Bookmark - Showboat Machinery (Rustic Series) / Drive-In Theaters

For some reason I really, really like this one.  As a kid I was fascinated with road graders, and had a Tonka toy that looked just like this one that I played with until it fell to pieces.

The reason Showboat was included in the title of this post is because the pic was captured next to the Showboat Drive-In Theater on 2920 west of Tomball, Texas.  These drive-ins were everywhere when I was growing up - it was a staple of the dating scene, and in my flying days (1975-76) they were probably the most recognizable landmark on the ground.  As we all know they fell out of fashion with the advent of the big multi-screen indoor theaters, which made a lot more money on a lot less land, but thanks to a nostalgia movement they've experienced a bit of a renaissance in recent years.