To have an effective drive-in, it had to be on at least 15 acres of land. Slowly, drive-ins began to lose their appeal. The development of the VCR made it more appealing to stay at home and watch movies without paying for a movie at the drive-in. To make up for lost revenue, drive-ins began losing their family-friendly atmosphere by showing exploitation films like slasher horrors as well as adult content. During the ‘70s oil crisis, people downsized their cars in order to save money on the inflated cost of gas, making it uncomfortable to watch movies at the drive-in.
They maintained popularity as both a space for families to spend time with each other as well as an affordable date night option.ĭrive-ins could only show movies during certain times of the year and were dependent on decent weather. There were over 4,000 drive-ins throughout the U.S., and most were in rural areas. Drive-ins gained immense popularity 20 years later during the 1950s and ‘60s with the Baby Boomer generation. The success of Hollingshead’s drive-in caused more and more drive-ins to appear in every state in the country and spread internationally as well. Appealing to families, Hollingshead advertised his drive-in as a place where “The whole family is welcome, regardless of how noisy the children are.” He created it as a solution for people unable to comfortably fit into smaller movie theater seats after creating a mini drive-in for his mother. Though there were drive-ins as early as the 1910s, the first patented drive-in was opened on Jby Richard Hollingshead in New Jersey. Taken from Southland 75 after it closed, the smaller screen was set up at the back of the lot and could accommodate approximately 200 cars. So when attendance at the major screen drops off, we can move the film to the smaller screen and bring in a new picture for the major screen, explained Grant Frazee, general manager of Chakeres Theaters at the time.Many people hear stories of their grandparents going to the drive-in theater for a Friday night hangout, but do you know the history of the classic movie experience? The theater changed it name to the Melody 49 Twin in 1987 after a second motion picture screen was added. In 1998 this was replaced by an FM frequency. The movie soundtrack was transmitted through the cable, which broadcasted over an AM frequency that could be picked up by the patron’s car radio. Melody 49 began their gala opening with a giant fireworks display, followed by three hit movies, including the incredible undersea adventure ‘Around the World Under the Sea’ starring Lloyd Bridges. In 1982 Melody 49 switched to a sound process with operated through a special cable installed above the drive-in parking area. This is a fast growing area and will serve Brookville, Englewood, Trotwood and other communities.” stated that the new theater would “have first run and subsequent run family-type shows similar to Southland 75 (Drive-In). Michael Chakeres, then vice-president and general manager of Chakeres Theaters, Inc. Circle-R electric car heaters were provided during the winter to adventurous movie goers.
Sharp, Inc, the General Contractor for the project. The cost of the year round theatre was estimated at $500,000 by Ralph T.
With space for 1,100 cars extending across 18 acres! A Cinemiracle Picture Screen sized at 75’ x 130’ was used so that both 35mm and 70mm movies could be shown. The Melody 49 Drive In located at 7606 Pleasant Plains Road in Brookville opened for viewing July 1 st, 1966.
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