News Room

Americans have always loved their cars and they have always loved going to the movies.  Putting the two together seemed like a natural thing to Richard Hollingshead when he opened the first drive-in theater in 1933 in Camden, New Jersey.  The concept proved very successful and drive-in theaters began to emerge across the nation, reaching their highpoint in the late 1950s when over 5,000 were in operation.  A victim of changing lifestyles, soaring land values and new entertainment technology, the drive-in has been in decline since the late 1960s and is now virtually extinct.

The AACA Museum recognized the significance of the drive-in theater in America’s automotive history five years ago when it opened to the public.  The main exhibition, From Sea to Shining Sea, featured a 1950s mid-west drive-in scene complete with a large white screen, speakers on posts (for placement inside your car) and a night-time setting to duplicate an authentic drive-in atmosphere.  Facing the screen were six 1950s automobiles from the Museum’s collection.  The only problem with the exhibition, according to the Museum’s Curator, Jeffrey Bliemeister, “was that the exhibition did not have any sight or sound and many visitors, particularly those who had never been to a drive-in, had no idea what they were looking at.  The drive-in, in our eyes, was only partially completed.” 

On Tuesday, September 2nd at 4:00 pm, the Museum will officially open the new drive-in theater display with a small reception and dedication ceremony.  The revamped exhibition now includes a newly-constructed reproduction snack bar, a moving, simulated antique movie projector and actual sight and sound projected on a smaller screen that gives viewers a forced-three dimensional view with the Museum’s antique cars forming the back row of a larger drive-in parking lot.  The changes were created by the Cynex Corporation of New Cumberland using funds obtained by State Senator Chip Brightbill.  Antique food equipment for the snack bar was donated by Don and Carol Barlup and the Requipment Company of Mechanicsburg.

“The change to the drive-in is amazing,” continues Bliemeister.  “The drive-in feeling is truly realistic and the program on the screen is a collection of actual concession stand advertisements played for visitors during intermission during the 1950s and 1960s.  You can’t get any more authentic than that without going to the real thing.”

We hope that visitors will enjoy our “new” drive-in theater.  And, while it is true that the real drive-in has all but vanished, there are still a few out there for those who want the experience.  There are three within a 90 minute drive of Harrisburg, all playing first-run movies and offering a wonderful family experience.  Haar’s is located just off Route 11/15 in Dillsburg and the Cumberland Drive in is just outside of Carlisle; both are open weekends during the summer months.  The oldest existing drive-in in America is also just a 1 ¼ hour drive up Route 78.  Shankweilers of Orefield, PA is generally credited as the second drive-in constructed in the United States, right after Hollingshead’s operation in New Jersey.  It is family owned and has been in continuous operation since 1933.

The Antique Auto Museum at Hershey, a member of the Smithsonian Institute Affiliations Program, displays beautifully restored automobiles, buses and motorcycles in unique scenes and settings.  This Museum is one of the nation’s newest and largest automotive museums.  Visitors are transported through eight decades in time from New York to San Francisco, making each visit a visual adventure for all ages.   Special exhibits and events change throughout the year giving return visitors something new.  The Museum is located just off Route 39, one mile west of Hersheypark Drive in Hershey, Pennsylvania.  Regular admission $9, seniors age 61 and older $8, juniors age 4-12 $7, children age 3 and under are FREE.  Admission for 2009 will be $10 for regular, $9 for seniors age 61 & older and $7 for children 4-12 years.  The Museum is open daily from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.   For further information, please call 717-566-7100 or visit www.aacamuseum.org.

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