Father Geek here along with Hollywood's own Uncapie to say goodbye to yet another symbol of America's love affair with the automobile and the motion picture. The Azusa Foothill Drive In Theater passed on this weekend, but she went out with a BANG, not a wimper; and our man on the scene, Uncapie, attended the Wake in his vintage Jag and filed the following report for all of you.
BUUUUUUT first ol' Father Geek here has a few things to say about the Drive In experience. Being a baby boomer I grew up submerged in the Drive In Era. As a kid my parents took me to the outdoor screenings EVERY Saturday night in San Antonio. We usually attended the KELLY near our home and the Air Base of the same name, but every now and then we would journey to the MISSION out on Military Highway near Brooks AFB and SA's mission trail. These were huge elaborate, one screen, open air palaces like their downtown sisters with towering sculpted facades reaching into the stars, and giant mindnumbing thematic animated neon overlays of beautiful painted screen backs. They had picnic tables, sandboxes, swings, slides, jungle-gyms, even merry-go-rounds. There were maybe 100 outdoor chairs up by the snackbar, and everynight you had at least a double feature with triple features Friday and Saturday. The KELLY ran the same films Mon-Tues, then changed them Wed-Thurs, and again for Fri-Sun. It was very rare in the fifties for the same film to run the entire week. They'd show serials, and cartoons as well as the features.
During my teen years in the late fifties and early sixties I begin to spend the total of my weekend nights at the Kelly. First traveling by bicycle, then my Cushman Eagle, then on my Dad's old 1948 Indian, and later in a friend's 1949 Mercury. In the end I had my turquoise 1958 chevy biscayne four door. During this era drive-ins cut the cartoons and serials, and started showing weekend all-nighters. I saw a quad feature of INVASION OF THE SAUCERMEN - HOW TO MAKE A MONSTER - TERROR FROM THE YEAR 5000 - THE BRAIN EATERS at the Kelly during this period as well as I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN - I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF - TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE and TEENAGE CAVEMAN on another of these bills. One of my favorite of these events was the Kelly's "3-D" all nighter of CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, REVENGE OF THE CREATURE, IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, and ROBOT MONSTER. By the time I entered college drive-ins had started to slip in popularity. The playgrounds and outdoor seating had disappeared, the snackbar had become just a candy/soda counter instead of the cafes they were in the beginning. Multi screens began to appear as well as the car-load price. It was during this period that I caught the dusk to dawn screening of; BLOOD FEAST, 2000 MANIACS, BUCKET OF BLOOD, 10,000 FEET OF BLOODY GUTS, and I EAT YOUR SKIN.
By the time Harry arrived on the scene in 71 there were just a couple of Drive Ins left in Austin. Giant land gobbling triple and quad screen dinosaurs that couldn't hope to outlive the decade and its rapidly rising real estate values... and land TAXES. However, the Knowles family and friends went several nights a week, attracted by carload prices and triple features like A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS, FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE, and THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE UGLY. Or DOCTOR NO, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, and GOLDFINGER. Or BULLITT, THE FRENCH CONNECTION, and TAKING OF PELLUM 1-2-3. Or EASY RIDER, THE TRIP, and PSYCH-OUT. Or HELL'S ANGELS ON WHEELS, THE LOSERS, and THE GLORY STOMPERS. We'd take lawnchairs and coolers full of brew and pop, and buckets of fried chicken, or pizza. We'd arrive early and stake our claim 3 spaces wide on the second row center. By the mid-eighties they were gone. I miss them all! Greatly!
Drive Ins are where Father Geek "first" saw; THE BLOB, ON THE BEACH, LA DOLCE VITA, LA STRADA, AND GOD CREATED WOMAN, THE THING (both of them 25 years apart), TOUCH OF EVIL, KISS ME DEADLY, VERTIGO, REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, GUN CRAZY, I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE, ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN, STEEL HELMET, WINCHESTER 73, THE TALL T, THE SEVEN SAMURI, JAILHOUSE ROCK, FISTS OF FURY, SHOGUN ASSASSIN, TARGETS, and so many many more... It's sad... they're all but gone nationwide now...
Here's Uncapie...
During my teen years in the late fifties and early sixties I begin to spend the total of my weekend nights at the Kelly. First traveling by bicycle, then my Cushman Eagle, then on my Dad's old 1948 Indian, and later in a friend's 1949 Mercury. In the end I had my turquoise 1958 chevy biscayne four door. During this era drive-ins cut the cartoons and serials, and started showing weekend all-nighters. I saw a quad feature of INVASION OF THE SAUCERMEN - HOW TO MAKE A MONSTER - TERROR FROM THE YEAR 5000 - THE BRAIN EATERS at the Kelly during this period as well as I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN - I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF - TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE and TEENAGE CAVEMAN on another of these bills. One of my favorite of these events was the Kelly's "3-D" all nighter of CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, REVENGE OF THE CREATURE, IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE, and ROBOT MONSTER. By the time I entered college drive-ins had started to slip in popularity. The playgrounds and outdoor seating had disappeared, the snackbar had become just a candy/soda counter instead of the cafes they were in the beginning. Multi screens began to appear as well as the car-load price. It was during this period that I caught the dusk to dawn screening of; BLOOD FEAST, 2000 MANIACS, BUCKET OF BLOOD, 10,000 FEET OF BLOODY GUTS, and I EAT YOUR SKIN.
By the time Harry arrived on the scene in 71 there were just a couple of Drive Ins left in Austin. Giant land gobbling triple and quad screen dinosaurs that couldn't hope to outlive the decade and its rapidly rising real estate values... and land TAXES. However, the Knowles family and friends went several nights a week, attracted by carload prices and triple features like A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS, FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE, and THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE UGLY. Or DOCTOR NO, FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, and GOLDFINGER. Or BULLITT, THE FRENCH CONNECTION, and TAKING OF PELLUM 1-2-3. Or EASY RIDER, THE TRIP, and PSYCH-OUT. Or HELL'S ANGELS ON WHEELS, THE LOSERS, and THE GLORY STOMPERS. We'd take lawnchairs and coolers full of brew and pop, and buckets of fried chicken, or pizza. We'd arrive early and stake our claim 3 spaces wide on the second row center. By the mid-eighties they were gone. I miss them all! Greatly!
Drive Ins are where Father Geek "first" saw; THE BLOB, ON THE BEACH, LA DOLCE VITA, LA STRADA, AND GOD CREATED WOMAN, THE THING (both of them 25 years apart), TOUCH OF EVIL, KISS ME DEADLY, VERTIGO, REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, GUN CRAZY, I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE, ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN, STEEL HELMET, WINCHESTER 73, THE TALL T, THE SEVEN SAMURI, JAILHOUSE ROCK, FISTS OF FURY, SHOGUN ASSASSIN, TARGETS, and so many many more... It's sad... they're all but gone nationwide now...
Here's Uncapie...
Drive Ins are where Father Geek "first" saw; THE BLOB, ON THE BEACH, LA DOLCE VITA, LA STRADA, AND GOD CREATED WOMAN, THE THING (both of them 25 years apart), TOUCH OF EVIL, KISS ME DEADLY, VERTIGO, REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, GUN CRAZY, I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE, ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN, STEEL HELMET, WINCHESTER 73, THE TALL T, THE SEVEN SAMURI, JAILHOUSE ROCK, FISTS OF FURY, SHOGUN ASSASSIN, TARGETS, and so many many more... It's sad... they're all but gone nationwide now...
Here's Uncapie...
What a great way to say good-bye to a grand old lady, the Azusa Foothill Drive In! Cool 50's cars, a rock and roll band with 50's music, free popcorn, burgers, sodas and Steve "Fucking" McQueen on the widescreen!
People honked their horns for the movie to start when it was late, honked when Steve McQueen's friends were trying to get the townspeople awake in the film and when he yelled, "Quiet!", everyone stopped! You could hear everyone laughing in the surrounding cars having a good time! And they honked at the end of the movie! Great audience participation!
As the movie ended and the cars were leaving, I changed the channel on my radio and Louis Armstrong's, "What A Wonderful World" was playing as the stream of headlights exited the arena. I thought, "What a great way to pay tribute to one of the last classy ladies of film history."
It was a great/bittersweet night.
Your pal,
Uncapie
