Over the weekend, we travelled out to Dixon, IL, once again, to the Midway Drive-in, for their John Carpenter Fest, where they screened The Thing (1982), Halloween (1978), Prince of Darkness (1987), and Assault on Precinct 13 (1976). We were one of the vendors set up outside for the event. Now, let’s just say that not only is the sun not my friend, but neither is the heat. But those are two things we had to deal with for most of the day. Getting there around 1pm to make sure we can unload everything and set up, such as our tent and all the merch, takes time. Doing it in those conditions makes it even more of a challenge, especially as I’m about to hit the big 60. In fact, standing there in the blazing heat was just brutal. And it makes one ponder why we even bother going through that misery.

Simple. I love the drive-in. I love when theaters like the Midway Drive-in create these incredible all-night horror events for fans to have the chance to see some of their favorite movies, projected on a huge 90-foot screen. Not to mention to have a mini convention of sorts, where all these like-minded film fans can get together in a shared community and just have a great time.

The Midway Drive-in is owned and operated by Mike and Mia Kerz, who also happen to run the Flashback Weekend convention, that they have been doing since 2002. And I can proudly say that I’ve been to every single one of them! They continue to put on these great conventions and run the drive-in because they share the same passion that those attending to. Trust me, I’ve been around cons long enough to know a small part that goes into running a show, and it is more work than you can imagine. Even what goes into putting on one of these Dusk-to-Dawn events is a lot of work. They were at the drive-in when we got there and were still there working when we left 16 hours later! So, make sure if you attend one of their events, give them a little shout out for their continued hard work to keep making these fun events happen for us fans.

And yes, while it was very hot during the day, once the sun went down, it was a lot more manageable, and we got to enjoy seeing some of these great films on the big screen once again. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen The Thing on the big screen, and even at the drive-in, but it never gets old. That movie is that good. Plus, I love that they screened Prince of Darkness because that is one that I don’t think gets enough credit. And this comes from someone that hated the film when it first came out. But I feel it is a lot smarter than most give it credit for.

It was our fellow vendors that were there with us in that heat that made the day a little easier to deal with. Jill & Gregg from Lix always make it a lot more fun being set up next to them. Plenty of conversation to take your mind off that our body feels like it was melting! Also, Andrew from Time Warp Collectibles was there with his usual array of just a ton of interesting collectibles, from posters, toys, videos and more.

Until the next all-night event, hopefully in September, we’ll be back once again. And even with that heat, I’d rather put up with that any day than having to worry about if it was going to rain or not! See you at the next one!