Although early experiments with outdoors cinemas can be traced back to 1915 and the Theatre de Guadalupe in New Mexico, the movies were silent and vehicle places were secondary to normal auditorium seating.

Almost two decades later, Richard M. Hollingshead Jr., began searching for a way for patrons to watch movies from the comfort of their own cars. He hoped this would eliminate the need to find parking, deal with inclement weather, or worry about disturbing others in a traditional indoor setting. Some reports also say he wanted to help his mother, who found conventional theatre seats too small.

Hollingshead experimented with various setups in his own backyard to perfect the design of the drivein theatre. He tried different parking arrangements and screen placements, and subsequently patented his idea. His first commercial drivein theatre subsequently opened on a 400acre plot of land on Admiral Wilson Boulevard in Pennsauken Township.

Hollingshead’s ‘Automobile Movie Theatre’ could accommodate 400 cars parked on ramps facing a 40 foot by 50 foot screen. He advertised it saying, ‘The whole family is welcome, regardless of how noisy the children are,’ and charged an admission fee per car, making it an affordable entertainment option for families and groups.

The opening night of the drivein theatre featured the comedy film ‘Wives Beware’ starring Adolphe Menjou and Margaret Bannerman. The event attracted a sizable crowd, eager to experience this innovative form of entertainment, and the concept of the drivein theatre soon spread across the United States.