Drive-in movie theaters may feel like relics of a bygone era, but I was surprised to learn that twenty were still operating across the Hoosier state as recently as 20221! It’s been years since my hometown hosted one, and it takes a sharp eye to spot what’s left of the venerable Muncie Drive-In. Without an airplane for an overhead view, its old marquee is about all that remains of the westside landmark.
People think about different things when they reminisce about the drive-in. Whatever the memories, movies under the stars became a shared experience once the projector flickered to life and illuminated the big screen. The concept itself was the brainchild of Richard M. Hollingshead, Jr., who spent the early 1930s testing parking setups and sound systems before patenting the drive-in theater in 1933. Soon after, he opened the first one in Camden, New Jersey. It sparked a nationwide tradition2.
Muncie’s first drive-in, the Auto Park, opened at Tillotson Avenue and State Road 32 in 19463. Unfortunately, the theater was a failure. Ten months after it opened, the Muncie Drive-In Land Company filed articles of incorporation and built a better version two miles west. The 500-car Muncie Drive-In opened on July 3, 19474.
Throughout the summer, the Muncie Drive-In and the Auto Park competed for theatergoers’ attention by highlighting their unique features. The Muncie Drive-In drew crowds with first-run newsreels at every showing and midnight shows every Saturday. Meanwhile, the Auto Park set itself apart with its lower admission prices—just 30 cents for adults and 9 cents for kids, about $4.10 and $1.23 today.
In short order, the competition was too much for the Auto Park to withstand. The Muncie Drive-In began running ads touting its “in-a-car speakers,” first-run newsreels, color cartoons, and midnight Saturday shows5. The Auto Park, which offered none of those things, held its final showing on August 9, 1947.
After edging out the Auto Park, the Muncie Drive-In operated for forty years even as another open-air theater, the Ski-Hi, came into play north of town in 1950. Unfortunately, years of lagging attendance forced the Drive-In to close in the spring of 1987.
“The drive-in business has been walking on a ragged edge for years,” said Vern Young of Theatrical Managers, Incorporated in a newspaper interview. “People aren’t going to drive-ins like they were even five years ago6.”
The Drive-In’s screen tower was blown down in heavy winds in December, 1987, and the property was eventually purchased by the Muncie Sanitary District7. In 1994, a local construction firm was awarded $1.3 million to build an 18,000-square-foot facility on the site8. Today, most of the land is still owned by the City of Muncie.
That didn’t prevent me from exploring the grounds a bit. Fifteen years ago, I took part in a birthday scavenger hunt that brought out groups to the site of the old Muncie Drive-In. While the remnants of its car ramps and concession stand aren’t easy to pick out from the ground, the outline of the old drive-in is still clearly visible from above. Satellite imagery reveals details lot that aren’t visible from the street!
Unfortunately, the only reminder of the Muncie Drive-In that can be seen from State Road 32 is its old marquee. Today, it’s used by SSS Auto Sales as part of “Kilgore Plaza.”
Sources Cited
1 Bongiovanni, D. (2022, June 15). 20 drive-in theaters in Indiana where you can see new and retro movies. The Indianapolis Star. Web. Retrieved June 3, 2023.
2 Arbuckle, A.Q. (n.d.) The first drive-ins. Mashable. Web. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
3 Greene, D. (1946, July 25). Seen and Heard in Our Neighborhood. The Muncie Star. p. 6.
4 Drive – In Movie Firm Founded (1947, April 30). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 17.
5 Drive-In Theatre (1947, August 9). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 7.
6 Roysdon, K. (1987, April 9). Muncie Drive-In Theatre won’t reopen. The Muncie Evening Press. p. 20.
7 Yencer, R. (1993, March 5)5 sites under consideration for new city street garage. The Muncie Star. p. 3.
8 Yencer, R. (1994, June 23). Garage contract awarded. The Muncie Star. p. 9.
