America’s infatuation with drive-in theaters began in 1933 with the first known theater established in New Jersey. Popularity would continue to grow with the opening of the Drive-In Short Reel Theatre in Galveston on July 5, 1934, showing cartoons and short reels would be all the rage. America’s entry into WWII would soon slow the growth of drive-in theaters but the return of GIs from the war would rekindle the spark for entertainment away from the traditional movie theatre. The Baby Boomer generation would have a significant impact on the construction of drive-in theaters reaching its peak in the middle 1950s, with the erection of some 4000 driveins nationwide the following announcement appeared in the June 4, 1948 edition of the Fayette County Record: Drive-In Theatre Started Near Port C.H. Branson of Odessa started work Wednesday on the erection of a drive-in theatre near the La Grange Airport.
Actual construction of the 50x55 foot screen, projection booth and other needed facilities will get under way within the next few days. Mr. Branson said he hoped to be ready for opening in about 30 days.
The site is on the Rud. Vasek property south of the highway.
Name of the new enterprise will be the Sky-High Drive-In theatre.
The plans called for a concession stand, ticket booth, parking for 250 cars, outdoor speakers that would attach to the car window and 50 by 100-foot screen. Excitement for the new venue continued to grow with the public receiving construction updates. Mr. C.H. Branson, owner of the drive-in, announced in the September 9, 1948 edition of the La Grange Journal that the Sky-Hi Drive-In theater, as it was now called, was about ready to go and that he was awaiting the power installation by the Fayette Electric Cooperative so that the projection and other equipment could be tested. The citizens of La Grange and Fayette waited for the opening with much anticipation.
T he playbill for the opening night featured “They Won’t Believe Me” starring Robert Young and Susan Hayward along with a cartoon “Popular Playmates.” Tuesdays would be Double Feature nights showing a twin bill with admission for adults set at 40 cents and children a nickel. Many of the promos included a trip to the concession stand for popcorn, peanuts, cold drinks and candy. Ads also featured “Come as you are, bring the children and old folks, and enjoy these pictures from the comfort of your car.”
Then there were the memories created long ago from movie patrons with one of the most unusual from the Kreische Home on Monument Hill involving Julia Kreische and her cousin Julia Ullrich. Julia Ullrich often stayed with Julia Kreische in her later years to help Julia Kreische take care of the home. The story has been passed down through generations that on cool summer nights the two ladies would sit on the stone bench in front of the home and watch the movies with binoculars. It must have been quite entertaining as neither had probably seen a motion picture before.
Then there are the childhood memories that were conjured up as I researched the old drivein. A young lady named Kathy remembered it was a treat for a family of several young kids to go and watch a movie there and, once in a while, they even got popcorn! There are the stories of kids in their pajamas and, as another child named Betsy recalled, they would take a blanket because they would fall asleep before the movie was over. She, too, was thrilled at getting the popcorn from the snack shack. Then there were the memories of a rectangular building (beer joint) called Arlt’s Place at the front of the property. Kids would watch movies while parents were having a beverage.
A student named Gloria helped her uncle Emil and Aunt Emma and their daughter Delores work at the Sky-Hi during the summer. One of her jobs was to make snow cones. Another patron recalled a story that her mom and dad met at the theater. Some patrons remembered going to see Jail House Rock starring Elvis Presley and as they entered the drive-in someone sprayed the inside of the car with bug spray with one of those old silver pump sprayers.
Neighbors would sometimes take the neighborhood children. A young girl named Lana recalled going to the Sky-Hi with Dr. Makinson and his wife sometime before 1955. The doctor drove a Ford Thunderbird and she got to sit on the center console in the front seat.
Soon other theaters began to spring up in surrounding communities, most noticeably The Starlite in Brenham which could park 300 vehicles. As the decade of the 50s came to a close, many patrons opted for more theater comforts, notably air conditioning. Sadly, the old Sky-Hi would meet its demise on September 16, 1961 when a hurricane named Carla visited Fayette County with her 100 plus mph winds destroying the big screen, leaving only a few poles standing. Dr. Tiemann would later purchase the property in 1968 and establish the Fayette County Veterinary Clinic. Today, if one looks closely, they can see remnants of the old drive-in with dirt mounds in the tall grass for parking cars along with the old concession stand that served as the clinic at the rear of the property.
Image:
Advertisement from the September 30, 1948 issue of The La Grange Journal Sources:
The Fayette County Record, 6/4/1948 and 10/8/1948 Kreische story as told to Rose Renger and to R. Canavan.
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