I loved going to the drive-in as a kid. We got to go in our pajamas and brought our pillows. Talk about adventure!

That's how I remembered going to the movies in the mid-60s. But it seemed like it was mainly just my family coming in late; maybe a few others did, too. Then we'd stay to see it from the beginning, but I think we stayed to see it through to the end (again.) I would just have attributed this to our ride (mother) always being very late. She could not get us anywhere on time, nor pick us up at an agreed upon time.

The kids in our neighborhood went to the Saturday afternoon movies at our local theater a few blocks away. For 12 cents, we could see several cartoons, coming attractions, a cowboy movie, and another movie selected for children such as Abbot and Costello or Dagwood and Blondie. That Saturday offering was called The Roy Rogers Club, and it gave our parents a lovely respite. We checked the newspaper for movie start times. As a teen movies were typical dates at a movie theater downtown. I was just thinking the other day that without a movie theater, there weren't many options for date activities in our town. I don't recall bowling as an activity except on rare occasions.

We went to movies as kids when old enough to be dropped off for matinees. We always knew when they started, from the newspapers I suspect. Always got there early enough to get a snack then see the newsreels and cartoons before the show. Sometimes, there was a double feature!

My experience was like what sheilajoyce described. Someone's mother would drop a group of us off 'over town' on a Saturday afternoon, and we'd join the line of kids going to the movies. (If you were going to our small town center, that was 'going uptown'. If you were going into Chicago, you were going 'downtown'.) Cartoons, cowboy movies, a candy bar from the concession stand -- happy kids and a respite for our parents. NOBODY worried about Stranger Danger, that over-dramatized nonsense.

I did the Saturday afternoon kids' matinees myself when growing up The tickets were free - mom would pick them up at the grocery store when she did her weekly shopping. The neighborhood kids would either walk or ride our bikes the couple miles to the theatre with our Saturday morning allowance in our pockets so we could buy some treats. Shows always started at 1:30 and ran until about 3:30 or 4.

Only went to a drive-in movie once while growing up....it stays light so late here in summer, they never started until like 10 or so. Past my bedtime :-)

I do remember that when I was a bit older, I'd catch the bus with my best friend to go downtown to have lunch and watch a first-run movie suited to kids, usually a Disney film. Not sure how I managed to afford that on my allowance.....maybe I was babysitting by then.

Great subject! I remember going to the movies as often as we could get one parent to drop us off and another parent to pick us up, usually on Saturdays. I saw so many great movies - Pollyanna, The Castaways, anything with Haley Mills in it was fine by me. Also any horse or dog stories were a big hit. I didn't go to drive-ins until I was old enough to drive myself. My friend and I loved going in the winter because they would show 4 movies since it got dark early. Lots of Clint Eastwood, thrillers, romance, more mature themes. We would stock up on pop and snacks and settle in. So much fun!!!

In the late '40's thru the late '50's almost every little town in the area of PA that I lived had a theatre. No need for a ride to get there, it was just a block away from my house and within easy walking distance for almost everybody I knew. The small coal mining town I lived in with less than 2000 people had a theatre as did the 2 similar towns within 10 miles north and south of my town. The feature movie played for usually just 3 nights, (Thursday, Friday, Saturday then a new movie played the next week. There was the cartoon show then a running serial show that had maybe 6 to 10 parts. Most usually those serials were westerns (Roy Rogers, The Lone Ranger, etc) or some super hero or mystery perhaps. Those serials kept people coming to shows (that they might otherwise not go to) just so as not to miss an installment of that serial.

There also was often a short documentary news type film thrown in too. Then the feature film followed by previews of the movies for following week or so.

All the theatres in the area often had live entertainment mid week. That is where I saw a lot of the up and coming country music stars and comedians of the day.

I might add that the theatre is where I and most of my friends did our first "necking" so to speak.

I recall that start times were in the paper. Theaters all had telephones and you could call to be sure.

In elementary school years, there was a 1:00 Saturday matinee at the theater that was within walking distance of where I lived. 35 cents covered it - 25 cents to get in and then a dime for popcorn or candy. An afternoon of fun for the kids and for parents too. Sometimes a particular movie at a different theater required a drop-off/pick up.

As a young teenager in the 60s, before I started driving, I could take the bus to many theaters to meet friends.

In the 50’s we would go to my Grandmas house. The adults would play cards and give us kids money so we could go to the movie theatre, The Atlas, 2 blocks. Turns out DH lived about 7 blocks away and would go there too!

in the 80’s I would take my 4 kids and friends to the drive in movie. Friends of theirs would come. The older ones would bring lawn chairs and sleeping bags. The young ones stayed in van with me. After the movie I would have to wake everyone up to go home!

I even remember the 40s. Throughout the 40s and 50s you could enter to see the movie at any time. It seemed we could always figure out the story even if the movie was half over. As a child, I actually thought they made movies so that you could figure out the story even if you were late. I mean I thought that was the moviemaker's PLAN.

Wasn't alive then!

Big velvety plush seats, giant theaters with the most incredible velvet drapes they would open before the show started and closed before it ended. Because there was just one screen, you didn't have the problem of watching a very moving, quiet scene in your movie and hearing loud boom-da-booms from the action/adventure in the next room. And I don't remember sitting through 15 min of previews before the movie started.

The seats likely seemed big because you were small!

I love the old theaters with plush carpeting and velvet seats and huge drapes. I really got swept away by the movie. And the size of the screen was breathtaking. Drive-ins were fun but living were I did, the first movie started at 10:30PM and I was promptly asleep. I remember walking into our house at 2:00AM and being so groggy.

Lovely times.

I recall going to the drive-in with my parents and sibs, but don't think my parents ever took me to the movies with them.

Loved going to the Saturday matinees with my friends, dropped off by one of our parents. I remember Tarzan movies and cartoons, mostly. A whole movie theatre filled with happy kids, imagine.

It was always my Dad's role to take us to special movies, such as the big Disney extravaganzas, animated or otherwise; he was so sweet that way. He was also always up for a good movie at the drive-in, making a big bag of pop corn and a thermos of lemonade or Kool aid on ice.

Our parents took us to the movies with them, there was no such thing as date night for them -- so at the age of 7, 8, 9 we saw Barbara Stanwyck, Humphrey Bogart, true crime, all movies that would be considered too adult for little minds. It all went right by me. i just liked being in the movie theatre. Although my aunt doesn't remember taking us to see Peter Lorre in "the Beast with Five Fingers." I do. That disembodied hand haunted me for years. I survived that too.

My last visit to a drive-in theater was off base at MCAS, Yuma, AZ. The Last Picture Show.

At 7 (1957) my older sisters always accompanied me to the movie theater.

I remember the local drive-in theater too. It was a family treat because we didn't have much extra money. The speaker would be hung on the half-way rolled down car window. Sometimes we sat on a blanket beside or in front of the car. Had to be careful of cars pulling in beside you or leaving. I remember seeing older kids on top of their vehicles. The walk to the concession stand was exciting. I remember holding my Dad's or my brother's hand to and from the car so I wouldn't get lost!

I'm trying to remember the movies I saw there as a kid but can't really. I know as a teen I watched "Night of The Living Dead" while on a double date.

Also we had a neighbor who had a hired hand. Arnie had a mental disability but was hard working (and bullied by his boss/landlord). He would go to the drive-in and gather up womens' panties he'd find! Dad would get so mad when he'd go out and see that Arnie had washed and hung up those panties on Mom's clothes line. Ahh, the memories. : )

We didn't go to the movie theater that much that I remember as a kid. But we always went with a parent when we did go. I remember my poor dad sitting through a Beatles movie with me in a theater full of screaming tweens. God bless him. But we did go to the drive in a lot. There was several we could go to. They all had playgrounds and one even had a small working roller coaster. We would arrive well before the movie started and played and played. Needless to say my sister and I always fell asleep during the movie.

I like this topic. And remember the small neighborhood movie theater. Also, the downtown splendidly decorated movie palaces! Oh they were beautiful! Saw 'The Birds' downtown on a date at 16. Spent most of that date in the opulently-decorated ladies lounge. It terrified me!

My Mom would walk us 4 kids to a local theater, we'd watch the feature (usually a Dusney movie), then a second movie, then sit thru the feature movie again. We always bought snacks (popcorn and raisinettes)and drinks (lemonade or fruit punch). Sadly, the theater changed hands in the 60's and statrted showing "art" movies (soft core pornography). By then we had moved from the city to the suburbs and were more interested in going to the mall than in movies.

One of the reasons that we, as a family, went to see the movies. It was somewhat new at the time "chilled air", we had nothing but fans at home. Sitting for several hours in a cool theater was a treat.

Does anyone know why the Saturday multi-feature matinees ended? My dad talks about seeing several cartoons, news reels, and a feature when he was a kid in the 30s. Sounds like it lasted thru the 40's and into the 50's, but was entirely gone by the 60's ... why?

Probably because color TVs became more common in the average home in the 60s. More programming for children. Saturday morning cartoons, Lassie, Disney, etc. The deterioration of intercity neighborhoods. People moving to the suburbs for bigger and better homes and children couldn't walk to the theaters . The development of shopping malls with bigger and better movie theaters and ample parking, The baby boomers were growing up and no longer little children. I think many factors went into the demise of the small town theater.

jim_1 (Zone 9A) -- do you remember the signs "It's COOL inside!" and there would be ice (painted of course) dripping off the bottom of the letters? Yes, and on those hot nice, The Columbia theatre served ice cream cones.

Has anyone seen my keys to the wayback machine?

It was 8 miles to the nearest little town that had a movie theater. I didn't get to go very often, until I was old enough to go on dates. I remember when I was about 12 and my nephew who was a year older, and I begged my dad to take us to the movies in Alvin. I think the movie was Walt Disney's "The Shaggy Dog", He finally agreed to take us, but he grumbled about it all the way there.

When we got in, I talked to my nephew and told him I really felt bad about Dad having to sit in the car and wait on us, so we decided we would leave the movie, so he wouldn't have to sit out there and wait.

So we did. And guess what.....he was no where around. Had gone to the lodge hall and visited with his buddies. So we sat on the curb for an hour and a half.

The lesson I learned...when I had my own child, and agreed to take her somewhere, I never complained or tried to make her feel bad by thinking it inconvenienced me.

Oh, marilyn...awww. That makes me sad.

Coincidentally, I remember being very small and Dad took Mom and us three kids to the downtown movie theater. There was a terribly long line, and Dad got fed up or something about waiting and we left. I remember him carrying me past all the other people standing in line and me sobbing away because we weren't going to get to see "The Shaggy Dog".

ETA: I just had to check and see what year that movie came out - 1959. I was six years old.

I was 13, my nephew, 14. That's about right.

We had a small town theater owned by the kindest couple in the world. Going to the movies was a safe haven for any kid in the 50’s-60’s, or at least mid 60’s. I met friends there on a lot of Saturday afternoons, and it didn’t matter what was showing. Yes, newsreels, cartoons, followed by a movie. Often I remember a science fiction, horror film, or even my first Elvis movie. At Christmas, the couple had a free movie day for kids, including popcorn and a drink. It was always packed. Somewhere there is a photo floating around of one of those events. They had no kids of their own, and they always enjoyed doing this for the community. No one took advantage and everyone was well behaved.

NJ... home of the first drive-in movie theater. still one somewhere way down in south Jersey... on Delsea Drive in Vineland.?

i grew up in SE PA and remember piling into dad's big green Ford station wagon. we'd go in PJs and had our snacks with us. we were often feasted on by marauding mosquitoes. they sold these coil thingies... an incense of sorts that was supposed to repel the blood suckers... didn't work.

remember going to see "Ben Hur"... LONG movie for a 10 year old (my brother was only 7) but i was absolutely mesmerized.

I'm another one who went to the movies every Saturday with my friends. The theater was around two corners of our block, so we didn't even have to cross a street. We'd always see a double feature with a newsreel in between. When we grew into our teens we went to the later showings and sat in the balcony--where I'm sure we often made noisy nuisances of ourselves. But we had fun!

Our town had two theaters and I wasn't allowed to go to one of them because my mother said there were rats there. They didn't show first run movies...just old cowboy ones. But the nice theater had a long lobby with marble floors. It had a balcony where we'd sit and throw popcorn down on people. The seats were velvet to match the heavy curtain. A new movie played Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, then the last three days another new one. Closed on Sunday. We used to spend all day Saturday watching the same movie twice and in the winter it would be dark when we left. It was a block or two from my house and it costs 21 cents for under 12 years old. I was 5'5" when I was 12 and they never believed me. When I was very little my mother took me to see Snow White, the Lassie movies and Bambi but I cried so loud we had to be removed. I saw so many movies in my childhood, I couldn't count them all. I never went to a drive-in with my parents...just boyfriends. In fact, my first date with husband was a double date with my best girlfriend and her guy and we went to a drive-in.

Does anyone know why the Saturday multi-feature matinees ended? My dad talks about seeing several cartoons, news reels, and a feature when he was a kid in the 30s. Sounds like it lasted thru the 40's and into the 50's, but was entirely gone by the 60's ... why?

We still had that available in the sixties. I went in the late fifties and stopped by age 11 (1962) when my friends and I started going to the Friday night movies instead. I babysat 3 young children throughout middle school and high school and on Saturdays I was allowed to walk them to the Kiddie Matinee, drop them off and come back for them a few hours later to walk them home, giving me some paid time off.

I loved the formality back then. The theater manager would great everyone personally taking tickets at the door wearing a dark suit. Even at the Saturday matinee. During the kiddie matinee they would have contests and sometimes a live guest between movies.

When I turned 12 my mother recruited me as a movie buddy for Wednesday nights. We would have dinner out at some cafe or even at a store counter and then go to the movies. Always sat in the loge area in the good seats. A short time later I went to my first drive-ins on dates and with friends but we continued our Wednesday nights for several years.

Another thing that in my opinion used to be better back then was that Disney ran their movies on a six year schedule. That way each generation got to see the Disney classics when they reached an optimal age to view it. It made it special. Just like you used to have to actually go to Disneyland to get mouse ears. Special and magical. A child's first movie experience was usually one of those Disney classics and it was unheard of to take a crying baby into a theater.