The Drive-In
I think the Pleasant Valley Drive-in was the only drive-in that George and I went to. I had gone since I was a kid when it was called Roger's Corner Drive-in. We have always been proud to have one of the few drive-ins left in our town. It makes me so sad that it has not re-opened from a couple of years ago.
We took our kids here on warm summer nights. The drive-in was near the river and the mosquitos were sometimes a problem. We still laugh about the mosquito in the Pic commercial. If you remember it, you'll smile and remember the high squeaky voice of the mosquito, "See what I mean? Bye!"
They always started the movie there with the National Anthem. As proud Americans we appreciated that however, their recording was old and garbled and we still joke to this day, "And now the nan'l anam". If either of us said those two garbled words, we would know what the other was referring too.
If you've never been to a drive-in movie, I'm sorry. We are grateful for the fond memories we have of something that is now fading into history. I am sure hoping for a revival for future families. I'm glad I found a couple of old photos.
For those who don't know, there were rows of little hills made for the cars to park on to be a little higher. I remember the old speakers on the poles that you hung from your car window and turned up the volume on the tiny knob. Years later they changed so you could use your car radio as a speaker. One late night for our poor daughter, this drained the battery on her car and we had to go rescue her.
Some drive-ins had a swing set below the screen to play on before the movie or this was a safe spot for kids to play ball or running games before the movie began. Of course, there was the refreshment stand with candies, ice cream, french fries, hamburgers, hot dogs and of course, soda. You could also buy a Pic coil to burn on your dashboard in hopes of scaring away the mosquitos. I will admit that sometimes we brought our own popcorn to save money. Sometimes we brought folding chairs or blankets to sit on in front of the car. What was not to like about a warm summer night eating fun food under the stars and enjoying a movie with your family?
Other than the car battery running down, the only issues were a few pesky mosquitos or maybe a tall vehicle parking in front of you (which rarely happened--they were sent to the back rows), drive-in movies leave us with great memories of good times.
"So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad."
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