Category Archives: Video

July 22: Hummel Drive-In, Winchester IN

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It’s Day 203 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. Since it was Saturday, that meant another trip across a state line in search of another weekend-only drive-in theater. This time, the drive took about an hour and a half from Middle Point OH to the Hummel Drive-In east of Winchester IN, just across the border.

In 1949, this drive-in opened as the Air Line Auto Theatre, a reasonable name considering that it’s just across Indiana Highway 32 from the Randolph County Airport. Arthur Kemp opened the place, but by 1952, Mike Make had taken over. Make owned and operated the Air Line (eventually the Airline Drive-In) into the 1990s. Alan Teicher bought the Airline and added a second screen in 2002. (There’s a YouTube video from near the end of the Teicher era, promoting its unsuccessful Kickstarter campaign, embedded above.)

Then in August 2014, faced with the cost of converting to digital projection, Teicher closed the Airline and his other theaters. He told the Bradenton FL Herald, “I’ve been in business for 58 years, I’m 80 years old and think it’s time to retire.” It sat idle for over a year, then Shawn and Pauletta Hummel bought the drive-in in March 2016. They renamed it the Hummel Drive-In.

By early August, after $200,000 worth of renovations and projection equipment, the Hummels were ready to reopen with one screen. As Pauletta told the Richmond IN Palladium-Item, “We really started from scratch, for the most part, on a lot of these things. The foundation was there, but we did whatever we could to improve the facility.” The concession stand was rehabilitated “entirely,” including the bathrooms and projection area. They said at the time they’d start with one screen, then expand back to two screens “down the road”.

I guess conditions haven’t yet warranted lighting up that second screen, which had been badly damaged when they bought the place, so my only choice for the early movie was the latest Planet of the Apes installment. It was only the second time I’d seen it, so I was grateful for the novelty. I kicked back with a pizza burger and a “monster” popcorn and enjoyed the show.

Miles Today / Total:  73 / 25678 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: War for the Planet of the Apes / 119

Nearby Restaurant: The Referees Bar and Grille was adjacent to my hotel (see below), so that made it easy to reach. I had to leave for the drive-in before the live music started, but I was able to catch a little when I returned before it closed. Earlier for dinner, I enjoyed a rib eye steak with sauteed mushrooms and some salad and veggies to stay balanced. And beer and TV sports, of course, because I needed to fit in.

Where I Virtually Stayed: If you’re staying in Winchester, you’ll want to check the Randolph Inn & Suites. This place has a really nice new main building, plus the “budget building” that might have been an old motel. My main building room had the full set of modern amenities, and the breakfast in the morning was better than most mom and pop places.

Only in Winchester: The author of The Gaslight Addition grew up in Winchester. The 1995 movie version, Now and Then, was directed by a man who also grew up in Winchester. Although the town’s name was changed in the movie, a local museum has preserved a significant part, the Our Jonnie gravestone in the old Winchester Graveyard.

Next stop: Huntington Twin Drive-In, Huntington IN.

July 17: Capri Drive-In Theater, Coldwater MI

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It’s Day 198 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. I was glad to be done with crazy long drives for a while. After 12 hours’ worth over the previous two days, the hour and a half it took to go from Liberty Center OH to the Capri Drive-In Theater in Coldwater MI felt like nothing.

The Capri was built by John and Mary Magocs and opened in August 1964. Back then it was a single screen serving up to 1000 cars. As the Capri’s story page relates, the snack bar at the time was leased to Auto City Candy Company of Detroit. Operating a Drive-In for the Magocs was a family affair. John and Mary, John Jr. and Tom, spent many a night making sure the show went off each night.

In 1977, the operation of the Capri Drive-In was leased to William Clarke of Coldwater while the Magocs resided in Florida. In 1980, Tom and John Jr. resumed operation of the theatre. One of their first decisions was to install AM radio transmission of the movie sound. All but 5 rows of speakers were removed.

In 1986, the Capri became a twin. Screen Two was added on the back side of theatre. Screen One’s car capacity was decreased to 550 cars, with Screen Two parking 300 more.

In 2016, USA Today readers voted the Capri the second-best drive-in in the US, behind only the 99W of Newburg OR. TripAdvisor reviewers give it an average of 4.5 on a scale of 5, naming it the best Thing To Do in Coldwater. It really is a very nice place to watch a drive-in movie.

For today’s video, I’ve embedded Pure Michigan’s 50th anniversary show, which is both a tribute to the end of the film era at the Capri and what feels like a year-end blooper reel. For another neat Capri video, check out the historic footage of the construction of the place; that’s also available on YouTube. It includes some especially interesting aerial shots, which makes sense considering that whole airport connection.

Thank goodness the Capri has two screens, giving me a chance to dodge Despicable Me 3 once again. Spider-Man: Homecoming is a better movie, especially if you grew up reading comic books the way I did.

Miles Today / Total:  84 / 25389 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: Spider-Man: Homecoming / 114

Nearby Restaurant: The closest restaurant to this drive-in / airport combination is the Prop Blast Cafe, but I went into town for something more like the drive-in than the airport. Short’s Rootbeer Stand has the classic drive-in restaurant look with lots of neon, primary colors and classic music. And root beer and hot dogs. Timeless!

Where I Virtually Stayed: The Capri offers lodging packages, something every drive-in should consider. The package that caught my eye was for my favorite chain, the Hampton Inn. Everything was solid Hampton, including all the amenities in my room, the very nice breakfast buffet, and an On the Run breakfast bag at checkout. It makes good snacking on the road.

Only in Coldwater: The Tibbits Opera House is the second-oldest theater in Michigan. Barton S. Tibbits, mayor of Coldwater at the time, built it in 1882. It was altered to be more movie-friendly in 1934, but when the movie business faded, the Tibbits was boarded up and scheduled to be razed by the end of the 1950s. The Tibbits Opera Foundation and Arts Council was founded in 1963 and now operates the facility year-round as a community center for the arts.

Next stop: Auburn Garrett Drive In Theatre, Garrett IN.

July 16: Field of Dreams Drive-In, Liberty Center OH

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It’s Day 197 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. I paid for my last-minute detour to Michigan’s upper peninsula, driving six and a half hours from Manistique to a drive-in that’s only open on weekends, the Field of Dreams Drive-In northeast of Liberty Center OH.

Just last month, The Toledo Blade ran a great, long article about the Field of Dreams and its owners, Rod and Donna Saunders. They had lamented the closing of the Star Auto Theater of Wauseon OH, where Rod grew up. The Star shut down in 1999, and the Saunders were reminded of its passing whenever they drove by and saw its abandoned screen.

“Finally, after a couple of years of hearing her say that, I said somebody ought to open one,” Rod said.

After researching some other sites, they settled on the most logical – the backyard of their home. It required plowing down acres of cornfields, so it was natural to name it the Field of Dreams after the 1989 Kevin Costner movie.

This place is really remote, so it doesn’t have to worry with a lot of light pollution. As the Blade put it, “The theater has been known to fool more than one GPS or cell phone, and — when corn’s about ready to be harvested — it’s easy to drive by the site without knowing it.”

The Saunders added a second Field of Dreams Drive-In in Tiffin OH, about 70 miles away, in 2011 after learning that its previous owner was about to shut it down. I’ve got more drive-ins in Michigan and Indiana left to visit, but I should get back to the Tiffin in early August.

Thank goodness the Field of Dreams has two screens, giving me a chance to dodge Despicable Me 3 this night. War for the Planet of the Apes was the early movie on Screen 2, and it makes a good drive-in movie, but I bet I’d have enjoyed it more if I’d seen the movies that led up to it.

Miles Today / Total:  420 / 25305 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: War for the Planet of the Apes / 113

Nearby Restaurant: This was my first exposure to Pisanello’s Pizza, a local chain centered around Toledo. After the decadent food I’d had the previous couple of days, I grounded myself with a large Italian salad. Then I smelled the pizza, and compromised on a small pizza sub sandwich. That way, I had my pepperoni and lettuce too.

Where I Virtually Stayed: There’s no place to stay in Liberty Center. The closest hotels to the drive-ins are in Napoleon, and the Comfort Inn there took care of me for the night. My room had the full range of amenities, breakfast was solid Comfort Inn quality with a waffle maker, and the location was quiet away from the highway. Just what I needed after a couple of days of hard driving.

Only in Liberty Center: Just next door in Napoleon OH, the Campbell’s Soup plant has a water tower decorated like a Campbell’s Soup can, and a grounded stationary 20-foot tower painted to look just like a huge can of Campbell’s tomato soup. That’s it!

Next stop: Capri Drive-In Theater, Coldwater MI.