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Drive-in Theaters, Still Kicking
Drive-in Theaters, Still Kicking
Patriot Auto Carriers features an article on the history and future of the American drive-in.
Cumming,
GA,
United States of America
(prbd.net)
13/02/2012
Patriot Auto Carriers is an auto shipping broker( http://www.patriotautocarriers.com/ ) that emphasizes fast and responsive customer service, convenient online order forms and quotes, and, in addition, features articles that explain some aspect of auto shipping. The company also produces articles on general automotive related topics, such as this article( http://cinemaroll.com/cinemarolling/drive-in-theaters-then-and-now/ ) that tells the story of the American drive-in theater culture, its invention, heyday in the 50s through 70s, eventual decline and more recent resurgence.
In the glory days of the American automotive lifestyle, when cars were big and gasoline was cheap, drive-ins were one of the major social hubs for younger people. Driving the first generation of parental hand-me-downs gave teenagers an unprecedented freedom of movement, which is why drive-through fast food joints suddenly exploded in popularity and profitability. Drive-in theaters were also the beneficiaries of this newly mobile clientele, and did everything they could to attract young visitors, gaining a reputation as prime dating spots.
Despite this, drive-in theaters were originally invented with families in mind. New Jersey entrepreneur Richard Hollingshead came up with the idea in the early 30s, and marketed drive-ins as a place to see movies without having to worry about young children making a ruckus and bothering other customers.
Over the next decades, the market for the venues grew as engineering problems were addressed. Try as they may, cinema engineers never managed to make it possible for the theaters to operate during the day. While ordinary cinemas have the benefit of being able to block out sunlight and all other kinds of illumination, open-air drive-in theaters would have to field projectors powerful enough to contend with sunlight. As anyone who's tried to see what's happening on the screen at a cinema where the lights are still on knows, even relatively weak indoor bulbs make the picture almost impossible to make out. No projector ever had the chance against the midday sun. High-resolution LED screens could overcome this challenge and potentially make a drive-in cinema able to stay open around the clock, but they have only recently become available in sizes and resolutions that make them suitable for such applications.
Sound was a different challenge, one that was overcome by issuing radio-controlled speakers to each car. Unfortunately, theater operators would have to constantly contend with incidents of theft and vandalism, especially at theaters that showed riskier fare.
As entertainment alternatives such as video cassette players became more popular, the drive-in lost its allure, before becoming nigh obsolete in the late 80s. Recently, however, many enthusiasts of independent and limited-appeal films have begun to revive the tradition, hosting "guerrilla" movie showings for people who would like to see films on the big screen but can't find a cinema that will exhibit fare to their taste. There are now several hundred such theaters operating in the United States, and more are opening every day. It seems that the grand American tradition has some life in it left.
This article was provided by Patriot Auto Carriers vehicle shippers( http://www.patriotautocarriers.com/ ).
Contact Information:
Patriot Auto Carriers LLC
3724 Preston Pointe Way
Cumming, GA 30041
http://www.patriotautocarriers.com/
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