Apr20

miracle mile.

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built in 1960
less than 3 years after i was born
this magical miracle mile movie drive-in and i grew up together
i never got over how wonderful going to see anything was
pajamas with feet, blankets, popcorn, sticky lemonade
jockeying for space with my sibs in the station wagon
never made it through a second feature
carried sound asleep into my bed
stories still playing out in my dreams.
—
“isn’t if funny how day by day, nothing changes, but when we look back, everything is different.”
c.s. lewis

 

 

74 responses »

  3. With so many kids (I’m one of ten), my parents couldn’t afford babysitters and nights out. So our big treat was the drive-in movies. We’d arrive in our pyjamas and play briefly on the playground equipment, before lining up like sausages in the back of the station wagon with all the seats flattened to watch the latest movie featuring animated rodents and eat the snacks my mother brought because they couldn’t afford the enticing treats the dancing sodas and ice creams promised awaited at the snack bar.

    We would fall asleep as our parents watched incomprehensibly boring movies that didn’t have a single singing animal or princess and feel sorry for grownups. (Actually, I still feel sorry for grownups, and we don’t even have drive-ins.)

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  5. I knew about those cinemas but sadly never was in one – I was terribly envious of the countries having them and was later consoled by attending open air cinemas (starting around 10pm) in summer. Sadly, nearly every single time we buy tickets to films we are interested in, are the nights where it rains, storms, or in a recent case, hails. Two of three performances for which we bought tickets well in advance, were cancelled due to terrible weather (all last year). The third one fell on a day where it rained non-stop all day but the film cd be shown all the same, which we attended with triple jumpers on, rain coats, hats and rubber boots. VERY cozy! Drive through cinemas still sound like a dream to me!

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  9. I still remember the first drive in movie I saw as a kid. It was “The Ten Commandments.” Daddy pulled the rear car seat out and put it in front of the car. We sat and watched with eyes wide open at the screen. I’ll never forget that.

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  11. Drive in theaters was a part of my childhood that brings back fond memories. It was a family event. Despite all of the other cars filled with people surrounding us, we were just a cozy little family in our own vehicle.

    The quote is very spot on!

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  12. Drive-ins were part of the 1950s and 60s US of A culture, for those of us whose families had cars and suburbs. But I guess drive-ins gave way to shopping centers, real-estate developments, and other more lucrative land uses. By the time the 2020s “pandemic” struck, people in the US had already become more isolated, with single-family dwellings, TV, computers, and decline of community social gathering places like bowling alleys, skating rinks, and even bingo games.

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  18. It’s a pity there’s no more drive-in theaters. I often wonder how young boys can take their dates out, everything is so costly. The rive-inn was a cheap way to see a movie and grab fast food without have to spend $50.00. Great post Beth.

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  21. What a wonderful memory, Beth. I remember going up to my aunt’s (a 5+ hour drive away) and we always went to the drive-in there. So nice.
    To think I worked in one for five summers!

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