Remembering the drive in…

“……………what’s causing the windows to fog up?”

I was having a few beers with a mate the other day and in the course of conversation we reminisced about Drive In theatres. As we recalled a few memories I was mindful of the fact that only a couple of days earlier my ten year old Grandson had asked me what a Drive-In theatre was.  He listened intently as I attempted to explain. I don’t know exactly what images I conjured up in his imagination but his reaction was the right one. “That sounds cool pop.”

For many of us who grew up in small, isolated towns during the fifties and sixties a trip to the nearest town large enough to have a Drive In theatre was a very special occasion. We lived in Omeo in the Victorian High country and the nearest Drive In was in Bairnsdale; about eighty miles away. (120 kilometres) Not far today but back in the fifties the road was unsealed and car headlights left a bit to be desired. So a night time trip on a twisting mountain road that sometimes disappeared under fog was avoided unless absolutely necessary. Nevertheless I do remember Mum and Dad rugging us kids up in our coats, woolly hats and gloves and heading off to Bairnsdale in an FC Holden. It was a two hour drive one way.

The Drive In at Bairnsale was called The Moondale and I remember the fascination the place held for me. I was only about nine or ten years old and this new world of bright lights and shiny cars was a great adventure. The huge screen that came to life with images and sounds from faraway places totally mesmerised me and I remember hoping that it would never end. For reasons that I couldn’t understand Mum and Dad opted to bring a thermos of tea and some homemade cakes to have during interval. Us kids would have preferred to go to the snack bar but it was not to be. Another one of Mums cakes would have to do.

During the late nineteen sixties and early nineteen seventies the Drive in was still a popular place to go on a Saturday night. Still a long way from home the bright lights of Bairnsdale held hopes of success with the opposite sex and the Drive In was the place to take that lucky girl. It didn’t matter what movie was showing when there was a chance of some extra curricular activity in the back seat. Cars, girls and good mates went hand in hand with the Drive In. However if you took a girl to the Drive In then mates cramping your style was the last thing wanted. If you went with a few mates and no girls then inevitably the conversation centred around cars or what was going on in the next car that was causing the windows to fog up. Seldom did the movie on screen hold much interest.

When I lived in Melbourne in the early seventies the Drive In was starting to become less and less popular and many were on the brink of closure. The next decade or so saw them disappear from the urban landscape. This is a real pity because the Drive In was part of growing up for us Baby Boomers.

Sadly The Moondale Drive In at Bairnsdale was closed in 1984 the local Uniting Church now stands on the spot where many a wild oat was sown and many dreams were born.

How do you remember the drive ins? 

image: Fraser Valley Pulse & Metro…