It's a shame that many people born in the late 90s through the 2000s have never seen a drive-in movie theater. The closest we come to one now is those blow-up screens at Movies Under The Stars.  Drive-in theaters were entertaining, and it was cool to chill in your car, watch a movie, and snack on some good ol' popcorn. The first drive-in opened in June 1933, by Richard M. Hollingshead, Jr. 

After 10+ years of huge success, the driving movie started to decline as new in-studio cinemas started opening everywhere. They couldn't compete with theaters showing 6 movies at the same time on 2 or three screens.

Lake Charles used to have one! For those who can remember, it was called the New Moon Theater, located at 5100 Gerstner Memorial Boulevard. Today, that location is home to a golf driving range called the New Moon Drive-In Range!

Drive-ins were everywhere and peaked in popularity in the 50s and 60s. The excitement was short-lived because, by the 70s into the 90s, they started to go dark and close down. Now there are roughly 335 drive-ins in the country. Ironically, they have been a slight uptick in outdoor cinema. According to Inside Edition drive-in movies started making a comeback during the pandemic.

New outdoor theaters have been popping up as of late, adding a romantic and nostalgic alternative to indoor cinemas. Turns out they are a lot cheaper and have snack bar menus that rival some restaurants without inflated prices. Here in Louisiana, there seem to be no drive-in theaters. Fingers crossed someone will catch the nostalgic fever and open a cool retro drive-in in SWLA in the near future.

There is, however, hope that the state will soon gain the bragging rights of having at least one outdoor movie theater. Louisiana native and Dukes of Hazzard actor, John Schneider announced in May 2022, he was going to open a drive-in at his studios! Stars N' Cars Drive-In Cinema at John Schneider Studios, at 16050 Florida Blvd, Holden, LA 70744 is coming soon. I don't think it's open just yet, but below he offers a preview of the project.

We will keep our eye on Schneiders grand opening details and hopefully, we can provide an update soon! Good luck John! For what it's worth, Texas has a few drive-in movie locations. So next time you're in their neck of the woods listed below are a few drive-in movie locations you might want to check out:

Showboat Drive-In
Hockley, TX
Retro spot for double features & snacks

Galaxy Drive-In Movie Theatre
Ennis, TX
First-run double features in retro spot

Stars & Stripes Drive-In Theatre
New Braunfels, TX
Drive-in theater for current films

Coyote Drive-In (Fort Worth)
Fort Worth, TX
Double features with lots of amenities

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