Named for the two nearest towns, this theater couldn't be more simply built, but it's been around since 1951, showing first-run films last September.
Garrett, Indiana
3 comments:
lyle
said...
not to beat a horse, but the marque definitely has to be in color. the screen, strong either way (I think, didn't find a B&W on your web site).
Looking thru this work I was struck by one entrance that had a sign up, "Dim your lights". Is there a 'universal' protocol for going to drive-ins. is this a common sign?
Also, do drive-in's require special technology (sound and projection)? If so, is any of this still manufactured or to owners have to be a bit machinist, sound engineer, etc..... thanks
Lyle, yes, there is a whole etiquette and often you can find it on a DI's web site. There are also "trailer" films with the rules. The most important is, don't bring in food or drink. The theater barely breaks even on ticket sales, ALL the profit comes from the concession stand. The food is often better and cheaper than fast food chains. But if you are a vegetarian you're usually out of luck.
If you arrive late or leave early, you don't want your headlights to blind everyone. If your car has always-on lights, you are advised to engage the parking brake "just one click" which will turn the lights out. Etc.
Back in the day, the distributors had special prints for drive-ins, a little thinner to make for a brighter image on really large screens. These are long gone. Some theater owners go to a lot of trouble with special lenses or higher than normal power xenon lamps, but ordinary projection equipment is acceptable if the location doesn't suffer from light pollution and you wait until it's really dark. This can be a real problem in June with daylight savings time at the western edge of a time zone: it may not get dark till after nine o'clock.
3 comments:
not to beat a horse, but the marque definitely has to be in color. the screen, strong either way (I think, didn't find a B&W on your web site).
Looking thru this work I was struck by one entrance that had a sign up, "Dim your lights". Is there a 'universal' protocol for going to drive-ins. is this a common sign?
Also, do drive-in's require special technology (sound and projection)? If so, is any of this still manufactured or to owners have to be a bit machinist, sound engineer, etc..... thanks
Lyle, yes, there is a whole etiquette and often you can find it on a DI's web site. There are also "trailer" films with the rules. The most important is, don't bring in food or drink. The theater barely breaks even on ticket sales, ALL the profit comes from the concession stand. The food is often better and cheaper than fast food chains. But if you are a vegetarian you're usually out of luck.
If you arrive late or leave early, you don't want your headlights to blind everyone. If your car has always-on lights, you are advised to engage the parking brake "just one click" which will turn the lights out. Etc.
Back in the day, the distributors had special prints for drive-ins, a little thinner to make for a brighter image on really large screens. These are long gone. Some theater owners go to a lot of trouble with special lenses or higher than normal power xenon lamps, but ordinary projection equipment is acceptable if the location doesn't suffer from light pollution and you wait until it's really dark. This can be a real problem in June with daylight savings time at the western edge of a time zone: it may not get dark till after nine o'clock.
I imagine it can also be a bear waiting for full dark in the higher latitudes...
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