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Drive-in movie theaters that scraped by during the surge in modern multiplexes are edging closer to extinction as Hollywood phases out the 35-millimeter reels they need to show films.
Most of the remaining 368 U.S. drive-ins, down from more than 4,000 in 1958, must decide whether to pay as much as $70,000 to install digital projectors for their large outdoor screens.
About 10 percent have, and the United Drive-In Theatre Owners Association anticipates studios will move to electronic delivery only as soon as the end of next year.
"It's a pain," said Thomas Epps, who is trying to sell the Swingin' Midway Drive-In Theatre outside the eastern Tennessee town of Athens, population about 13,000. "It's an expense to us and it's not going to bring in another dollar."
The digital conversion, which spares studios the cost of buying and shipping thousands of heavy reels of film for every movie they release, has created a dilemma for drive-in owners, who typically operate one screen and depend on a mix of nostalgia and novelty to attract patrons in warm summer months.
While large chains and smaller exhibitors were aided by financing plans, drive-ins don't have that option yet.
The cost is challenging cash-strapped owners to find a solution.
From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz2GGuabnPe
Most of the remaining 368 U.S. drive-ins, down from more than 4,000 in 1958, must decide whether to pay as much as $70,000 to install digital projectors for their large outdoor screens.
About 10 percent have, and the United Drive-In Theatre Owners Association anticipates studios will move to electronic delivery only as soon as the end of next year.
"It's a pain," said Thomas Epps, who is trying to sell the Swingin' Midway Drive-In Theatre outside the eastern Tennessee town of Athens, population about 13,000. "It's an expense to us and it's not going to bring in another dollar."
The digital conversion, which spares studios the cost of buying and shipping thousands of heavy reels of film for every movie they release, has created a dilemma for drive-in owners, who typically operate one screen and depend on a mix of nostalgia and novelty to attract patrons in warm summer months.
While large chains and smaller exhibitors were aided by financing plans, drive-ins don't have that option yet.
The cost is challenging cash-strapped owners to find a solution.
From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz2GGuabnPe
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