Sensational Silver Moon Drive-In: The 1950s Live Again in Lakeland, Florida
There’s not a cloud in the sky. Instead, a crescent moon hangs in the velvet stratosphere. The stars are silver specks glittering far above the silver screen before you. But of course, there are stars on the 40-foot screen, too: Hollywood stars. Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck are zooming through Rome on a chic Vespa scooter as you sit munching popcorn in your used-to-be-new car from the early 2000s.
However, at the Silver Moon Drive-In, your car might as well be a 1950-something Studebaker, Packard, or De Soto. After all, catching a film here is capturing two or so hours of a bygone era.
So, park your car and escape into the past – a past that feels like home – and a past that can be the present if you just believe.
Silver Moon Rising
In 1933, young entrepreneur Richard Hollingshead was granted a patent for his idea of a drive-in movie theatre. He opened Park-In Theaters Inc., charging 25 cents per car and 25 cents per person.1
Marketed as great entertainment for the whole family, the drive-in movie idea blossomed into a big success, especially after World War II. With gasoline no longer rationed, automobile-happy America had found its perfect pastime. The RCA in-car speaker was the clincher for the drive-in’s popularity: introduced in 1941, it brought the voices of favorite actors like James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart right into your car.2 Drive-ins began sprouting up across the country, really reaching their heyday in the 1950s, with almost 5,000 outdoor theatres scattered from coast to coast.
Advertised as “Florida’s Newest Most Modern Outdoor Theatre,” the Silver Moon Drive-In debuted its first film in 1948 to an excited Lakeland crowd.3 Vendors made their way from car to car, selling buttery-good popcorn, fizzy drinks, candy, and cigarettes. The night’s feature included a newsreel, a cartoon, and the movie Up Goes Maisie, a fun comedy starring Ann Sothern. Owners and operators I. Q. Mize and M. G. Waring must have looked on with pride at the full parking lot, their faces aglow in the flickering, silver light.
Phases of the Silver Moon
The Silver Moon Drive-In quickly rose to become a shining and beloved fixture in the Lakeland community. But even with its success, the drive-in faced its fair share of hardships, even before the overall decline of drive-ins in popular culture.
Today, Florida is considered the state most prone to tornados, having had the most twisters per square mile since 1950.4 One of those 1950 whirlwinds ripped through Lakeland and tore apart the cinderblock screen of the Silver Moon Drive-In, just two years after the anniversary of its big premiere.
I. Q. Mize was in his office at the time of the storm and heard the terrible, thundering crash as chunks of the gigantic screen rained down on the roof. Mize said had the office roof not been made of concrete, he likely would have died.
Despite his near-death experience at the Silver Moon, Mize stayed on as the theatre was rebuilt and reopened later that summer. This time Barbara Stanwyck graced the larger-than-life screen in 1949 crime drama, East Side, West Side. The newsreel was about progress in the Korean War.
Mize and Waring handed over the reigns of the Silver Moon to Carl Floyd in 1952, and Floyd helped to create the iteration of the theatre that is still seen today, installing the iconic flashing neon sign and marquee. He also added a modern concession stand and restrooms.
In 1985, a second screen was added. However, despite the Silver Moon’s expansion, the drive-in business was shrinking across the United States. The Silver Moon might have been forced to close its doors, too, but Harold T. Spears bought the theatre and continued to operate it. He was absolutely determined to save it. Even when his corporate bosses urged him to close, he refused to abandon the Silver Moon, working there until his death in 2017 at the age of 87.5
What could have inspired Spears’ noble dedication?
Silver Moon is home to a bygone era. It’s home to the priceless nostalgia of an aging generation. It’s even home to the potential for creating cherished, new memories. And if there’s one thing to be learned from classic movies, it’s that “there’s no place like home.”
Transcending time, the Silver Moon is a place of inherent good cheer where families, couples, and friends can bond. And Spears knew the importance of keeping such an impactful place on the map.
Silver Moon Shining Bright
Today, Spears’ grandson, Chip Sawyer, runs the Silver Moon Drive-In, so you, too, can take a step back into the 1950s.
Of course, that doesn’t mean you’re consigned to seeing only Gene Kelly and Marilyn Monroe; the Silver Moon shows the latest movies, too! (As of writing this, they’re showing Disney’s adorable Raya and the Last Dragon!) Movie audio is no longer heard through an RCA in-car speaker, though; rather, all you need to do is turn your radio to the correct FM channel – 88.3 for Screen 1 and 89.3 for Screen 2.
The snack bar continues to serve the classics, like butter-drizzled popcorn, hot dogs with mustard, gigantic dill pickles, cheesy nachos, and soft drinks.
The Silver Moon Drive-In remains the perfect place for a date night or family outing with great flicks and good food. But at its core, the Silver Moon’s greatest appeal isn’t which movie is showing, or its salty snacks. Instead, it’s about time standing still. It’s about feeling at home.
As Roman Holiday winds to a close, your radio crackles with Audrey’s voice as she says, “I don’t know how to say goodbye.”
“Don’t try,” responds Gregory, enfolding her into his arms.
With the dwindling number of drive-ins across the United States, it looks like a goodbye to such movie-watching is as inevitable as the parting of Audrey of Gregory. However, the Silver Moon, Florida’s foremost drive-in, proudly proclaims, “we are here to stay!”
And oh, are we so happy to hear that.
So as you drive out onto the darkened highway and back into the 21st century, you can do so with a smile, knowing home will be waiting for you again tomorrow night.
Cover Image
Photo: Unsplash
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