Michelle's Drive In Diner and Theater

After attending several train shows, I was bored with looking at the same industrial, farm, and countryside in N, HO, O, and G. My favorite scenes were the ones with all the people - fairs, circuses, etc - anything that showed "life". Those also seemed to capture the attention of the other women and children around. When Kurt convinced me to do a module for the club, I said it had to have people, lots of people doing things. We tossed around a few ideas and finally landed on the drive ins - provided we could find the right components. Then one of the club members mentioned the, at the time, new HO scale classic cars that Wal-Mart was suddenly carrying and we knew the time was right. The next few trips anywhere past a Wal-Mart landed us multiple cars and it became the challenge to find new cars at the shows. Only one of the cars is glued in place, which allows me to move the cars around for each show, so hopefully those who have seen us at multiple shows are never bored.

The movie screen is a game/DVD player for in the car, complete with master and slave screens. The master screen stays below the module and feeds the slave screen so that the movies can be changed around. The theater plays mostly kids movies, with some old black and white drive in classics for good measure.

The park is both an extension of the theater, to replace the small park that was usually just below the screen, and a break between the theater and the diner. People have been added over time and there are still many more people to go, in the cars, walking around, everywhere.

(Click on a picture to see a larger image.)

The basic theater, park, and diner, in it's early stages.

Michelle's module connects to Christopher's farm, next to the orchard. The farm house and barn are at the far upper right hand corner of the picture.

Close up of the early park.

The diner and some of the fleet of cars. The module is always different because the cars are not glued down.

The working screen, showing footage from the camera train.

Arial shot of the drive in theater.

Arial shot of the diner.

A beagle makes a pit stop.

The updated park scene.

A party moved into the park.

The checkerboard floor in the diner was hand painted by Kurt. The people were added to make the diner come alive. We haven't found the right cook and waitresses yet.

The lively diner full of people.

The theater erected a fence to keep people out without paying.

Nice night for a movie under the stars.

The busy park on display, complete with weiner mobile.

The latest car is pulled over by the police.

The theater house was electrified. Signs hang on the fence.

A road crew decided to actually resurface the road and paint lines. However, the crew wasn't done by the next show, so the crew appeared in the show. They had many comments and snickers throughout the day, especially with regard to the missing trees.

Once the road crew finished their work, the movie patrons could once again enjoy the movie, this time the classic Frankenstein.

An overhead viw of the completed road and parking lot .

The fence has several signs.

The classic car show, from ground level.

Michelle's Drive In Diner and Theater After attending several train shows, I was bored with looking at the same industrial, farm, and countryside in N, HO, O, and G. My favorite scenes were the ones with all the people - fairs, circuses, etc - anything that showed "life". Those also seemed to capture the attention of the other women and children around. When Kurt convinced me to do a module for the club, I said it had to have people, lots of people doing things. We tossed around a few ideas and finally landed on the drive ins - provided we could find the right components. Then one of the club members mentioned the, at the time, new HO scale classic cars that Wal-Mart was suddenly carrying and we knew the time was right. The next few trips anywhere past a Wal-Mart landed us multiple cars and it became the challenge to find new cars at the shows. Only one of the cars is glued in place, which allows me to move the cars around for each show, so hopefully those who have seen us at multiple shows are never bored. The movie screen is a game/DVD player for in the car, complete with master and slave screens. The master screen stays below the module and feeds the slave screen so that the movies can be changed around. The theater plays mostly kids movies, with some old black and white drive in classics for good measure. The park is both an extension of the theater, to replace the small park that was usually just below the screen, and a break between the theater and the diner. People have been added over time and there are still many more people to go, in the cars, walking around, everywhere. (Click on a picture to see a larger image.)
The basic theater, park, and diner, in it's early stages.	Michelle's module connects to Christopher's farm, next to the orchard. The farm house and barn are at the far upper right hand corner of the picture.
Close up of the early park.	The diner and some of the fleet of cars. The module is always different because the cars are not glued down.
The working screen, showing footage from the camera train.	Arial shot of the drive in theater.
Arial shot of the diner.	A beagle makes a pit stop.
The updated park scene.	A party moved into the park.
The checkerboard floor in the diner was hand painted by Kurt. The people were added to make the diner come alive. We haven't found the right cook and waitresses yet.	The lively diner full of people.
The theater erected a fence to keep people out without paying.	Nice night for a movie under the stars.
The busy park on display, complete with weiner mobile.	The latest car is pulled over by the police.
The theater house was electrified. Signs hang on the fence.	A road crew decided to actually resurface the road and paint lines. However, the crew wasn't done by the next show, so the crew appeared in the show. They had many comments and snickers throughout the day, especially with regard to the missing trees.
Once the road crew finished their work, the movie patrons could once again enjoy the movie, this time the classic Frankenstein.	An overhead viw of the completed road and parking lot .
The fence has several signs.	The classic car show, from ground level.