Sawt Falasteen - Quintessentially American, drive-in theaters are going dark

Michelle Hutson, 52, has been coming to the Family Drive-In since childhood, enjoying what is now a dying form of quintessentially American entertainment.

With a sigh, she notes she might soon see the last picture show as the nearly 70-year-old outdoor theater -- one of the few remaining drive-ins in the Washington area -- is on its way out, too.

"I'm about to be a grandma again for the second time. And it's heartbreaking to know that she may not be able to experience that," Hutson said.

The owners of the land under the Family Drive-In announced a few months ago they want to sell it, asking $1.5 million, said theater owner Andrew Thomas.

If he bought the land at that price, it would mean a mortgage payment three times what he pays now in rent, Thomas told AFP.

"It's just not feasible for the business."

He launched a crowd-funding drive last month to save the theater and so far has raised around $30,000.

"It's overwhelming, in such a good way, that people care that much. Even in times of economic uncertainty, it means that this is a thing for them that's worth saving, and I agree with them," he said.

"We have an opportunity to preserve a piece of history," said the 40-year-old.

- Attendance down -

Drive-in theaters are a throwback to another era in a country where cars are king. In their heyday in the 1950s there were more than 4,000 in America -- but now only 300 or so remain, said Gary Rhodes, a movie historian.

They have died off because more people watch television at home and urban development has made the land needed for a drive-in theater very expensive, Rhodes said.

Drive-ins enjoyed a spike in popularity during the Covid pandemic, as people avoided crowded places like indoor movie theaters, but now "attendance is still going down," Rhodes said.

"I would say the majority of the drive-ins that are left in the world are there because the owner keeps it there. It's for the love of the business that they're there," said D. Edward Vogel, co-owner of a drive-in and vice president of the United Drive-In Theatre Owners Association.

"Unfortunately, we are reaching a point where a lot of them want to retire," he said.

Because of TV streaming platforms and other factors, he said, "in my take of things, it's going to be a very rough road to hoe now."

To try to keep drive-in theaters alive, his association created a web site that seeks to match drive-in owners who want out with potential buyers who want in.

"We've been inspired by some brand new owners that understood the risk and came up to the challenge, and are determined to maintain a drive-in theater business," said Vogel.

"That's really what's breathing faith into the fact that this can continue."

Mike White and Melissa Sims are examples of these new entrepreneurs. They invested $500,000 to open a brand new drive-in in Louisiana and it is scheduled to open this autumn.

They have had to postpone the big day several times because of delays getting permits and other problems.

"We quizzed a lot of people before we started, and 99 percent of the people that we talked to said sure, they'd be glad to go," White said.

"For me, drive-ins represent a time that my family was was brought together and was doing things together," said Sims.

"That's what it would bring back to this community."

R.AbuNasser--SF-PST