DEATH OF PARK LAYNE DRIVE-IN

I was carrying a laptop computer to record this visit to Park Layne Drive-In, located on State Route 4/235 in Park Layne Manor near New Carlisle, Ohio. The date of this video walking tour is 12/30/09.

This is where I worked my very first paying job as a teenager, back in 1980. When my family moved to Park Layne in the 1960's my mother worked the counter selling treats to the customers with no cash register. With no help from her, I was hired to perform the exact same task (at a minumum wage of $3.10 an hour) in 1979, and there was STILL no cash register.

Movies we saw as a family [that I remember] include from 1969 Planet of the Apes/A Man Called Horse; and also from 1969 - Walt Disney's The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes. Later in 1977, I remember Smokey and the Bandit as being A VERY BIG HIT in the Park Layne/Crystal Lake/Medway/New Carlisle area. Movies shows when I worked there that summer in 1980 were All That Jazz/The Rose and Used Cars/Fatso/The End.

Opened in 1962 by Chakeres Theatres and closed in 2007, the now dilapidated venue is currently slated for the construction of a massive church. Rumors abound as to the future of this classic Big Screen - i.e., would it be a mistake to tear it down in view of its historical importance, and might it be retained for future in-house use or possible public rental?