A night at the drive-in

The drive-in movie theater is iconic, an experience that means a little something different to everyone.

To baby boomers like my parents, it evokes memories of their childhoods, when drive-ins were at their peak, and it was just a regular weekend activity.

But the theaters eventually fell out of favor,making them more of an anomaly for younger generations.

I can’t speak for my entire generation, but my personal frame of reference for drive-ins comes from what I’ve seen in the actual movies — visions of the T-Birds sneaking in via a trunk in “Grease,” and John Travolta singing about being stranded there, “branded a fool.”

I finally got to experience it for myself this past weekend at the Mayberry Drive-In Theatre and Diner in Moneta. And, for the record, no one was smuggled in the back of my car, nor did they spontaneously break into song.

Owners Bob Craig and Kathy Gentry opened the Mayberry last October, and it’s been drawing crowds ever since.

First-run movies are shown in pairs, with a short intermission between them, every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night, starting at dusk.

Craig and Gentry say the space is also available for special events during the week. This Monday, for instance, a local church group organized a screening of “The Sound of Music.”

On the night of my visit, it was a double feature of the cartoon “Up” and Will Ferrell’s “Land of the Lost.” Recent screenings have included summer blockbusters like “Star Trek” and “Terminator Salvation,” with “The Hangover” scheduled for this weekend and “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” the weekend of June 26.

When I pulled up to the gates, located a little less than a mile down Whitehouse Road in Moneta, it was around 8:30, and the lot was about half full. (Gentry recommends arriving about 30 minutes before the first movie to secure your spot.)

Kids were already all over the swing set and playhouse that sit right next to the 26-by-61-foot screen.

“We try to keep it as family-oriented as possible,” Gentry said during an interview a day earlier. “It’s really fun to see all the kids running around, having a good time.”

As I drove through the lot looking for the perfect spot, it was fun to see the different ways in which people chose to watch the movie.

Some — like me — went traditional, sitting in the car with the windows cracked open. Others sat in lawn chairs and on blankets in front of their cars, while some backed their cars in and watched from the tailgate. A couple of brave souls even perched on their car roofs.

The crowd seemed to be a pretty even mix of families and couples, and a lot of the parents I talked to said they came for their kids.

“We both did it growing up,” said Forest resident Sue Hutcheson, who was there with her husband, Dave, and their three children. “It was a lot of fun, and we just wanted the kids to experience it.”

Their first visit to the Mayberry was a few weeks ago, to catch a showing of “Night at the Museum.”

They came back on Saturday with more friends in tow, showing up two hours early just so the kids could enjoy the play area while the grown-ups hung out and socialized.

“It’s like tailgating without the football,” joked friend Jan Mohler, who came in from Boone’s Mill.

A few rows over, three generations of the Tibbs family were out in full force.

Sunny Thornton said she arranged the trip with her kids, nieces and nephews in mind, but it wasn’t long before the whole family wanted in.

“Everybody thought it would be cool,” said Thornton, who showed up with her husband and children, as well as her parents, brother, sister-in-law and their children.

“We were just saying (that) we’re having our family reunion here.”

Another patron I spoke with — who shall remain nameless — even admitted to a past transgression right out of “Grease”: as a child, his sister once snuck him into the drive-in in the back of her car.

“She was on a date,” he said, “and didn’t want to pay for me.”

Nobody could use that excuse today. A double feature at the Mayberry will only cost you $6. That’s right, folks: six bucks for two movies, quite a bargain considering the rising price of tickets at regular theaters.

Some might argue that the drive from Lynchburg, which took me about 45 minutes, isn’t worth it. But, as I’ve just learned, going to the drive-in is all about the experience.

And I’m not alone.

“It makes it such an event, instead of going to the regular movies,” said Roanoke resident Susan Smith, whose entire family came on Saturday as a graduation present for her 18-year-old daughter, Allie.

“It’s a great summertime activity.”

Smith and her family arrived shortly before showtime. The lot, which has eight rows and can accommodate approximately 200 cars, had already slowly started to fill up, so they took a spot in the back, right in front of the diner.

By 9 p.m., just as it was getting dark, the line to get in snaked all the way out onto Whitehouse Road. But everyone got in with plenty of time for the movie, which started around 9:20. There were a few stragglers who showed up as late as 10 p.m., but they were few and far between.

The whole operation has been a long time coming for the couple, who moved to the area three years ago.

They originally planned to buy a house across the street from the property, where Gentry would run a bed and breakfast. But when the sale fell through, they decided to fulfill Bob’s longtime dream instead.

“It’s something Bob always wanted to do,” she said. “His father ran several drive-ins in Roanoke, (and) as a little kid, he used to help his dad.”
The diner came about by chance. Bob went online to eBay, looking for a projection booth, and instead came across the 1950s-style diner, which had been operating out of Chesapeake for almost 10 years.

“It was meant to be,” said Gentry, who developed the menu, which includes standard diner fare like burgers, hot dogs, fries and a slew of homemade desserts.
Some specialties include fried green tomatoes and her homemade chicken salad.

“It’s bigger than what we expected,” she said. “We love it. We’ve got a lot of regular customers who are in here every day. It’s kind of like we’ve got a family here.”

The diner is open every day from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., and 11 p.m. on weekends. It doubles as the drive-in’s concession stand, selling popcorn, candy and the like. Patrons can also get a to-go order to eat in their car during the movie, or they can just come to eat.

Gentry said that many people come early to enjoy dinner in the diner, with its pink and gray booths, while other sneak in for dessert between movies.

“It gets a little crowded in here on movie night.”

On other occasions, too. They host bluegrass music every Sunday from 2 to 3 p.m. and are starting up a cruise-in on the fourth Saturday of every month, where “people that have old vintage cars can come out and park them,” Gentry said.

“It’s kind of evolved. We learn as we go.”

There are also plans to utilize the seven acres behind the diner; Gentry said they want to build a stage and make it into a concert space.

Gentry and Craig are still surprised at how the concept has grown since that initial seed, back when “we just kept riding by (the land),” Craig said.

“I told her, ‘That would make a good drive-in,’ and she said, ‘You’re crazy.’

“She’s right.”

For more information about the Mayberry Drive-In Theatre and Diner, or to see the upcoming movie schedule, visit www.mayberrydrivein.com.