Family Fun

Back in 1990, I started working at Audio Odyssey in Davenport, IA. I was initially a music lover/audio geek, but then I was introduced to surround sound. Back then, big screen TVs were 32 inches and weighed around 200 pounds and cost more than today's 42-inch HDTVs . Home theater was out of reach for most people.

As time went on, prices came down on surround sound and quality went up. It didn't take long for me to become a surround sound enthusiast.

I have always enjoyed movies, but have never much like going out to the movies. I don't care for rude people who talk during movies, sticky floors, over-priced tickets, bad over-priced concessions.

Even though I was a kid during the tale-end of the drive-in movie era, I had some good memories of watching a few drive-in movies. But I also remember a lot of the bad things about drive-ins. It was fun for the kids, but I recall what a hassle it was for the parents. There are a lot of unpleasant things about drive-in movies including:

• The sound is terrible
• The picture quality is bad
• Too crowded
• Limited choice of movies
• Public bathrooms - need I say more?
• You have to arrive 2 hours early to get a parking spot
• Too far of a drive to get there
• Kids get home too late and you pay for it the next day
• Expensive to take a large group of friends
• Bad seats within the vehicle or on it
• Safety concerns with storms

The Drive-in Goes to the Backyard

When I heard about families enjoying movies outside in their yards, I had to try it. I thought, now that's a great idea, you can experience the thrill of a drive-in movie without all of the hassle.

So, I thought I would call around town and rents some gear. To my surprise, this proved to be difficult and expensive. Fortunately, a friend of mine who host a Web site dedicated to backyard theater, leant me some gear to try it out. I was warned that I would love it and go out and start building my theater.

One thing led to another and now I have Moonlight Flix.