Category Archives: Virginia

Video: Fork Union to reopen after 15-year break

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Virginia’s Fork Union Drive-In, which first opened in 1953 and closed in 2011, plans to hold another grand opening on April 10. That’s according to a video (not the one posted above) from WCAV, Charlottesville’s News Leader.

By the way, I fibbed just a little. Although it opened as the Fork Union Drive-In, its rebirth will be as The Drive-In at Fork Union. (Grr. It’s taking a lot of concentration to not type “Fort Union,” the drive-in on the cover of my best-selling Drive-Ins of New Mexico.)

The opening and closing dates are from an article last year in the Fluvanna Review about the work to restore the drive-in. That article tells the story of the orignal owners’ daughters working with a local team, headed by Ron Unnerstall, to bring back the drive-in even better than its glory days. I’m looking forward to adding the Fork Union to the list of active drive-ins in a couple of months.

New drive-in opens in Rustburg VA

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Screen capture from a WSET news video

It’s the time of year when we see plenty of stories about drive-ins that have reopened for another season, sprinkled with a few worrisome tales of possible sales and closures. (Looking at you, Weirs!) But the kind of news that really grabs my attention is the report of a brand-new drive-in. Thanks to WSET, Lynchburg VA’s News Leader, we know that the 29 Drive-In opened in nearby Rustburg this past weekend. (That link includes a short video, but I couldn’t find a way to embed it here.)

The owners, Candice and Jamie “Papa O” Ohler, said they plan to show a family-friendly movie every Saturday night this season, which began with “Twister”. The 29 can accommodate 40 cars, which use FM radio sound to hear the movies of the screen shown above. The cost is $25 per carload.

The Campbell County Planning Commission gave its unanimous approval to the new drive-in back in February. At that meeting, Ohler said he had held a couple of drive-in events last fall, so he probably built that screen before then.

This place is such a throwback, in so many good ways. Old-time drive-in owners rented their movies outright, as Ohler said he planned for the 29. Some theaters over 100 years ago were back rooms behind candy shops; I’ll bet the “I Scream You Scream” ice cream shop in front of the 29 will do a lot of business on warm Saturday nights.

As far as I can tell, the 29 doesn’t have a separate web presence, although there’s a “Drive In Movie” link at the I Scream You Scream page on Facebook. As soon as I see one, I’ll add it to the Carload Drive-In List. Meanwhile, we’ll all just know it’s there if we’re in the neighborhood on a Saturday night.

Video: Goochland Gets A Logo On I-64

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Thanks to a friend in the Virginia state legislature, Goochland Drive-In Theater will have its logo placed on an “Attractions” sign on Interstate 64, according to a report yesterday by WTVR, Richmond’s News Leader.

Owner John Heidel had been trying for eight years to get on the official highway sign since out-of-state visitors “routinely drive past exit 152.” The Virginia Department of Transportation has a policy against movie theaters on interstate attraction signs.

This year, after a request from Heidel, state delegate John McGuire submitted a bill to exempt drive-ins from that policy. WTVR reported, “However, before the legislation went to a committee, McGuire set up a meeting with Heidel and state representatives who regulate the interstate signs. Following the meeting, VDOT said they would allow Goochland Drive-In to put their logo on the sign and McGuire withdrew the bill.”

Maybe that wouldn’t make sense for urban drive-ins, but many others are true tourist attractions. It would be great to see more mentions on the interstate, both to direct the rookies and to tell the unaware what a great opportunity they have to experience some live Americana.