One bit of vanishing Americana appears poised for a possible comeback: Drive-in movie theaters, once as endangered as American bald eagles, have stopped their long slide to oblivion with a resurgence in recent popularity.
According to the United Drive-in Theater Owners Association (UDTOA) of Germantown, Md., new drive-in theaters are springing up all across the U. S. and in several foreign countries.
"Over the past couple of years I know of 15 drive-ins that have reopened," said Jim Lipuma, outgoing president of the association. "Not just reopenings, but there have been several brand-new drive-ins built in recent years."
America once numbered more than 5,000 drive-in theaters from sea to sea, but that number dwindled to only a few hundred in the early '90s.
But now that trend has apparently been reversed, says Tim Thompson of Elkton, Ky., who has as an avocation studied American drive-in theaters for more than 30 years.
By 1958, said Thompson, there were more than 5,000 drive-in theaters in the U. S. The number shrank to under 700 about 10 years ago, said Thompson, but has now increased to about 800 and is growing, he said.
"I have been told by many owners they have to close the gates early because the drive-ins are filling up before sundown," said Thompson. "Apparently, a new generation of Americans is discovering the fun of drive-in movies."
Thompson said several foreign countries (including Russia) have built drive-in theaters in recent years. "Several others in other foreign countries, such as Spain, have reopened," he said.
He said a drive-in theater near Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has 13 screens; another near Detroit has 12 screens.
"If you look at the drive-in theater crowds of today you see mostly families with young children, just like the majority of the crowds of the 1950s."
For many older folks drive-in theaters of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s bring back memories of teenage dating years. Going to a drive-in theater was a popular form of dating activity during those years, giving rise to the old "passion pit" designation.
The first drive-in theater in America opened on June 3, 1933, in Camden, N. J., showing the film, "Wife Beware."
The concept was dreamed up by Richard Hollingshead of Camden. He initially hung a sheet between trees in his back yard and placed a 1928 Kodak projector onto the hood of his car to show a film. He placed a radio behind the screen for sound. He then sat in his car and watched the film.
He tested under various conditions -- windows up, windows down, various lighting, even various weather conditions (he used his lawn sprinkler to simulate a rainstorm).
Hollingshead discovered there would be a problem lining up cars end to end because those in the latter cars could not see the screen very well. So, he propped the cars up on blocks and spaced them intermittingly to provide good views. He then used that idea to develop proper angles to build ramps for multiple cars lined up to watch a film.
He got a patent for his invention on May 16, 1933. He held the patent for 17 years before the Delaware District U. S. Court declared it invalid in May of 1950, opening the doors for anyone to build any kind of drive-in.
The idea of drive-in theaters caught on and within a year from the first theater development there were drive-in movies coast to coast.
The All-Weather Drive-in at Copiaque, N. Y., was possibly the largest ever built, providing parking spaces for 2,500 cars (and an indoor area seating 1,200) on a 28-acre site. But the largest drive-in as far as total cars acommodated was the Troy Drive-in of Detroit and Panther Drive-in of Lufkin, Texas, each having spaces for 3,000 vehicles. Among other huge drive-ins was the 110 Drive-in of Melville, N. Y., (2,500 cars), the Newark, N. J., Drive-in (2,400 cars) and the Belair Drive-in of Cicero, Ill. (2,300 cars).

America's first 18 drive-in theaters:

1. Drive-In Theatre: Camden, New Jersey. June 6, 1933
2. Shankweiler's Auto Park: Orefield, Pennsylvania. April 15, 1934
3. Drive-In Short Reel Theater: Galveston, Texas. July 5, 1934
4. Pico: Los Angeles, California. September 9, 1934
5. Weymouth Drive-In Theatre: Weymouth, Massachusetts. May 6 1936
6. Starlight Auto Theatre: Akron, Ohio. Summer, 1937
7. Lynn Open Air Theater: Lynn, Massachusetts. July, 1937
8. Providence: Providence, Rhode Island. July 21, 1937
9. Miami Drive-In: Miami, Florida. February 25, 1938
10. Detroit Drive-In: Detroit, Michigan. June 2, 1938
11. Cleveland: Cleveland, Ohio. June, 1938
12. Shrewsbury Drive-In: Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. June, 1938
13. San-Val: Burbandk, California. June 10, 1938
14. Merrimack Auto Theatre: Methuen, Massachusetts. Summer, 1938
15. Valley Stream: Long Island, New York. August 10, 1938
16. Corpus Christi: Corpus Christi, Texas. March, 1939
17. Saco Drive-In: Portland, Maine. July 15, 1939
18. Atlantic Drive-In: Jacksonville, Florida. December 6, 1939

For more information on American drive-in theaters go to these Internet web sites: [email protected], driveintheater-ownersassociation.org or drivein.com.

This story was published on 11 Apr 2003.