Becky's Drive-In Theatre is a historic drive-in movie theater that opened in Walnutport,…read morePennsylvania in 1946. It was founded by William D. Beck (known to all as "Becky") and his wife Alice. Possessing a love for the cinema at a young age, Becky first began showing movies in his parents' living room using a hung bed-sheet as a movie screen. By the late 1930s, he began working as a projectionist and screened movies at various sites throughout Pennsylvania. By 1946, he opened the drive-in theater at its present site (originally called "Route 45 Drive-In"). In the following decades, Becky would continue to upgrade the grounds and added a refreshment stand, a playground for children, free pony rides, live music on certain nights, and enough space to accommodate 440 cars. By the early 1970s, the business was renamed "Becky's". Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, at a time when drive-in theaters were in serious decline, Becky's began screening adult films in order to keep the business going. By the late 1980s, Becky's returned to screening family-oriented films. Becky passed away in 1987 and Alice followed him in 2007. Today the business is owned and run by the couples' children and grandchildren. It is open seasonally from April to October.
On a recent trip to visit our cousins in Pennsylvania, they took us to Becky's, which they described as "the BEST drive-in theater in the area". On the evening that we visited, we had a choice to see either "The Odyssey" or a Double Feature of "Moana" and "Minions & Monsters". We opted for the more family-friendly double feature. This was the first drive-in movie experience for my two sons, who both had a blast playing at the playground before the movie started. Becky also offers portable radio rentals, which we decided to get so we didn't drain our car batteries. Before the movie started, we hit up the refreshment stand and ordered some "Pretzel Bites", "Chicken Fingers", "French Fries", a "Hot Dog", and a "Moana Burger" (bacon, pineapple, teriyaki sauce): a delicious menu special released just for the run of "Moana". We all ended up really enjoying the new live-action version of the film. Although we had planned to stay for "Minions & Monsters", we ended up leaving after the first film because we were all exhausted. It's nice to know that historic drive-ins like Becky's still exist. We highly recommend a visit!