I miss the old days of watching stars flicker under lingering stars in the open and unprotected midst of a drive-in movie theatre.


Strip malls and parking lots are slowly replacing the old outdoor theatres.

Memories become rusty and the memes of belonging are left to rot in the rain and disintegrate in the heat of the sun.

Instead of lamenting the loss of boyhood in the body of the man; I choose to wander back — childlike and innocent — to reclaim life as it was when living was good and hearty and fulfilling in both mind and spirit.

10 Comments

  1. I like this memory, David. It is touching. I grew up in the outdoor theatre in a small town too. If you haven’t experienced it you can’t connect with the total enjoyment of being outside and watching a big screen.

  2. Thanks, Anne. There’s nothing quite like an outdoor movie. The stars are your ceiling and you can dream and think forever.

  3. Hi David,
    Thanks a ton for reminding me the old days…absolutely mesmerizing.
    My hometown is a village, there was no movie hall till I was 4/5…I still remember watching a movie in the open – air in some carnival…
    Thanks again!

  4. Hi Katha!
    Yes, you can make your own outdoor theatre with a white wall or sheet and a film projector. Universities, schools, and communities did that a lot when I was growing up in the Midwest.

  5. Yes David, same goes here…
    I remember watching “Born Free” in an open air…definitely don’t remember the entire movie at all but some glimpses…
    Watching the movie at night in the open air is fabulous – beyond expression!

  6. Katha —
    I definitely remember watching “Born Free” on a sheet blowing outside in the wind at a local church. It was definitely momentous as a fitting outdoors event.

  8. Yes, Janna! Watching outdoor movies in the rain together makes for magical memories!

  9. Oh, what joy, David! Movies under the stars and watching the stars was a big thing in our little town. First date. First kiss. First big night out with our small children.

  10. Beautiful story, Anne. I’m right there with you on a blanket covering dewy grass.

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