SOUTHINGTON — The community-run Southington Drive-In on Meriden-Waterbury Turnpike will kick off its 10th season next month with a lineup of movies also celebrating big anniversaries.
“One of the movies we were able to get, and it has a 30-year anniversary this summer, is the original ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,’” said Dawn Miceli, Town Council vice chairwoman and drive-in committee member.
The movie will be shown Saturday, June 29 at sunset. Gates open at 6 p.m. with activities and a snack bar.
The season officially kicks off Saturday, June 1, with “Jaws,” a popular request every year. The drive-in has played the 1975 thriller about a killer shark nearly every year as its first movie.
“Our first year it was just, can we actually put out a product?” Miceli said of the decision by the town to take over the old privately owned drive-in that opened in 1955 and closed in 2003. “We have grown unbelievably.”
Last year the committee unveiled a new 22-foot tall entrance sign, a replica of the original 1955 sign. Other updates in the last decade include new projectors and painting the remaining screen saved from the original business.
The Southington Drive-In is one of only three remaining outdoor venues in Connecticut, along with the Mansfield Drive-In Theatre and Marketplace in Mansfield and Pleasant Valley Drive-In in Barkhamsted.
All 15 movies of the 2019 summer season in Southington are hosted by a non-profit or civic organization. Proceeds benefit local organizations.
Miceli said the committee has donated over $200,000 to the host groups over the last 10 years
The cost per carload for Southington residents is $12 and $18 for non-residents. Walk-ins are $2 per person. Debit or credit cards are not accepted.
Here’s the complete schedule:
Saturday, June 1 – Jaws
Saturday, June 8 – The Little Mermaid
Saturday, June 15 – Back to the Future
Saturday, June 22 –”Ralph Breaks the Internet
Saturday, June 29 – Indiana Jone and the Last Crusade
Saturday, July 6 – Bohemian Rhapsody
Saturday, July 13 – Up
Saturday, July 20 – Weekend at Bernie’s
Saturday, August 3 – Ice Age
Saturday, August 10 – Lady and the Tramp
Saturday, August 17 – Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope
Saturday, August 24 – Tangled
Saturday, August 31 - Ferdinand
Saturday, September 7 – Captain Marvel
Saturday, October 26 – Halloween Festival movies TBA
Gates open at 6 p.m. Movies begin at sunset.
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