Oak Park residents bring back good old days of the drive-in




OUTDOOR FLICKS—Oak Park residents Aidan John, 8, and Alex John, 11, sit on top of their van to watch “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” at the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District-sponsored drive-in movie at the Oak Park High School parking lot on July 31.

OUTDOOR FLICKS—Oak Park residents Aidan John, 8, and Alex John, 11, sit on top of their van to watch “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” at the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District-sponsored drive-in movie at the Oak Park High School parking lot on July 31.

The drive-in movie theater has long been replaced with swap meets and strip malls here in Southern California, but one local community is reviving the shows in the name of a low-cost family fun.

The parking lot of Oak Park High School was filled with almost 80 cars on a recent Saturday night for the screening of “The Fantastic Mr. Fox.” The event was put on by the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District.

Families and groups of friends sat in lawn chairs and truck beds and on the roofs of cars to watch the Oscar-nominated film beneath the stars.

Susi Cruz of Simi Valley brought her family to the drive-in to spend time together and experience the way movies were once shown.

“It brings back memories from when I was a kid,” Cruz said. “It was just a fun family night out.”

Putting on a family-friendly event is exactly what the event organizers were striving for.

Renee Peace, the Oak Park recreation supervisor, said the drive-in gave families an opportunity to enjoy each other’s company in a way that a movie in a theater does not.

“The concept of a drive-in movie really entices the community to come out to something that we used to do, and to bring it back from the old days is really exciting,” Peace said. “When you go to a theater, you’re next to other people and you shouldn’t talk, and this gives families time to talk and be together.”

One group of high school students was drawn by the movie’s low cost. Kevin Fernandez, a 17- year-old from Oak Park, joined his friends and sat in the bed of a pickup to watch the show.The $5 admission for the whole truckload was worth it, Fernandez said.

“Drive-ins are awesome,” he said. “It seems more comfortable than a movie theater and there’s no overpriced popcorn.”

Some families made an entire evening out of the event. They arrived early to stake out a good parking spot and to spend time before the movie talking with friends.

“This was nice and different because we don’t have drive-ins anymore,” said movie-goer Brana West. “We had a nice ‘foxy’ time.”

Children enjoyed the movie as well.

“Its fun to sit outside and on the roof of your car,” said Hannah Meyer, 11, of Oak Park.

The park district is planning to show another drive-in at Oak Park in the spring, and has other outdoor movies scheduled throughout August in Simi Valley. The drive-ins are special events, Peace said.

“We stand out in the parking lot as people exit, and every car rolls down their window to say ‘thank you,’” she said. “We get such positive wonderful feedback from it, and we are very excited to offer this to them.”

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