Thanks To The Pandemic, Drive-Ins Are Making A Comeback

Move over “Netflix and Chill”: the drive-in movie theater is making its way back into the hearts of movie-goers, thanks in part to COVID-19. While many different types of businesses have had to innovate when it comes to service delivery, the drive-in theater option for getting out to see a movie is drawing in more customers than ever before. Forward-thinking business owners across the country are creating “pop-up” entertainment experiences by setting up shop in a parking lot or park, showing your favorite films, and serving up treats from food trucks at a safe distance. Some drive-in theater owners – the ones still in existence – have reported sell-outs of tickets in under 3 minutes!  Some of my fondest memories of my hometown of San Juan Capistrano, CA center around the local drive-in, where I saw classic ‘70’s films like “JAWS” and “Star Wars”…I did my fare share of making out with Lindsay, Shannon and Tracy at that same establishment in the early ‘80’s before it was torn down to make room for the current strip mall (sorry for the TMI…) Have you been to a drive-in movie since the pandemic? Ever? If you haven’t cuddled up to your favorite person while eating popcorn and listening to your favorite film through a crummy 3 inch speaker mounted to your car door, you haven’t lived!

John Young