July 19: Starlight Drive-In, Maria Stein OH

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It’s Day 200 (yay!) of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. I was back across the border, driven by the need to catch a drive-in on the right day of the week. In this case, it took me less than two hours to go from the Auburn Garrett Drive In Theatre, just north of Garrett IN, to the Starlight Drive-In, between St. Henry and Maria Stein OH.

According to Cinema Treasures, the Starlight Auto Theatre opened in June 1948, built and operated by the Feltz brothers from Cassella OH. It had a capacity of 300 cars and a 50 feet high by 46 feet wide screen tower. (It looks wider now.) Eventually, the Starlight converted from in-car speakers to an AM/FM sound system.

After having various owners over the years, the Starlight Auto Theatre was sold to Joanne Myers and her son Dan in 1987. Joanne started working at the auto theatre in 1968.

In early 2015, Dan Myers launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for a digital projector. Myers wrote, “We are a family owned and operated theater, for the last 28 years we’ve had our drive-in opened every summer with great movies and many memories about going to drive-in theaters and watching the shows under the stars.” Within a couple of months, he had found enough cash to lease a projector for a year.

Just a month ago, Myers issued an update, noting “we are open for the third season since the upgrade.” Other upkeep projects around the Starlight have been delayed because the new projector required so much cash, so they’re still looking for donations. “If you’re ever in the area of grand Lake St. Mary’s in Ohio stop in and say hi.”

Opening night for the Starlight was delayed a week when the lot flooded after a heavy rain. Glad I missed that! This place has an odd schedule of Friday to Sunday plus Wednesday, which is why I scheduled this visit for a Wednesday night. I haven’t seen the latest Transformer episode very often, though that’s probably a good thing.

Miles Today / Total:  89 / 25526 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: Transformers: The Last Knight / 116

Nearby Restaurant: Well I just had to try the Korner Kafe in Maria Stein. You can just guess where it is – on the corner at the intersection of the two highways that go through town. On the other hand, the name sounds like a coffee shop but it’s really more of a sports bar. I grabbed a sandwich and a beer and was ready to face a night at the Starlight.

Where I Virtually Stayed: The Starlight is about halfway between St. Henry to the west and Maria Stein to the east, but the closest chain hotels are 10 miles north in Celina on the other side of Grand Lake. The Best Western Celina greeted me with cookies in the evening and an adequate breakfast in the morning. In between, my room had the full set of amenities, and that was all I needed.

Only in Maria Stein: Devout Catholics visiting the region will definitely want to make a pilgrimage to the Maria Stein Shrine of the Holy Relics, which houses over 1,000 relics of the Saints and the True Cross. The Sisters of the Precious Blood arrived here in 1844 and started building the first chapel and convent. Now there are several chapels, a heritage museum, and the Pilgrim Gift Shop.

Next stop: Auto Vue Drive-In, Sidney OH.

July 18: Auburn Garrett Drive In Theatre, Garrett IN

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It’s Day 199 of my virtual Drive-In-a-Day Odyssey. I was back across the border again, but with a short drive. Less than an hour after I left the Capri Drive-In Theater in Coldwater MI. I was rolling up to the Auburn Garrett Drive In Theatre, just north of Garrett IN.

This drive-in opened in May 1951 as the Tri-Hi Drive-In, with parking for only around 150 cars. In 1959, it was renamed the Garrett Drive-In, then the Auburn Garrett Drive-In Theatre soon after. Around that time, they widened the original screen to accommodate wider movies and expanded the lot to around 300.

The Auburn Garrett added more parking was added in the late 1960s, bringing the capacity up to around 430. Its current, much larger screen was erected in the early 1970’s. Audio was originally provided by in-car speakers, but is now provided on FM radio.

The Fort Wayne Reader ran a story in 2006 about how the Auburn Garrett’s was dealing with the freshly implemented Daylight Saving Time in Indiana. “Last year’s 8 or 8:30 pm starting time usually let the drive-in fit both features and an intermission in before 1 am,” it wrote. “Now, the movie starts around 9:30. It has thrown off the concession side of the business, too, which is where most theaters make their profits.”

Still, owner Bruce Babbitt said things were better in 2006 than they were when he first bought the place in the 1980s. “I can remember when business was really crummy — we do more business now in a night than I used to do in a week in the 80s,” he said. “I’m just grateful for the business we’re getting and the customers who are still supporting us. They’re still driving through the gate.”

This was my fourth viewing of Spider-Man: Homecoming, which isn’t anything near the most I’ve done on this odyssey. With movies coming out quickly over the summer, I hope to see a wider variety soon.

Miles Today / Total:  48 / 25437 (rounded to the nearest mile)

Movie Showing / Total Active Nights: Spider-Man: Homecoming / 115

Nearby Restaurant: The closest restaurant to the Auburn Garrett is as seasonal as the drive-in. The Blue Moon offers fast food entrees, but what really matters is the ice cream. I mean, the chili dog was pretty good, but I don’t know where else I’ll find cherry ice cream that good.

Where I Virtually Stayed: There’s no place to stay in Garrett, so it’s only fitting that the closest hotels to the drive-in are in Auburn. Although there’s a Hampton Inn, always a safe choice, in Auburn, I saved some cash by staying at a very nice Quality Inn there. Fresh baked cookies are always a great start, and screened porches with rockers made the place even more welcoming. My room had all the amenities, and breakfast worked out great. This is a Quality Inn to seek out if you’re staying around here.

Only in Garrett Auburn: If you love vintage cars before your drive-in experience, little Auburn is packed with automobile museums. There’s the Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum, the National Automotive and Truck Museum, and the topper next door, the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum housed in the old Duesenberg administration building.

Next stop: Starlight Drive-In, Maria Stein OH.

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.