While last night / this morning is still a bit of a blur, we were at the Midway Drive-In yesterday for their From Dusk to Dawn Carpenter Fest 2, where they screened They Live (1988), The Fog (1980), Escape from New York (1981), and In the Mouth of Madness (1994). And what a night it was.

Setting up there as a vendor is not an easy task, especially for some that don’t particularly like being outside in the sun. The things we do for our passions, huh? The temps were in the mid ‘80s with a lot of sun, and you could feel it. Being there around noon to start getting set up, right in the middle of the heat index, it takes its toll on your body. But for events like this, I will be more than welcome to go out of my comfort zone, and I’ll gladly continue to do it.

Because they were screening They Live, which admittedly is not one of my favorites of Carpenter’s work, I just love the central idea of the film. So, I thought it would be fun not only to have a free giveaway of sunglasses to the first 100 people in line, my wife and I made up some little signs to put out for the people in line. You know, just to keep them in line! Not sure if everyone “got it”, especially those who had never seen the film, but I figured it was a nice throwback to the good old ballyhoo days. Just a little added fun for the event. And having the famous OBEY sign for use with the life size They Live alien figure the Midway had out for photo ops made it even better, which plenty of people took advantage of opportunity.

Our fellow vendors, Jill and Gregg from Lix, Andrew from Time Warp Collectibles, and Rafael from Severin, made the event more fun, getting to hang out, talk movies, and keeping our mind off the blazing heat! And of course, the wonderful staff at the Midway, always makes us vendors feel like part of the Midway family. The food from the concession stand is nothing fancy, but always damn tasty and makes the evening even better. Nothing like their cheeseburger, popcorn, pizza, cheese sticks, and of course, corn dogs!!!

Mike and Mia Kerz, who not only run the Midway, but the Flashback Weekend Horror convention, go above and beyond to make these events fun for the whole family. One never knows the work that goes on behind the scenes to make these events happen, whether it’s a weekend long convention or an all-night movie fest. So, make sure you send them a note, or if you’re at one of their events, take a minute to tell them how much they are appreciated.

One of the beauties of these types of events the Midway puts on is giving fans the chance to see some of their favorite films projected on their huge 90-foot screen, many which had come out before they were even born! There is nothing better than seeing a film that you’ve only seen on your TV than seeing it the way it was meant to be, on the big screen. Just amazing.

Plus, the other thing that makes these events so much fun is the fans that come out to show their support of both the drive-in but also the films. Had plenty of great chats with different fans about the films, or just horror film in general. That’s like icing on the cake.

Keep your eye on the Midway Drive-in’s website (HERE) for future events, as well as this page, since we’re always promoting them anyway. Also, keep tabs on Flashback Weekend’s website (HERE) for those updates as well. If you’ve never been to a drive-in, then what are you waiting for? It’s a like a trip into the past, that can still give you some great memories.