Georgia Magazine - June 2019 - 21

THEATRE
DRIVEIN
SY JESUP

COURTESY TIGER DRIVEIN

COURTE

Families can get comfortable in their
vehicles to enjoy movies on warm spring
or summer nights at the Swan Drive-In
Theatre in Blue Ridge.

The staff in the
Jesup Drive-In Theatre's
concession stand don paper hats
to continue the theater's retro
theme.

Tiger Drive-In co-owner Sherryl Major treasures her
1957 Corvette. Her parents, Bill and Louise Wilson,
were the drive-in's original owners from 1954 until
the mid-1980s, when the theater closed. Major and
her husband reopened it in 2004.

'We believe that a movie isn't just a movie. Coming to the drive-in is
a whole entire experience.' -Jamie Hickox, co-owner, Jesup Drive-In Theatre
"You can bring your spouse, your kids, your pet, your baseball,
your Frisbee, your soccer ball, your football. Before you know it,
you have four other friends."
Forgot your Frisbee? No problem if you're at Blue Ridge's
Swan Drive-In Theatre; they'll sell you one. They'll also sell you
their very own "fat and sloppy" Mayor Burger: three patties,
three cheese slices and choices of at least 12 toppings (and
sometimes more). You might not need a side of fries, but you're
really going to appreciate the knife and fork that come with it.
Dropping your toppings is not an issue here. Nor will you
get angry looks if your cellphone goes off or if your infant is
fussy. You even can bring your nonhuman family members.
"You have that invisible cocoon around your vehicle, so it
makes it more comfortable," Kathleen Setser says. "We've had
people bring parakeets, cats, dogs mostly, and rabbits."
She and her husband, Steve, own the Swan, which has been
operating since 1955. Steve Setser worked there when he was 15.
While the Swan Drive-In Theatre itself is worth the trip,
Kathleen Setser notes that its surroundings add to the draw.
"So many things, so many events, are going on at any time
in Blue Ridge that's it's very easy to make it a whole weekend
getaway," she says.
Atlanta's Starlight Drive-In Theatre is a great destination,

too. Besides the movies, it hosts a weekly flea market
and special events. The drive-in awards moviethemed prize packs with collectibles such as T-shirts,
mugs and posters through its Facebook page.
If the drive-in looks familiar, it might be because
scenes from the 2011 remake of "Footloose" were
filmed there.
Up in the hills of Trenton, the Wilderness Outdoor Movie Theater bills itself as the world's largest
outdoor movie. That translates to 1,000 parking
spaces on 45 acres. This drive-in is so dog-friendly
that treats are given out at the box office. Many of the
theater's regulars come from just over the border;
Chattanooga, Tenn., is less than 15 minutes away.
Nestled near the Carolinas, the Tiger Drive-In
has its share of border-crossers, too. And while the
town of Tiger might be small, the drive-in's owners,
Tom and Sherryl Major, like to do things big.
"We've turned everything into an event," Tom
Major says.
Many of their events have themes to match the
movie showing, such as the "Pirates of the Caribbean" party, complete with a 136-pound roasted pig.
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Georgia Magazine - June 2019

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