Where's the nearest Drive-in movie theater?

[car54]

I used to go to the Super 29 on West Ox Rd (present day Costco) and the Lee Highway Drive-In in Merrifield.

If you were a teenager, both had an "open trunk" policy....you had to open the trunk and leave it open as you passed through the ticket booth.

You could cram 5 or 6 kids in the trunks of those huge 50's & 60's cars!

The Sunset Drive-In at Bailey's Xroads was the most exciting though....you never knew when a plane landing at the airport across the street would clip the movie screen!

[VRE332]

I cant understand why drive-ins are dying. They're so fun, and the kids can play and make a mess in the car, bring their blankets and have a good time. Also what's fun is helping other people jump start their cars. Darn Northern-Virginia is not kid friendly!

[Alley01]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

There used to be a drive in located in Manassas but it's been gone since the early 80's. We used to get calls all the time to move on the people watching for free from a business behind the place.

Originally Posted by VRE332

I cant understand why drive-ins are dying. They're so fun, and the kids can play and make a mess in the car, bring their blankets and have a good time. Also what's fun is helping other people jump start their cars. Darn Northern-Virginia is not kid friendly!

I think that they suffer due to being spoiled in your big theatres with fantastic sound systems, larger screens and 3D. I really enjoy going to the drive-in but there are some movies that are better in a closed theatre and frankly I can't stay up really late to see movies most of the time.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by VRE332

I cant understand why drive-ins are dying. They're so fun, and the kids can play and make a mess in the car, bring their blankets and have a good time. Also what's fun is helping other people jump start their cars. Darn Northern-Virginia is not kid friendly!

Businesses don't stay open because they are "so fun". If they can't make money then they need to close. And what does this have to do with NOVA being kid friendly? This is an issue across the entire country. There are few drive ins left in the US compared to 30 years ago.

[Joke Insurance]

Anyone remember the drive-in movie theater off of Lee Highway?

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by Joke Insurance

Anyone remember the drive-in movie theater off of Lee Highway?

I seem to recall one in that area. Was it around where the FX Co Parkway is now?

[Margery]

Originally Posted by car54

I used to go to the Super 29 on West Ox Rd (present day Costco) and the Lee Highway Drive-In in Merrifield.

If you were a teenager, both had an "open trunk" policy....you had to open the trunk and leave it open as you passed through the ticket booth.

You could cram 5 or 6 kids in the trunks of those huge 50's & 60's cars!

The Sunset Drive-In at Bailey's Xroads was the most exciting though....you never knew when a plane landing at the airport across the street would clip the movie screen!

I remember both of those! We went to the one in Merrifield, with our two children in the backseat. It was a cheap evening out, children in pj's in the back so no babysitter, they would go to sleep before the movie was over. This was the early 70's, we lived in Falls Church, off Annandale Road, near route 50.

[HokieFan]

I've been to the Stephen's City drive-in. It's okay but I much prefer the Fork Union drive-in.

I didn't care for the Stephen's City one because it's mostly gravel and flat. The one in Fork Union is mostly grass so if you want to spread a blanket next to your vehicle you can do that. Also, there are levels of parking so that you can see over the row of vehicles in front of you.

It's a haul to get there from here but that's where I went while growing up in Central VA.

[Joke Insurance]

Originally Posted by car54

I used to go to the Super 29 on West Ox Rd (present day Costco) and the Lee Highway Drive-In in Merrifield.

If you were a teenager, both had an "open trunk" policy....you had to open the trunk and leave it open as you passed through the ticket booth.

You could cram 5 or 6 kids in the trunks of those huge 50's & 60's cars!

The Sunset Drive-In at Bailey's Xroads was the most exciting though....you never knew when a plane landing at the airport across the street would clip the movie screen!

Isn't that right where West Ox Road and the Parkway meet?

[car54]

Originally Posted by Joke Insurance

Isn't that right where West Ox Road and the Parkway meet?

Yes, but back in the day it was just off Lee Highway....the Parkway wouldn't be built for many years.

Super 29 Drive-In, Fairfax, VA

Next door was a very cool theme park...Old Virginia City. It was a replica of a Wild West town. Dancing girls (mostly Fairfax High girls) in the saloon, hourly staged shootouts in the street, horses and wagons and stagecoaches rolling into town. Us kids made mom take us out there at least a couple of times a summer....it was NEAT.

Also adjacent to the drive-in was the famous (infamous?) Hunter's Lodge. This honky-tonk bar went back to at least the 40's and every major country music star played there at one time or another. If they weren't playing there, they stopped by after their gig at larger area venues. There was no liquor-by-the-drink in those days in Virginia, and I think even beer was only supposed to be sold for off premises consumption. That didn't stop the Hunter's Lodge...they used to get raided and shut down all the time for illegal alcohol sales. That and nightly fights in the parking lot...it was quite a place!

Once I started driving, mom forbade me from going to the Hunter's...but I went anyway!

Our Redneck Past: Settin’ the Woods on Fire: Hunter’s Lodge and the Lee Hwy Dance Halls