Drive-ins used to be big in Durango

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Rocket Drive-In marquee

The Rocket as it appeared in May 1998.
Photo by Michael Kilgore from the Carload Flickr Pool

The Durango Herald ran a great story yesterday that outlined a thorough history of drive-in theaters in Durango CO. It starts with the Basin Drive-in on Main Avenue in 1950, which was apparently its first year. “If the drive-in was open before that, which appears unlikely, it wasn’t advertised in the Herald,” wrote columnist John Peel.

In 1956, the Basin was renamed the Knox. That’s the way it’s listed in my 1955-56 Theatre Catalog’s drive-in list, and that it was run by (and probably owned by) one T.R. Knox.

The Rocket opened in 1957 in the southeast part of town. A year later, the Knox became the Bell Drive-in; I wonder if some guy named Bell bought it. In 1963, ads for the Bell disappeared from the Herald, so I’m guessing it died after the 1962 season. Also in 1963, the Buckskin Drive-In opened near Ignacio, a few miles south of Durango by the Southern Ute Reservation. The article didn’t mention when the Buckskin closed, but there’s little sign of it now.

Inside Durango proper, the Rocket was the only drive-in in town from 1963 until it closed in 2004. It had a great location between US Highway 160 to its north and a scenic bluff at its south. I’m glad to have experienced it before it left us.

There are a lot more memories and a couple of nice photos in the Herald article, so you really should go read it!

Fort Union reopens with digital projector

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Fort Union drive-in screen

photo by Birdie Jaworski

It’s so exciting to find some seriously good news about one of the drive-ins closest to our hearts. The Fort Union Drive-In in Las Vegas NM has reopened for the 2014 season with a new digital projector, which should ensure its continued existence for decades to come. This great news comes from the Santa Fe New Mexican, which wrote a story about the local benefactor who stepped forward to save the drive-in.

Even such great news comes with a tinge of sadness. This is the first I’d heard of the demise of the Kiva Theater in downtown Las Vegas. When I visited the Kiva in May 2013, it was a vibrant community hub showing the latest films. According to the New Mexican story, the Kiva closed last fall because it couldn’t raise the money to buy a digital projector.

But let’s look at the excitement of getting another drive-in on solid footing. New general manager Jake Cordova, 18, persuaded his grandfather “to help buy the projector and take over the drive-in,” according to the story. Cordova plans to add another night, Thursday, to the weekend lineup and to keep the Fort Union open into October each year. Thanks to everyone who’s keeping this piece of Americana alive for generations to come.

Without film, Hi-Way faces tough choices

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The Daily Freeman of Hudson Valley NY ran a story that I expect to see duplicated in dozens of other towns. Now that the Hollywood studios have stopped supplying film prints of their movies, the Hi-Way of Coxsackie has to decide what it’s going to do about the coming drive-in season.

According to the Daily Freeman story, Roger Babcock and his wife bought the Hi-Way in 1996. Since then, he expanded from one screen to four, and he takes pride in maintaining his fleet of dependable, workhorse film projectors. “All I replace is bulbs and a gear here and there,” Babcock said.

Now come the tough choices. If Babcock switches to digital, how many projectors can he afford? He’ll need to upgrade the projection booth to “clean room” conditions with heat, air conditioning, air filtering, and an internet connection. Where will he get the money for all that? Virtual print fees from the studios? Social Security? For much more about the Hi-Way and its future, you’ll just have to read the article.