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Rewind the Fifties Drive In

In the Fifties the place to show off your Date and your Car was the Drive-in. You also went on a Friday or Saturday night to see who your friends were with. This was the place to see and be seen. It didn't much matter what movie was showing, you just went to hang out. You also were thinking later maybe you could get to "first base" with your date half way through the movie.

Buy this poster at art.com

Buy this poster at art.com

For those who don't know what a drive-in was like, think of a large gravel and dirt field, usually at the edge of town. At one end is a large screen and a concession stand. You parked your car on a little mound pointed toward the screen. To hear the movie you hung a small metal encased speaker on your car window. The sound quality (if it worked at all) was usually bad. If it rained really hard you had the added thrill of getting stuck in the mud.

Does today's multi-plex or shopping mall compare to this?
I don't think so.

In 1948 there were 820 Drive-ins, by 1958 the number had grown to 4,063. All those Drive-ins needed Movies and Hollywood was happy to crank them out. The plots were thin, the acting was bad, the special effects were crude. No one seemed to mind, the movie was only an excuse to be alone in a dark car with your girlfriend. Something to do between "make-out sessions".

Some of the more popular movies were the Sci-Fi and Horror movies, this was the best way to get your date to cling to you. (okay, the secrets out). Below are some movie posters of films that might have played in your area. It's interesting to note that some of the better artwork is from movies that were not very good. Also remember that the posters were in color but most of the films were black and white. Most films played at the drive-ins were NOT big budget items, but like I said, no one cared.

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Last two digits of the file name indicate the year the film was released.

Drive-in Poster File List

Image	File Name	Size
	20-mill57	46K		50ftw58	63K		7year55	33K
	african52	38K		asphal58	64K		atomic53	60K
	bait56	78K		beast53	93K		busstop56	17K
	conquer56	64K		crab-mon57	46K		dayearth51	46K
	devgirl57	21K		forbid56	59K		gamma56	69K
	gentsb53	47K		godzil54	77K		islande55	84K
	married58	36K		mole56	37K		pill59	59K
	rebr55	58K		them54	63K		xman63	61K