Going to see a movie (or two) at the drive-in movie theater is an outing that most generations can say they have an experience with. We’ve gone from the thrill of teenagers going solely for the purpose of necking in the backseat, to present day when multiple generations went solely to get out of their houses during a pandemic lockdown.

The concept of the drive-in theater came about in the early 20th century. Shortly after the invention of the motor vehicle and lots of families owning one, became popular.

It’s not until the 1930s that the drive-in theater concept is patented. And the 1940s when the popularity of going to the drive-in was high, as more and more people were now living in suburban and rural areas of their cities or towns. But once more and more homes were able to afford nicer home entertainment systems, the popularity of the drive-in theater declined.

Movies and shows portraying life in the 50s, 60s and 70s typically kept teenagers in the car. Whether it’s hanging out at the drive-in diner, the high school parking lot, or even the drive-in theater. And what are these teens portrayed to be doing? Why making out in the backseats of cars… Steaming up those windows!

Fast forward to the 90s and I can recall my first time ever going to a movie at the drive-in. I was in elementary school, hanging out on a weekend night with my best friend, her parents, her brother, and some of his friends and our other friends. Her dad drove a Chevy Suburban so of course everyone fit in one car. By this time they were charging by head-count vs per car, so I remember my friend’s brother and his friends all hiding underneath a blanket in the very back.

Once we got there, we removed the rear seats and placed it in front the of car for some of us to sit on. The others, we had lawn chairs. The movie? Stay Tuned.

This is a comedy starring John Ritter and Jeffrey Jones, about a family whose parents are sucked into the newly installed satellite dish. They become a part of every movie and tv show the kids turn the channel to. So basically a version of Hell as the villain was trying to end their lives. The kids had to save their parents. Pretty typical plotline for family fun movies of the 90s!

The popularity of drive-in theaters once again declined. Continued technological advances gave home entertainment systems a huge win, along with the experiences of going to the movie theater.

Then here comes 2020 and this wild pandemic in which everyone around the world is locked in their houses are going stir-crazy. How do we get out of the house and go do something fun with the family? Well sure enough, people got clever and started using the drive-in theaters once more. Even literal pop-up theaters became a thing. And popularity of the concept surged once again.

To this day, a lot of cities still operate drive-in movie theaters. And also, what a fun thing to get out and go do with friends and family as this summer comes to an end. Who knows, maybe this concept is here to stay after surviving world war and a global pandemic!