(submitted by Don West) After restoring my 1960 Chevy Bel Air I wanted to bring 1960 nostalgia to life. Many car show patrons kidded me about how many friends could fit in the trunk to sneak into the Drive-In. I got to thinking that since most Drive-Ins have been demolished or shut down, why not build a scale model Drive-In diorama in the trunk, complete with a working screen (iPad), snack bar, cars, playground and surrounding buildings. So after several weekends, it was done, including the external speaker, tray full of food, and background photos. It has been an instant hit with such comments as “I have never seen anything like this at a carshow!”, “I loved going to the Drive-In”, and other memories. Fans of all ages love interacting and do double takes when walking by and turn around and come back.
Now I have not only the original restored classic car, but a complete nostalgia trip for fans of all ages.
In 2014 I had the opportunity to purchase a one owner family owned 1960 Chevy Bel Air 4-door sedan in original condition, a real survivor and offered at a reasonable price. My wife supported me and contributed to this purchase. It was a running driving and licensed car but not used very much recently. The Grandson (now a Senior) had used it since his Grandpa gave it to him in 1974, drove it for 3½ years, then parked it for the next 18 years in the family garage, servicing it twice a year during that time. He drove it daily from 1999-2009 year-round driving to work.
It had rust from winter salt. The rear quarter panels and trunk panels, rockers and front fenders had rusted. You could see the road in the trunk because the inside fender panels were completely gone. The windshield was cracked and there were a few dents and dings also. The tires were fairly new with raised white letters. No power equipment, stick shift (3-on-the-tree) with overdrive, no factory radio.
I decided to try to keep the car as original as possible for several reasons:
• I didn’t have the tools, shop, money or expertise to make it into a ground up restoration.
• Most of the exterior and interior (minus the rust) and the chrome were in good condition.
• Survivor cars were pretty rare and I felt like people would appreciate the originality.
• It was a family sedan, over 1⁄2 million made and people would identify it as being more like the car that either they or their parents had.
• Body panels and other parts were obtainable at a reasonable price
My son Dave and I spent many hours buffing the original paint to see what was underneath all that oxidation. It looked pretty good, minus the rusty panels, dents and dings. My mechanic looked at the tires and said he could buff them out to expose the wide whitewalls that were part of the lettering. We got the windshield replaced, painted the rims red, mounted the tires that were now wide whitewalls, put the dog dish hubcaps on and it looked pretty good for a survivor. Even though it had rust issues and some interior issues, I was asked to bring it to a small car show in Orem, rusty panels included. We got our first car show experience as classic car owners. No awards for sure!
My Brother-in-law had started fixing the body panels that I had purchased, but his health was declining and working on the car was not good for him. My neighbor owned a Maaco body shop and gave me a reasonable estimate for fixing the rusty panels that my brother-in-law had cut out. I went to Metal Mart and bought a large sheet of 16 gauge steel so the inside of the rear fender panels could be fabricated. So I had Maaco fix one rusty panel on the left side front fender to test their quality of work. They did a good job so I let them fix the rest of the panels, including fabrication of inside panels, dents and dings and repaint it with its original Roman Red color. Because it was winter in 2014-2015, I rented a storage space for 3 months while the new paint cured. They did a fantastic job and I then felt like it would be well received at car shows!
In the Spring of 2015 I entered the car in the UVU Auto Expo, the same event my Son and I were filming. While filming the show the Chairman tracked me down and told me that I had been awarded a Sponsors Choice award. It was exciting to see that the hard work was appreciated by one of the show sponsors.
We decided to add a little nostalgia to the car exhibit. I purchased a Drive-In Movie Speaker and we fabricated a stand for it, hooked it to a laptop and played Drive-In commercials from inside the back seat. This brought comments about the Drive-In and many older adults were explaining to their grand kids about what a Drive-In Theater was. We also got comments about how big our trunk was and how many friends you could sneak into the Drive-In. We also got an award for “Best Original” at the Annual Courtyard at Jamestown Care Center in Provo.
The comments at 2016 car shows on the size of our trunk and positive reception of the Drive-In speaker got us to thinking about the large trunk area. After some measuring, it was determined a diorama of HO (1/87) scale would fit in the trunk. We had no experience with this but decided that the best way to create a nostalgic theme from the 1960’s would be to create a diorama of the Timp Drive-In in Orem. This was our family’s favorite Drive-In Theater we went to in the 70’s and 80’s. So after some research, I purchased online an HO model of a Drive-In as a kit, with the basic screen, ticket booth and snack bar/projection room. My daughter Vicki agreed to construct and paint it. It had a place for an iPad mini to play movies. I also bought 50 HO scale generic cars, along with a few classic cars and set the Drive-In up on a card table. The realism was awesome. One thing led to another….purchasing a Dairy Queen my son Dave assembled and painted, a gas station Vicki assembled, street lighting, grass, gravel like paint, trees, bushes, grass etc. My wife, Pat photographed the surrounding valley mountains and lake and they were enlarged and glued to background boards. My daughter Lindy sent a classic car and trailer. This was all assembled on a 4 foot x 3 foot foam board attached to plywood for portability. After we got the main board inserted, Dave noticed the trunk had a rear deck with nothing on it. So I sent away for a farm, bought some cattle and farm equipment and the rear deck diorama was inserted into the trunk.
The first showing was at the UVU Cruise Night, then the UVU main show. The spectators were blown away by the diorama with comments such as “I have never seen anything like this at any car show”, “This brings back so many great memories”, etc. The kids really loved it as it was viewable at their level and on such a small scale like toys. Parents and Grand Parents could now explain to the grand kids all about the Drive-In.
The fact that it was actually playing movies on the screen was a show-stopper. People would casually walk past the car and then do a double-take and their entire entourage would turn around and check out the trunk and the car. Added to that was the car-hop tray with the realistic fake food, the Drive-In Speaker and of course the originality and restoration of the car. We had achieved the 1960’s nostalgia that we wanted. Since the Drive-In was added we have received 14 awards and made many adults and kids smile and remember the days of the Drive-In movie. We continue to make enhancements to both the car and the drive-in.
What a brilliant idea!
First, kudos for taking a basically sound but ordinary car and bringing it back from the brink. Few will invest the time and money into a car like this and fewer still will resist the temptation to upgrade everything in sight to modern standards. You have created something really special. A red Chevy sedan with a small V8, overdrive and no radio. There were undoubtedly tons of these around in 1964 but they are unicorns now.
Second, the drive-in you have created is great stuff. That was a lot of work, and how great that you made it a project for the whole family. The story is just as good as the final product.
Finally, it occurs to me that I remember trunks like these very well – huge in width and from bumper to back seat, but terribly shallow. A big diorama like this may be the perfect use for trunks with dimensions like these. 🙂
Thank you for saving a Bel-Air, the “smart” family buy of that era-not as flashy as an Impala, but a little bling and better seat fabrics than a Biscayne. But where did you get those “Show starts in…” recordings, complete with the cheesy music?
MY Son got them off the internet by googling drive-in movie commercials. He put them into an hour long movie on the iPad mini. We loop it for carshows. It is bluetoothed to our stereo in the trunk and the drive-in speaker is plugged in to that. An Optima battery is hidden and runs everything.
A red ’60 chevy that’s not modded out with 22″ rims, a 500+ cubic inch thousand horsepower block, a digital sound system and custom headers? The other 15 I just walked by to look in awe at yours had all that.
Thank you! Your car would get my vote at a show for being original, ordinary and…rare.
Happy 60th Birthday to your ’60 Chevy!
I tip my hat to you for such a clever idea. Being that it’s only 6 degrees Fahrenheit at my house, I’d need a darn good reason to tip my hat. Great to see a Bel Air brought back to life too. Good work!
It certainly ups your game on “how many people could you sneak into the drive in in that trunk” and your response is “the whole drive in” !
Well this is one of the coolest things I’ve seen in a long time, and what a great way to show off the ’60 Chevy’s humongous trunk opening! Sure couldn’t do this with a modern sedan with 3/4 of the trunk hidden underneath the sloped rear window…
> Technology, Daylight Savings Time, property values, video rentals, online streaming all contributed to the Drive-In’s decline
And probably most of all… bucket seats!
> This brought comments about the Drive-In and many older adults were explaining to their grand kids about what a Drive-In Theater was
Here, let the Beach Boys teach them everything they need to know about Drive-In theaters and the culture surrounding them (including the sneaking your friends in the trunk thing). Or you prefer, The Donnas do a great punk cover of it; it’s on Youtube.
Great song by the Beach Boys! They nailed it! Thanks for the link!
When the 1959 Chevrolet came out I thought it was a tad too much even for my incoherent teenage brain.
When the 1960 Chevrolet came out I thought it was much better, a more well rounded and less outrageous design than its predecessor. Yours is beautiful and more interesting than the 6 light Impalas that most people restore.
There are probably many CC readers and writers who never experienced a Drive-in theater, and those that have are probably nearing, or well into retirement, so this historic diorama is either a neat remembrance or an education to many.
If i recall, the speakers that I hooked onto my 53 Chrysler’s window were really very scratchy – or didn’t work at all – often forcing me to move to a different spot – more than once. Sounds like the iPad mini is a vast improvement.
Oh, and even though Drive-Ins had an erotic vibe to them, somehow my initial reality fell far short of those expectations.
Years later, after my first son was born in 1965, my wife and I would go to the Drive-In and Chris would sleep in the back of the Tempest saving us baby sitting costs.
“THERE’S STILL TIME TO VISIT THE SNACK BAR.”
As one who is currently 47, I have experienced a drive-in although long, long ago.
The movie was “American Graffiti” and it was playing at the drive-in on North Kingshighway (US 61) in the city I often mention, Cape Girardeau. I remember sitting in my parent’s ’73 Ford Torino and wondering why there was a “Happy Days” movie.
My father-in-law once told me about a drive-in somewhere in the St. Louis area. It seems business was down so in an effort to revive it they started showing porno movies. He said it was next to a major highway and one could park along the shoulder and see enough of the screen. He said it caused quite the traffic snarl on the weekends when he drove a taxi.
American Graffiti was originally released in 1973, but had another run in 1978, 41 years ago, likely due to George Lucas’ other big hit, Star Wars.
It must have been the later showing you saw, which would make sense since Happy Days didn’t get going until 1974.
Thanks. I was thinking AG would have been released at a time inconsistent with my ability to remember it in first run. And never having watched Happy Days with any regularity, I simply didn’t know the premier date.
Jason, I imagine there might have been some squealing tires and roaring engines as patrons left the Drive-In after watching “American Graffiti”.
The reason I say this is because on one rainy Saturday afternoon Chris and I saw “Smokey and the Bandit” at the Long Island Green Acres (indoor) mall theater. When the exiting movie goers made that right turn onto East bound Sunrise Highway we all did skidding and over steering turns onto the wet road, including one big 1972 brown Impala sedan.
Similar stuff happened after “Two Lane Blacktop” and both versions of “Vanishing Point”.
As well as from an indoor showing of the original “Gone In 60 Seconds”! 🙂
Terrific, original, well-done idea, and a real car show crowd pleaser that everyone can enjoy. I particularly like the practical use of a Maaco shop to fabricate the metal needed to restore the old girl. Perfect restoration? Hardly. But ‘just right’ for a run-of-the-mill 1960 Chevy sedan. Despite The Beach Boys, not everyone drove a 409 back in the day. More like an homage to Bob Seger’s ‘Night Moves’.
Reminds me of the Little Red Wagon, Dodge A100 pickup with the mid-engine Hemi. Not much good for drag racing but a lot of fun watching it do a wheelie the entire length of the dragstrip.
But I have to ask, what happens if you have a flat and need the spare tire? AAA?
There’s an extra intermission in the event of a flat tire.
Good point. Of all those cars at the drive-in, surely someone will have a spare that can be borrowed.
Brilliant. Just brilliant!
Truly great. My only suggestion is to add one station wagon with the windows fogged up and a bit of jiggly suspension action.
I did add a car with a young man sneaking out of the trunk while his 2 friends were lookouts.
That’s awesome!!
You have my admiration for restoring an everyday car like a 4 door Bel-Air. Sometimes it seems by searching classic cars for sale that there were more Muscle cars like a ‘64 GTO built than its companion Tempest/LeMans.
I’m a big fan of miniature, your Drive-In in a trunk is terrific, and sounds like a great family project.
Forgot how shallow full sized trunks were, although GM did a good job with its ‘61-‘64 ‘B’ bodies and Ford starting in 1965.
We put 6 inch risers under the diorama for the wiring so the trunk is deeper than it looks.
Wow 60 model Chevy four doors 283 column manual is what was assembled here but RHD of course so the car is very familiar, drive ins not so much that is something NZ never had I had to wait until I moved to Australia to experience those, 1960 coincidently being the first year Aussie Chevs got a V8, but a drive in movie in a Chevy nope not yet. Cool idea.
Such a great story, and a very creative and original way of further sharing enjoyment of your Chev with others. Both your Bel Air and drive-in display are so well presented. Understandable everyone would be charmed and delighted by your beautiful display. Many show goers will warmly remember your car and drive-in scene. I know I would.
Some drive-ins have managed to survive. Entirely for the nostalgia. I recall seeing the original ‘Batman’ movie after its release in 1989, and however unusual the experience, the place was packed.
A local Dairy Queen, with modern branding, managed to keep its original 1958 signage on display at the rear parking lot of its franchise until 2013. At that time, DQ’s corporate office asked them to remove the vintage signage. Disappointing many at the time. This a pic of the actual sign before it was taken down.
That’s a great example of what people really drove and I like the added touch of overdrive. Do you get many questions about that at shows? I think electric overdrives are a forgotten technology
The drive-in diorama is brilliant and creative, so much better than those creepy time out toddler dolls.
About the overdrive, I tell people I have 6 forward gears and 1 reverse. When I reach 28 mph, let up the gas, the overdrive kicks in for 1st, 2nd or 3rd gears. Drops down the engine rev by 20%.
Not a fan of the bat wing Chevies, but I still like everything about this, and especially your family’s involvement in something so creative! Thanks for writing it up and sharing. Even though I should be of the drive-in age, the higher density urban environment I grew up in meant drive-ins were a suburban thing. We’d drive by them and try or catch a few seconds of movie, but the only one I ever went to was when I had a summer job in rural Virginia in 1975; the movie was Young Frankenstein and the car was my co-workers ‘72 (“big”) Mustang. I think we sat on the hood so we could actually see the movie.
My favorite batwing story is the idea that one could walk into a Chevrolet showroom in 1960 and see the full-size car parked right next to a brand-new Corvair. I can’t imagine a better image of old versus new.
I’m too young to have experienced that, but I do remember 10 year old me walking into a Volkswagen showroom in 1976 and seeing a new Beetle next to a new Rabbit, which felt the same way.
Another one I really like is a 1978 Chrysler-Plymouth dealership with a Plymouth Horizon next to a New Yorker Brougham.
Thanks for all the replies! It has been a great experience to share on CC!
There are still some drive-ins:
https://www.driveinmovie.com/mainmenu.htm
There’s one not too far from where I live, but I haven’t been to it since I was a teenager in the seventies.
According to the website you’ve linked (thanks, BTW), it has the largest drive-in screen in the whole United States, 120’ long and 52’ high. Wow.
I’ll have to got there sometime next summer. Sounds fun.
The 120×52′ screen is in my state, but apparently is the only one left here. There was one along rt.1 just five minutes from where I live until the ’00s.
According to some drive-in proprietor’s websites I’ve been looking at, daytime running lights, car alarms, horn honks when locking/unlocking doors, and other modern car features are wreaking havoc on drive-in theaters. Maybe along with “Dog Mode” and “Camping Mode”, EV manufacturers will start implementing “Drive-In Theatre Mode” that would keep the DRLs and horn beeps at bay, but run the A/C, heat, defoggers, and radio. Because of the ability to run that stuff for hours at night without running the engine (not allowed in drive-ins), EVs and Drive-Ins are a great match.
Since you’re from “my area ;o)”, there was one on Route 40 just past White Marsh on the right side heading to Harford County. That was the last one I ever went to, but as to Bengie’s, yeah, now that it’s registered as a historic site, it isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Remember hearing about Bengie’s fight with the ROFO over their lighting affecting viewing of a movie? I think they won their case if memory serves.
It’s a shame us amateur astronomers can’t get the same love over the excessive light pollution around here!
Funny you should mention EV(s) and Drive-Ins being a “great match”. Consider the size of the screen in a Tesla Model 3. Your drive in movie experience could be had anywhere! LOL.
True, lol. Drive-ins just can’t catch a break…
The Bengie’s website was one that asked patrons to turn off or even cover up their DRLs.
A couple of years ago the Skowhegan Drive In in Maine invested in a nostalgic neon sign. I took that as a good omen that they are in it for the long haul.
Great looking car, Don and what a fantastic idea (and well executed job) on that diorama!
Perhaps you should be screening the movie “Jeepers Creepers” on that iPad Mini though. After all, the hero car in the movie was… you guessed it, a ‘60 Chevy…
I recall that most drive-in theaters had the car parking area ‘’raised’ up a bit.
The front end of the car sat at an angle, so that the occupants had a better view of the screen.
The Ford-Wyoming Drive In in Dearborn, where I spent many a Saturday night, not watching the movie.
If you click on the movie link to the Timp Drive-In Diorama you can see that we did add berms to each row allowing the cars to be higher on the front end! I used Joint compound, then sprayed the whole drive in with gravel textured paint.
What a great story! When the kids were little, my wife would put them in their jammies and they’d go to sleep in the back seat while we watched the movie. Saved on babysitting.
Thanks for the memories!
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Now that’s really a showstopper! It’s great that all the family had the interest and enthusiasm to get involved in the project, too. Very clever and fits right in with the era of the car.
Great story especially since I grew up in the back seat of a ’60 Bel Air. My dad’s had the 6 with 3 on the tree. He was too cheap to go for a V-8 with automatic. There’s still a working drive-in here in CT: https://i2.wp.com/carload.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/MansfieldCT_CT.jpg?resize=500%2C290
This is the car from interior crocodile alligator just sayin it because of the Chevy movie theater