I remember going to the bass hill drive in in sydney when i was a kid,unfortunately that's gone...

The main one I went to was the Metro Drive in at Innaloo.   It had a lot of ridges where you parked your car so your car could be raised a the front towards the screen, and of course the old hook on the window speakers (at lot of those got damaged from people forgetting them and driving off).  They also had a few rows of canvas deck chair style seats in front of the projection box if you wanted to sit outside and a shop to buy food and drinks etc at the back.  This would get packed in intermission (you got two movies in those days) so it was best to go quickly while the movie was on.

As kids, we would climb and jump the back cyclone fence which was topped by barbed wire and found the best place to do was directly under the screen as it was dark in that spot, then walk directly to the first line of cars and zig zag to the canvas seats to watch the movie.

We never ever got caught.   Once a fat boy with us got his crotch caught on the barbed wire and we had a hell of a time getting him off.  Later the drive in was closed and sat vacant for a few years, then it was bought by Greater Union Cinemas, they built a complex (Greater Union/Event Cinema's now) there, removed the speakers and levelled the humps and made the remainder into a carpark. 

A very popular place now with Sizzlers and other food outlets and coffee spots etc, on the opposite side of the road to the Innaloo Shopping Complex.    

-- Edited by Duh on Wednesday 10th of July 2013 12:17:23 PM

Now this topic is a trip down memory lane for sure.

When I was 12 I got a small part time job in the local cinema, that lasted 13 years. I must say, probably the best job I have had and that's not many. Probably the reason I still love movies. There was also a Drive-in about 15 mins away and I was called on many times to help out there. They were both Hoyts.

During my time with Hoyts I turned 18 and as you do, got a car. Those days cinemas and drive-ins only showed a movie for a week, occasionally they might go two. The memory lane bit is, I remember many times that only one copy would arrive between the cinema and the Drive-in so I was called on to wait for the first two reels to run through the projector then put them in my car and drive the 15 mins to the drive-in so they could start screening. One time I broke down during the second run and by the time I got going was 10 mins late getting back to the drive-in so they were all waiting for the movie to continue, as I came in I got cheered, anyone would think I was the star of the movie arriving. Oh, the movie was the Beetles 'Help' and was on for two weeks. We never got a second copy so had to that for two weeks. All great fun though.

There is still one in the Hunter Valley - www.drive-in.com.au

Its at Heddon-Greta (between Maitland and Kurri Kurri) and its motto is "If you don't like the movie, slash the seats"

$30 per car - up to 8 people

The Lone Ranger is on this week!

-- Edited by Rip and Rosie on Wednesday 10th of July 2013 05:27:40 PM

Yep, I remember the drive in at Bass Hill, and also the one at Chullora. I was a regular on Saturday nights at the Lismore drive in as well - saw The Love Bug there. These days, people rent movies and stay home - or subscribe to pay TV. The days of drive ins are long gone, I'm afraid.

Rip and Rosie wrote:

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Found this, which some one might find interesting www.drive-insdownunder.com.au/australian.htm  

There are photos for a few, not Coober Pedy though.

Of the 51 drive-ins they know about in NSW, only 4 are still open.

Edited by Duh to make clickable....

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years ago I went to the drive in and saw two movies. one was jaws - the beach has never been the same since. the other was "Percy". For the life of me I could not work out what he had lost. Those of you who remember that movie will have a laugh at that.

Did you guys all go to the drive in to watch a movie? Come on, be honest, your mum's not listening in!!

Some times I had to go back the next week end to see how the movie ended .!!!..Oh memories .

At Port Moresby drive-in we learned how it should be done in the tropics. Nobody stayed in their hot cars, everybody bought their folding chairs and sat in front of their cars with the speaker on the bonnet, and maybe an esky beside them. Its a great way to see a movie on a warm night and we did it this way when we returned to Oz causing much consternation among fellow drive-in patrons.

i remember going with my brother in his old panel van , great fun!!

Over in Gero in WA they have come up with a beaut initiative,to over come not having the drive in any more.

Ever few weeks during the summer some group runs a movie night from on the foreshore next to the café and uses the side wall of café to use as a screen.We have been to few of the movie nights there and it is a beaut night, no vehicle to sit in just deck chairs or a blanket on the lawn .

And if you get bored, you always have to Harbour to look out on.

• Hey I remember the drive in at Chullora too!   cheer   Capricorn

hako wrote:

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capricorn and pisces wrote:

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• Hey I remember the drive in at Chullora too!   cheer   Capricorn

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 Chullora was the twin drive-ins.  Also there was the "El Rancho" out towards Fairfield I think - the staff dressed as cowboys with sixguns strapped on etc.

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 I think my first child was conceived at the ElRancho.  Your right about the staff uniform .  The best Drive In was in Darwin at Bagot next the the relo's reserve, sitting  in the back of the ute on a deck chair and an esky.    During  Cyclone Tracy the center panels blew out and when we got the movie running on our first day off in weeks,  Yep you got the  actors heads were missing.  Next day I and a group of other  the supper fit  guys scaled up the screen and replace the tin with a canvas sheet, made such a difference  to our viewing pleasure .  Few days latter they found the original panels down the track about 15 k's and put them back inplace