As the sun sets, the excitement rises. Cars start to pile up in the Macy’s parking lot at Lakeside Mall. As we pulled into the drive-in-movie, we were stopped at a small ticket booth, where we gave our ticket number.

“Tune into station 107.4 to hear the movie,” we heard.

Everyone in the car scrambled to find the right station on the radio so we could hear what was going on on the enormous projector in front of us. We finally found the station, and the Christmas movie of the night, “Elf”, was about to start. 

We found a parking spot among all the horizontally parked cars in the lot. We parked, turned our interior and exterior lights off, and got situated. 

There were only four of us, but we packed for about ten. Tons of popcorn, candy, pillows, blankets, etc. We wanted the full movie going experience! 

After we got everything situated, we all gathered in the back of the car and opened the trunk for a clearer view of the movie. We finally began to watch.

All of this was new to us. Drive-in-movie theaters were an entertainment staple from about the 1950’s to the 80’s. Being teenagers, you could say we missed the “era”. However, the first “park-in-theater” opened in New Jersey in 1933, but the idea didn’t really take off until later years. 

 Elissaveta Brandon of Bloomberg City Lab reported, “As of October 2019, only 305 drive-ins remain in the U.S., according to the United Drive-In Theatre Owner Association (UDITOA). But during the coronavirus pandemic, the promise of a shared entertainment experience from the comfort of a controlled, socially distant environment has fueled a drive-in resurgence — and movies are only part of the offering.”

Now that most live events are on pause, drive-in-movies became the new covid friendly hang out spot. 

Although this is a great way to have fun during the pandemic, it is still necessary to social distance yourself from others and wear a mask if you leave your car.

“Psychologically, it’s pretty distressing and sometimes depressing to be isolated at home, so I think activities that would increase one’s positive views and minimize anxiety should be encouraged.” Jenna Ryu of USA TODAY said.