Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey

Way back in late 2016, as I was adding up the active drive-ins in the US and Canada, I noticed that there were about 365 of them. That led to me to launch an odyssey to visit each of those drive-ins, one per day, every day in 2017. Of course, they were all virtual visits.

As the year went on, I began taking baby steps into drive-in historical research. Behind the scenes, I began accumulating inexpensive copies of the Motion Picture Almanac and Theatre Catalog series. I learned a lot, but I didn’t notice until months later that the MPA was slow to recognize changes, so its dates were not to be strictly trusted.

As I type this new intro in the spring of 2023, I’m disappointed by how many of these drive-ins closed since the Odyssey. A few new ones have taken their place, but today the total active drive-in list holds only 345 entries. Next time I try this, I’ll probably get to take a month off.

Ayway, I wanted to assemble in one place the full list of blog posts, all on one page to make it easy to browse or search for any topic you’d like. Enjoy!

Marquee of the Ruskin Family Drive In
Screen shot of a WFTS news video
Glendale 9 marquee
from the Carload Flickr Pool
Tall Winchester Drive-In marquee
photo by Corey Miller, from the Carload Flickr pool
Bourbon Drive-In marquee and screen next to railroad tracks
photo by Bill Eichelberger, used by permission
The back of the wooden screen at The Spud Drive-In
photo by Chris1982 via Cinema Treasures
Back of the Hilltop Drive-In screen
photo by Chris1982 via Cinema Treasures
Cinema67 Drive-In marquee and separate sign showing movie titles
Screen capture from a YouTube video
Drive-in screen during a magnificent sunset
Photo from the Melody 49 Facebook page
Empty drive-in lot during a colorful sunset
Screen shot from a video on the Port Elmsley Drive-In Facebook page
Overlook Drive-In marquee with concession stand in the background
Screen capture from a YouTube video
Greenville NY Drive-In screen with speaker pole
Greenville NY Drive-In
Comet Drive-In marquee
Photo by dixonwh via Cinema Treasures