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I was looking at the old Joy Drive-In theater pictures. They brought back good memories. I was fifteen in 1958 and that was the place to go. We'll probably to to hell for this but we use to take the speakers that you hung on the windows and steal the small speakers inside them and make rear speakers for our cars. Use a toggle switch to change from back speaker to front speaker. Every one thought that was cool, after all rear speakers were a premium back in the day. Hey thought I would pass that on !!!

I remember when the Joy Theater used to put free passes on the popcorn boxes. Well one time I got a pass on my box. Like an idiot I forgot to take it off the box. The next day I went to the trash box behind the show and dug in the trash looking for it. Well to my surprise I was not the only idiot that forgot to take the passes off of the boxes, because I found several passes in the trash. I was able to see a few free movies. Also the Rex Theater would stop taking tickets after the last picture started and you could just walk right in and see most of the picture. I guess I was crooked at heart, because I took advantage of both these free shows. Do you remember the free movies at Hunters playground during the summer. We would walk over there and sit on the grass. I don't think I missed any Redbird home games, because all MHS students got in free. We had good seats down the third base line. I always liked free things. How about you?

I am glad Bob Stephens mentioned the coupons on the popcorn boxes at the Joy. I had forgotten, but not the wonderful old cartoons on the grass at Hunter's Playground. We were so lucky to have sampled Mr. Hunter's generosity on so many levels.

I have a short story on the shows (as we called them). Almost every Saturday, during the early to mid forties, my mother (who seemed to love the shows) my sister and I would start with a double feature at the Rex and then on to the Tower, It never mattered where we came in, Since most were westerns, the plot was not too important. After the Tower we headed to the Joy. On the way we stopped at the Drugstore.( Later Boyles) and got a hamburger, french fries, and a coke for a quarter apiece. Then on to the Joy. Tickets were 9 cents. For some reason, I have never liked Western movies.

Jerry Frasier

The old Joy theater was located on Pearl street. I went to the movie for nine cents during the late forties and early fifties.

Melba Weaver Love

I worked at the Joy Theater in the fifties. Adults paid thirty-five cents and children under twelve got in for nine cents. Popcorn popped with coconut oil and candy was a dime Cokes cost a nickel. Hotdogs were a quarter. The chili on the hotdogs was real good. You could go in the ladies bathroom and weigh yourself for a penny.

Sherry Gresham Gritzbaugh

Compliments of the Minden Press Herald - July 23, 198The Joy Theater The information I am about to give you was taken from the Press-Herald,July 23, 1981, Pictured in the center is Alice Carter and Mr and Mrs. Lowe over the final program of movies to be shown at the theatre on the nights of July 21-August 2, along with Cheech and Chong's Night Dreams, " a 1940's movie, Night Dreams, " a 1940's movie, "THE KIDNAP," starring several Mindenites will be shown.

Standing, left to right, Joe Luck, Floyd Jones, Earlene Mendenhall Lyle, Patsy Kleinegger Drake

The above picture was taken at a Minden Memories get together to watch the film at the Holiday Inn on Jan. 29th.

Fred Moore was the kid who who said "We don't want no more sissies in this gang"

Sandra Pullig was the " little cutie" who said "Come up and see me sometimes boys"!

Each child had to pay a fee of $5.00 to be in the film. At the end of the film, they thanked Coca-Cola.

It was a long and uncomfortable wait for the children. They really wanted one small boy/actor to be in the movie. He couldn't take the heat any longer. They told us while they were showing the film that his Mother took him home.

In the above photo, Elvis Presley and his band made a personal appearance in 1955 during the days prior to his ultimate success. Even then kids went wild. Even then the kids went wild. In the lower left photo, in the drive-in's glory, customer's chose to to sit at the concession while enjoying refreshments.

Thomas Baldwin (lower left photo) Mrs. Lowe's son in law, standing beside a projector that will soon be put to rest after some 6,000 films. ( Upper right photo) The screen will go dark, not to be revived soon after the showing of Cheech and Chong's "Nice Dreams" on the night of Aug. 2. Also on the night's billing is a billing of the 40's film of "The Kidnap" starring such Mindenites as Joe Luck, Kathy Walden, Judy Wmith, Keitha Frazier, Judy Smith, F. M. Lyles, Edward Brown, Joy Lambert, Patsy Kleinegger, Barbara Russell, Rita Barron, Jimmy Russell, Mike Kennon, Ed Kennon, Jackie Batton, Marlene Fields and Gene Pittard.

This information was furnished to the Minden Press Herald by Mrs. Ruth Cheshire Lowe before her demise on July 23, 1981. It ran on the front page of the newspaper. It is still on file in the Webster Parish Library and the Minden Press-Herald Archives today. Reproduced courtesy of the Minden Press-Herald