“People get her two or three hours early
to get their favorite spot and families are
all getting together.” With movie audio
now broadcast through FM radio instead
of stationary speakers, most moviegoers
bring boomboxes and lawn chairs so they
can enjoy the movies outside their cars
and under the stars.
In the off-season, Geissinger works
as an electrician while fielding a steady
stream of inquiries about the drive-in’s
availability for birthday parties or the
anniversary celebrations of couples who
met at the theater 40 and 50 years ago.
He appreciates his theater’s popularity
but still worries about the future.
“We’re not necessarily on the eve of
destruction, but we are on the eve of revolution,” he says, referring to technological
advancements that will likely create the
next obstacle. The film industry is going
digital, which means drive-ins may have
to add new, $100,000 projectors to their
already-tight budgets. In the drive-in
business, it seems there’s always something worrisome on the horizon.
2 East 91st Street NYC cooperhewitt.org
was developed by
Drive-ins for all Seasons
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the drive-in is looking like the belle
of the ball these days. Home entertainment giant Netflix has presented outdoor
movie programs for several summers running. Its screening of Jaws on the beach
in Martha’s Vineyard was a huge hit, and
its Netflix Live tour brought Kevin Bacon
and his band, The Bacon Brothers, to
Baltimore for a live concert and 25th anniversary screening of Diner. The Austin,
Texas–based Alamo Drafthouse Cinema
has created some truly original events
with its Rolling Roadshow. Its mission
to show classic movies in their ultimate
settings has led to outdoor screenings of
North by Northwest at Mount Rushmore
and Goldfinger at Fort Knox.
Yet, as inspired as these programs
may be, nothing can beat the simple
pleasure of the original. Movies and
cars—it’s an uncomplicated combination that has always been more than the
sum of its parts. More than three-quarters
of a century after its birth, Richard
Hollingshead’s brainchild continues to
amaze us with its ability to make basic
bargain entertainment feel like a special
event. In this period of economic unrest, however long it lasts, the drive-in
feels like a very good fit.
Exhibition on View
Through January 4, 2010
The exhibition’s presentation at Cooper-Hewitt is made possible in part by Enid and Lester Morse. Additional support
is provided by Esme Usdan, Alice Gottesman and Laurence Zuckerman, The Consulate-General of The Netherlands in
New York as part of its NY400 Celebrations, and Susan and David Rockefeller. Media sponsorship is provided by New
York magazine.
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