Going to an outdoor theatre in Oregon can prove difficult as the weather can be quite uncertain, especially in colder months. Drive-ins across the state have wonderful ways of getting people to come see a film, but there are a couple ways that the majority of drive-ins share. The Terrace Drive-In in Brookings, Oregon had two common examples of ways drive-ins ensure people return to the theatre.
When going to a drive-in, there are a few things you check before getting in your car, one being the weather. If you’re from Oregon, you know the coast can be tormented by wind, rain and fog. One way drive-ins would ensure their customers that their money won’t be lost if a showing is canceled due to unbearable weather is to issue fog passes. Theatres give out fog passes to audience members as a “ticket” for the next time they go to the theatre. Instead of spending their money on yet another ticket when their last was disrupted by weather conditions, those customers would return their fog pass in place of buying another ticket.
Another way drive-ins would get people in was to have discounted car days. In other words, instead of buying a ticket per person or a higher price per car, places like Terrace Drive-In would offer a deal, such as $1 a car nights. It is uncertain if the Terrace Drive-In tickets were usually charged by person or by car, but this type of deal was common throughout multiple drive-ins either way, and you can see some of those deals still prevalent today.
Drive-Ins and movie theatres have continued to implement discounted or deal days to get people in. There are many more ways drive-ins have promoted their theatre, offering fun and creative deals to get people to watch a film, but these two are incredibly common ways drive-ins would do so. And even in the less-than-two-months the Terrace Drive-In was open, these strategies were used to ensure customer satisfaction and good business.
