Category Archives: Kansas

Apr. 19: Kanopolis Drive In Theatre, Kanopolis KS

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It’s Day 109 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. It took about two hours to drive from Wichita to the Kanopolis Drive In Theatre of Kanopolis KS.

A 2012 Salina Journal article quoted by a commenter at Cinema Treasures said the Kanopolis Drive-In opened in 1952. OnlyInYourState claims that it was built by a “World War II veteran laid off from the salt mines”. Some reports suggest that its original name was the Lakeview, although it’s about 10 miles from Kanopolis Lake.

Whatever its name, the drive-in showed movies to cars in its small lot (about 150 cars) until it closed in 2006. Josh Webb and his family bought the place in late 2011 and reopened it for the 2012 season. “The years are starting to add up, and we didn’t want to see it fall down any more than it was,” he said.

The drive-in is only open weekends this time of year, leaving me with a Wednesday night watching TV in my room. At least I was able to get an early start for the next morning’s drive.

Miles Today / Total:  114 / 11775 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 51

Nearby Restaurant: The place to eat in Kanopolis is Orozco’s Portales Cafe. The tortillas are homemade, and this unassuming place provides an authentic Mexican experience at a reasonable price.

Where I Virtually Stayed: There are no hotels in Kanopolis. I love a good historic hotel, so I drove up old US 40 to the Midland Railroad Hotel in Wilson. I sprang for a jacuzzi room, so I enjoyed a relaxing bath while soaking in history. My room was clean, the wifi worked, and the continental breakfast was all that I needed before another day on the highways of Kansas.

Only in Kanopolis: According to Wikipedia, in 1885 a 17-member group from Ohio purchased 4,740 acres, including recently decommissioned Fort Harker and its buildings, for $71,000. The town’s name came because the group believed it would soon become a “Central Metropolis,” because of its location. Newspaper advertisements proclaimed that Kanopolis was “destined to be the railroad, commercial, and manufacturing capital of Kansas.” The town tripled its population from 1900 to 1940, but never had as many as 1000 residents.

Next stop: South Drive-In Theatre, Dodge City KS.

Apr. 18: Starlite Drive-In Theatre, Wichita KS

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Starlite drive-in at sunset

photo from the Starlite Drive-In Facebook page

It’s Day 108 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. After leaving the Midway Drive-In Theatre near Osawatomie, I soon picked up the Kansas Turnpike and finished my two-hour drive to the Starlite Drive-In Theatre in Wichita.

The Starlite began its life as the single-screen Rainbow in 1953. The drive-in underwent extensive renovation in 1974, including a large new projection and concession building and a second screen, and became the Landmark Twin. In the intervening years, the name morphed into the Landmark Starlite and then to just the Starlite that it is today.

As Wichita On The Cheap pointed out, the Starlite has changed to Carload pricing during this spring. Wouldn’t it be nice that every drive-in that mentioned a carload would point back to this site? By all accounts, they run a first-class concession stand, so I’m a little sad that I’m not able to sample it this trip.

The Starlite is only open weekends this time of year, leaving me with a Tuesday night watching TV in my room. At least I was able to get an early start for the next morning’s drive.

Miles Today / Total:  159 / 11661 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 51

Nearby Restaurant: It’s got buffet in its name and it’s close to the Starlite, so the New China Buffet was my natural choice. As promised, it provided all the Chinese standards that I’d expect in America, plus a nice salad bar and a few surprises. And best of all, it’s a buffet!

Where I Virtually Stayed: The closest hotel was the Holiday Inn Express South, and I was glad to be back with that chain again. It’s right by the Kansas Turnpike, so there were plenty of other weary travelers there. I loved the Keurig coffee maker in my room and the biscuits and gravy at breakfast. Sometimes it’s nice to be somewhere that feels familiar.

Only in Wichita: Wichita was home to the world’s first Pizza Hut, and Wichita State University has moved the original building to its campus. It doesn’t look like a hut and it doesn’t look like the classic Pizza Hut restaurant shape – it’s just a small brick building. The founders named it Pizza Hut because their sign only had room for nine characters.

Next stop: Kanopolis Drive In Theatre, Kanopolis KS.

Apr. 17: Midway Drive-In Theatre, Paola KS

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It’s Day 107 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. I left the I-70 Drive-In in Kansas City MO and drove just less than an hour southwest of the metro area to the Midway Drive-In Theatre, which is midway between Paola and Osawatomie KS.

The years have been rough on a lot of the Midway drive-ins. It was a common name (at least a half dozen just in North Carolina, for example) for a common situation. Drive-ins needed to be outside of town, so why not build one where it could draw from two potential audiences? That land in the middle of nowhere was typically the cheapest was just a bonus. Of the dozens of Midways that were ever built, only seven are still in operation today.

The Kansas Midway was built in 1952 or 1953 and holds fewer than 300 cars. It’s maybe a mile closer to Osawatomie, which is where all of my old reference books place it, but it claims a Paola address.

KCTV, Kansas City’s News Leader, ran an story about the Midway in 2013. At the time, farmer/owner Paul Dimoush was trying to find the money to buy a digital projector. He blamed his wife for getting into the drive-in business. “She said she got tired of watching corn grow and looking at cows so here we are,” he said with a laugh. Government leaders all over Miami County were working on the Midway fundraiser.

Somehow, it worked. The Midway upgraded to digital projection in 2014, so I’m confident that it’ll continue for the years that it’ll take to pay off that new equipment. But it’s definitely closed for the season now. It was pretty rainy outside anyway.

Miles Today / Total:  55 / 11502 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: dark / 51

Nearby Restaurant: I’m in love with the El Potro Mexican Cafe in Paola. I think it’s the margaritas, or maybe the chips and cheese. Great service, authentic Mexican food, and for me, a hot plate of pork carnitas tamales. Add the churros with chocolate and honey for dessert, and I didn’t think I would ever eat again. But there’s always room for another margarita.

Where I Virtually Stayed: If you’re going to stay the night in Paola, you’ll probably spend it at the Paola Inn. My room was clean, had a refrigerator, and the wifi was great. A nice hot breakfast in the morning had me ready to continue through Kansas.

Only in Paola Osawatomie: At the John Brown Museum, a large stone building contains the log cabin of Reverend Samuel Adair and his wife, Florella, who was the half-sister of the militant abolitionist. That cabin, which survived an earlier attack by a proslavery mob, is where Brown stayed while fighting the unofficial Bleeding Kansas war of the late 1850s. The cabin was dismantled and reassembled in 1912, and its surrounding stone pavilion was built in 1928.

Next stop: Starlite Drive-In Theatre, Wichita KS.