewire the whole building,” said the owner’s daughter, Catherine Graff.

Against that sad backdrop, the Kings has closed for the season, and the owners sound unsure but pessimistic about its chances to reopen in 2013.