Drive In Theatres (Barstow: flat fee, house, buy)

[malcorub16]

Originally Posted by expatCA

Hate to say it but rarely saw the movie as the windows fogged up real quick while busy in the back seat.

You're a bad bad man expat.

Originally Posted by LuvSouthOC

Inland Oceanside, finally -- FINALLY got rid of that horrible drive-in that was falling to pieces and still serves as a horrible flea market with crap in it (despite promises for decades that great restaurants and other high-end development would at last come...).

The one in Santee is far from being modern and hip. I haven't been to the one in Southbay since SinCity came out and I was doing what expat was talking about so I can't remember much about it. I like the old school gritty feeling of the Santee drive in , I won't say it's falling apart but it could be nicer. I mean, what's to a drive in beside the asphalt, the marquee, the screen and the concession stand. The more modern ones in other parts of the country are not actually "drive ins" but out door movie theatres where people watch movies on a lawn.

[ronmcq]

Originally Posted by JohnAlt

3rd? There were once quite a few of them. There was another one in the Midway area besides the one already mentioned. There was the Campus Drive In at College and El Cajon Blvd. Just to name a couple.

And the Rancho Drive In at Federal and Euclid in San Diego. We used to sit on the wall across the street as kids watching the movies and could hear the speakers but that was 55 years ago.

[LaJollaEast]

We used to go to the Campus drive in when I was at San Diego State in the early 80's. Years ago my husband and I took our then 2 year old to the Southbay drive in and tried to watch The Firm. We had put our daughter in her pjs hoping she would fall asleep, but no such luck. I keep telling my husband that I want to go on a date to the Santee drive in! I grew up in Riverside and drive ins were big in my teenage years!

[Encinitan]

Who remembers the one that used to be on Via de la Valle in Solana Beach, across the street from the Fairgrounds? The entrance was just west of Red Tractons, the Winner's Circle was there, and it went all the way north to where the Triple Crown apartments are now.
It's been gone since the late 70s, but we used to ride our bikes and shoot off model rockets when movies weren't going on.
Good times.
Here's a link I found of the old marquee. It was a polynesian theme.
http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/20228/photos/74127

[Jenkay]

Originally Posted by malcorub16

Some people on social media from other parts of the country seem to get nostalgic about drive in theatres as they are thing of the past in most other parts of the country, yet here in San Diego County we have two of them. One in South San Diego and one in East County. Both of which are swap meets (flea markets) by day and both of which appear to have been operating for many years.

South Bay Drive In Theatre & Santee Drive In Theatre

Do you ever go to either of our drive-ins? How often? What's the first movie you saw there? What's the last movie you saw there? I'm also curious how you suppose both of our drive in theatres have managed to survive all these years despite decline in popularity of these on a national level.

There was one in Oceanside until a couple of years ago, too

Both of the ones you listed host other events on their properties, including weekly swap meets/flea markets, so I suspect that's part of how they stay in business. I've seen this in a lot of other towns/cities as well (I'm a flea market lover ha ha)

[BBslider001]

Yup, the one in O'Side was a good one...great scenery and kind of felt out there before all of the development.

[ronmcq]

Up until the mid 80's there was also the ACE Drive In on Broadway in Lemon Grove. Entry was $3.00 a car load (as many of us that would fit) plus we brought our own 'beverages'.

[echo42]

Originally Posted by LaJollaEast

We used to go to the Campus drive in when I was at San Diego State in the early 80's. Years ago my husband and I took our then 2 year old to the Southbay drive in and tried to watch The Firm. We had put our daughter in her pjs hoping she would fall asleep, but no such luck. I keep telling my husband that I want to go on a date to the Santee drive in! I grew up in Riverside and drive ins were big in my teenage years!

Oh yeah. That had a big neon sign on it. Something like an Aztec cheerleader with headdress on twirling a baton.

[TacoSoup]

Originally Posted by echo42

Oh yeah. That had a big neon sign on it. Something like an Aztec cheerleader with headdress on twirling a baton.

There’s still one neon at the old drive in location that’s now a shopping center, and the huge one is at the college grove shopping center just down the way. Whenever I’m on the 94 it brings back memories of my childhood. I believe it closed around 1983/84.

[malcorub16]

Santee and South Bay have reopened as of this week. In speaking to a couple of the workers a couple months back at Santee, the only time the drive in has closed in recent history has been the night of the SD County black out. Otherwise, until March 10, it had always remained open even during rain, fog and holidays.


https://www.10news.com/news/coronavi...tres-reopening