The weather didn’t put a damper on a long-awaited night in Easton. The city transformed the old Simon Silk Mill into an outdoor movie theatre for an event called Outdoor Movies at the Mill. Mayor Sal Panto says more than a thousand people showed up to watch local filmmakers screen their work.
>> Mayor Sal Panto: ”We wanted to showcase the mill primarily so people start getting excited about some of the things that we want to do here. And what we expect the vision for what this mill is going to be.”

He says some of Easton’s finest eateries provided food and beverages. And he says Outdoor Movies at the Mill will become an annual event.

A few weeks ago, Rob Fox had to close down his movie theater at the Hacienda hotel-casino near Boulder City.

But he’s still helping local residents enjoy outdoor movies.

Fox, whose Hacienda Cinemas on U.S. 93 showed its last film, “9,” on Oct. 8, will be lending his outdoor movie equipment – including a high-tech sound system and a nearly four-story-tall screen, to the Boulder City Chamber of Commerce so it can put on its first-ever “Movies in the Park” event on Halloween.

The Chamber chose to show the live-action version of “Casper,” for the event.

Fox said that he had to close down his newly renovated theater because there simply weren’t enough customers to keep it open. The cinema had only been open for about six months before closing.

“A business without business is destined to close,” he said.

Fox also though that the location – near a hill and lots of traffic – could have also contributed to its downfall.

Jill Lagan, chief executive of the Chamber and coordinator of the Halloween event, said she hopes to make it a regular one with showings four times a year at Veterans Memorial Park: twice in the fall, and twice during the spring.

The group began planning the event about three months ago – long before the theater closed. But the closing of the cinemas brings a new aspect to the event as Boulder City no longer has a movie theater.

“This kind of fills the gap until we’re able to get a new theater,” Lagan said.

Fox said he thought the movie nights were a great idea.

“It’s much more accessible,” he said. “At this time, if they want to see a movie, they’re going to have to leave the city.”

The Movies in the Park nights will feature more than outdoor movies. On Oct. 31, the evening will begin with “trunk-or-treating” at 7 p.m., an alternative to trick-or-treating where kids go from car to car at the park.

The event will also feature bounce houses, including a medieval castle and an obstacle course, for kids to enjoy before the film.

Although dates for future movie nights have not been set, Lagan said she hopes to show “Grease” in the spring, along with a sock-hop event.

Parking for the event opens at 5 p.m. The movie starts at 8 p.m.

Admission to the event is $10 per car, and patrons “can load the car with as many people as they want,” Lagan said.

“We will have hot chocolate and popcorn and glow necklaces and stuff like that,” she said. “We wanted to have something to entertain everybody at the outdoor movies.”

Morganton, NC – America’s love affair with drive-in outdoor movies began on June 6, 1933, when Richard Hollingshead opened an outdoor movie theater where people could sit in their cars at Camden, N.J. By January 1942, there were 95 drive-ins in 27 states.
Gas rationing stunted their growth during world War II, but by the late 1940s there were nearly 1,000 (the peak was about 4,100 in 1958).
Burke County got its first drive-in in 1948. That spring, Joe Accardi and Y.E. Spake acquired a lot of land from Duke Power. The property on U.S. 70 West adjoined Riverside Air Park near the current site of the Catawba River soccer complex. At the time, it was a mile outside the city limits.
Movie-goers could stop at the next-door River Side Camp and get a fine fish dinner to take into the drive-in.
A private road led to the parking area at the Skyline (also known as the Riverside) Drive-In. Plainly visible from the highway was a huge screen. The “tower” was a triangular structure, 46 feet high. The screen itself was white-painted Masonite, 34 by 44 feet, and mounted at an angle so it appeared square to patrons looking upwards.
About 225 feet in front of it was a low block building with the projection room, a concession stand and restrooms.The parking area could accommodate 400 automobiles. When it opened, the Skyline had loudspeakers positioned around the parking area. People who parked at the rear might have had trouble hearing, but probably had other things in mind and didn’t care about sound. (Nobody knows how many drive-in visits resulted in marriages — sometimes hasty ones.)
After two months, the owners installed individual speakers at each parking spot. Hung on metal posts, patrons could remove the speakers and put them in their cars, usually on the window or door frame. People sometimes drove off with a speaker still on the car, despite a warning on each one: “Please replace the speaker on the post when you leave.”
The Skyline opened on a Saturday, May 1. It had two showings nightly at 7 and 9 except on Sundays when there was one at 9 p.m. All were first-run movies. Albert Hargrove operated the film machines.
There were specials in all seasons. On Jan. 31, 1949, a Monday, the movie was free.
Children 12 and under got in free when accompanied by an adult. For people who didn’t want to sit in their cars, there were 100 parquet seats. (Such people soon learned to bring their own cushions.)
Burke County’s second outdoor theater was High Peak (also called Hi Peak) Drive-in at the main Drexel intersection on U.S. 70 east. B.J. Norris of Lenoir built it. Joe Rector and his wife, Angie, co-owned it. The entrance was to the left of Rector’s barbershop.
As best I could determine, High Peak opened around Easter in April 1949 — at least that was when their movie ads showed up in the paper. The drive-in was on the side of a hill, which made for good viewing, but it could accommodate only 160 or so cars. It, too, had a blockhouse with a projection booth, restrooms and concession stand.
The third theater, Midway Drive-In, was between Hildebran and Icard on Curley’s Fish Camp Road. Fred M. Smith, president of Midway Mills and owner of Smith’s BBQ and Tourist Cabins near Long View, operated it. It closed in the late 1960s.
What killed the drive-in theaters? Higher land prices, for one thing. Many drive-ins started outside cities whose expanding limits passed them by (adding higher property taxes, too). Daylight saving time, adopted nationwide in 1966, subtracted an hour from outdoor evening viewing time. Color televisions, VCRs and video rentals lured away movie-goers, too. And the drive-in business always was at the mercy of the weather.
I remember going to the High Peak in the late 1970s. One of the last specials was a carload for $5. Both it and the Skyline Drive-In closed in the 1970s.
About 400 drive-ins remain. The News Herald’s editor, Steve Welker, tells me the Bright Leaf in Mount Airy still does good business.
Otherwise, there is very little evidence of where these drive-ins existed. Looking at an aerial photo, I can spot the concrete pad occupied by the projection booth and concession stand at the old High Peak site.
Driving by these sites, however, older folks might remember the movies and the fun of watching the outdoor movies under the stars.

Michael “Jake” Conley is a local columnist for The News Herald.

A.D. Barnes Park’s Halloween Family Campfire & Night Hike: 7:30-9:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30; A.D. Barnes Park, 3401 SW 72nd Ave., West Miami-Dade; $25 for four, $8 per person, reservations required. 305-662-4125

Allen Park’s Monster Mash Bash: For kids of all ages; 6-10 p.m. Saturday; DeLeonardis Youth Center at Allen Park, 1770 NE 162nd St., North Miami Beach; $4. 305-948-2957.

Aventura’s Halloween Harvest: For kids of all ages. Must wear costume; 1-4:30 p.m. Saturday; Aventura Community Recreation Center, 3375 NE 188th St., Aventura; free. 305-466-3883

Buried Alive!: Kid-friendly haunted house, Halloween-themed shows, Nighttime Bash; 7-11 p.m. Thursday, 5-11 p.m. Friday and 5 p.m.-midnight Saturday, through Oct. 31; Miami Seaquarium, 4400 Rickenbacker Cswy., Key Biscayne; $24.95 special admission price for Nighttime Bash. 305-361-5705 ext. 225

Cauley Square Halloween Blast: Giant pumpkin, spooky horse carriage, `Thriller’ dance-and-costume contest, face painting, cotton candy, music by Kim Bankston 2-10 p.m. Saturday; Cauley Square Historic Railroad Village, 22400 Old Dixie Hwy., Goulds; 305-258-3543

City of Miami Haunted House & Halloween Outdoor Movie: Haunted house 6-7:30 p.m. with trick-or-treat bags and screening of Monster House at 8 p.m. Also best costume, mummy-wrap contests; 6 p.m. Saturday; Grapeland Park, 1550 NW 37th Ave., Miami; $4 . 305-960-2960.

Halloween in Homestead: Music, haunted area, trick-or-treating; 6-9 p.m. Saturday; Losner Park, 104 N. Krome Ave., 305-224-4580 or 305-224-4570

Halloween on the Mile: Trick-or-treating and scavenger hunt, haunted house, doggie costume contest and more; 3-6 p.m. Saturday; Miracle Mile, Coral Way between LeJeune Road and 37th Avenue and nearby streets, Coral Gables; free.

• Haunted house at Baptist Medical Plaza, 320 Giralda Ave., Coral Gables; 3 p.m.

Institute for Child and Family Health (ICFH) Boo Bash: Bounce house, candy station, story time, arts and crafts, face painting, games, costume contest and parade. Benefits All-Aboard Early Literacy Intervention Program; 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday; Miami Shores Community Center, 9617 Park Dr., Miami Shores; $5, free for kids 2 and under. 305-722-5322

Jungle Island’s Halloween Spooktacular: Trick-or-treat `doors,’ costume contest, live performances of Michael Jackson’s `Thriller,’ goblin pie-eating contests, creepy cookie decorating; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday and Saturday; Jungle Island, 1111 Parrot Jungle Trail, Miami; $13 adults and kids 3-10, $7 for kids 3-10 in full costume, free for kids 2 and under. 305-400-7000

Metrozoo’s Halloween Celebration: 12400 SW 152nd St., South Miami-Dade. 305-251-0400

• MetroBoo: Trick-or-treat, costume contests and watch wild animals get Halloween goodies; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30 and Saturday, Oct. 31; free with admission of $15.95, $11.95 kids 3-12, free for kids 2 and under.

The four-day Doha Tribeca Film Festival (DTFF), kicking off tomorrow, will offer the public eight chances to see movies under the stars – for free.
The screenings will take place each night of DTFF at a variety of venues, including the Souq Waqif, the beach at the Four Seasons, and the grounds of the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA).
The Souq Waqif is to be transformed into an outdoor cinema for a special screening of the Egyptian classic, The Mummy (Al-Momia), recently restored by Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Foundation.
The film was restored with the support of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture. The World Cinema Foundation is sponsored by Qatar Airways, Qatar Museums Authority, Cartier and Armani.
“We’re thrilled to be able to offer the community not one, not two, but eight opportunities to see amazing films for free,” DTFF’s executive director Amanda Palmer said.
“We are especially honoured to be screening The Mummy, not only as a piece of cinematic history, but also as a way to acknowledge Qatar’s key role in the restoration of the film, which ensures it lives on for future generations,” she said.
Tomorrow, as part of its opening night festivities, DTFF will host a special screening of Amelia, a new film by acclaimed director Mira Nair at 7.45pm on the grounds of the MIA.
On Friday, two family-friendly films will screen at the MIA, beginning with the world premiere of the inspirational animated film, Assila, at 6pm, followed by the Middle Eastern premiere of a heart warming tale – Turtle: An Incredible Journey at 9pm.
Film-lovers can also go to the Four Seasons beach to enjoy a free, outdoor screening at 7pm of Captain Abu Raed, a story about friendship, inspiration and heroism set in contemporary Jordan.
On Saturday there is a trio of free screenings at DTFF. At 7pm the Souq Waqif will provide a dramatic backdrop for the Qatar premiere of The Mummy.
This acclaimed Egyptian film was directed by one of Egypt’s most influential film-makers, Shadi Abdel Salam. Based on the true story of the Horabat tribe, an upper-class Egyptian clan that robbed a tomb of Pharaohs to sell the artifacts on the black market, the film is in Arabic with English subtitles.
To stage the screening, DTFF constructed a 16m by 12m screen on the grounds of Souq Waqif. Prior to the start of the film, the Manu Laude Dancers will entertain the crowds with exotic fire dancing displays.
First made in 1969, the World Cinema Foundation restored The Mummy in 2008 using the original sound and camera negative preserved by the Egyptian Film Centre.
That same evening, Four Seasons beach will host a duo of moving films by Mira Nair. Both films centre around the themes of love and families. Monsoon Wedding will screen at 7pm and be followed by The Namesake at 9pm.
On Sunday, the final night of DTFF – there will be a free, open-air screening of a surprise, top-secret film on the grounds of the MIA.
Seating is first come first served, with priority given to DTFF badge holders. To RSVP, or for details on purchasing a Blue Badge.
There will be no parking at the MIA during the festival. Visitors are encouraged to park at the Civil Defence roundabout and take the free shuttle to and from the museum.
The shuttle will run every 15 minutes throughout DTFF. The shuttle’s working hours are: Thursday: 3.45pm – 12.30am, Friday: 12.45pm-11pm, and Sunday: 8.45am-midnight.
For parking at the Souq Waqif on Saturday, the shuttle will run only to and from the Souq from 6.30pm to midnight.
Visitors may park in the regular car park or take the free shuttle from Civil Defence roundabout. Beach chairs will be set up in the lot off of Grand Hamad Street between the Souq and the Corniche.
Visitors may bring their own chair or blanket. All seating at the outdoor movies is on a first-come-first-served basis.