Richard Hollingshead
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Richard Milton Hollingshead, Jr. (February 25, 1900 – May 13, 1975) was the inventor of the
drive-in theater A drive-in theater/theatre or drive-in cinema is a form of movie theater, cinema structure consisting of a large outdoor movie screen, a projection booth, a concession stand, and a large parking area for automobiles. Within this enclosed area, c ...
. Created in the early 1930s, Hollingshead's drive-in theater was first presented at Admiral Wilson Boulevard in Pennsauken, New Jersey.


Early life

Richard Milton Hollingshead, Jr. was born in
Riverton, New Jersey Riverton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough located in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 2,764, a decrease of 15 (−.5%) from the ...
, to Richard Milton Hollingshead, Sr. (b. May 4, 1869, in
Millville, New Jersey Millville is a city in Cumberland County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 27,491, a decrease of 909 (−3.2%) from the 2010 census count of 28,400, which in turn reflected an in ...
) and Emma Lovett on February 25, 1900. He was one of three children. His grandfather was Richard Spencer Hollingshead, born in Ohio and later moved to New Jersey becoming a clothing merchant.


Invention of the drive-in

In the early 1930s, he was working as a general sales manager in his father's automotive chemical company, Whiz Auto Products. According to one story, his mother was a large woman who was uncomfortable sitting in a regular movie theater. So he began experimenting at his home in
Camden, New Jersey Camden is a City (New Jersey), city in Camden County, New Jersey, Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan region. The city was incorporated on February 13, 1828.Snyder, John P''The Story of ...
, using his car, a 1928
Kodak The Eastman Kodak Company, referred to simply as Kodak (), is an American public company that produces various products related to its historic basis in film photography. The company is headquartered in Rochester, New York, and is incorporated i ...
movie projector A movie projector (or film projector) is an optics, opto-mechanics, mechanical device for displaying Film, motion picture film by projecting it onto a movie screen, screen. Most of the optical and mechanical elements, except for the illuminat ...
, and two sheets nailed between two trees for a screen. Eventually, he came up with a ramp in each parking space, so that patrons could elevate the front of their cars to see the screen without being blocked by other vehicles.p. 6
/ref> He applied for a
patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...
on August 6, 1932 and was granted number 1,909,537 on May 16, 1933. With three investors, his cousin John Smith, Edward Ellies, and Oliver Willets, he formed a company called Park-It Theatres, Inc. The building of the drive-in began when the patent was official on May 16. The construction workers were taken off the
Pennsauken Township Pennsauken Township is a township in Camden County, in the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and it is located outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which it borders directly on the Delaware River. As of the 202 ...
relief rolls with a salary of 40 cents per hour for skilled workers and 20 cents per hour for
laborers A laborer ( or labourer) is a person who works in manual labor typed within the construction industry. There is a generic factory laborer which is defined separately as a factory worker. Laborers are in a working class of wage-earners in whic ...
. In under three weeks, construction of the theatre was completed. Their "Automobile Movie Theatre" opened on
Admiral Wilson Boulevard U.S. Route 30 (US 30) is a U.S. highway running from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania east to Atlantic City, New Jersey. In the U.S. state of New Jersey, US 30 runs from the Benjamin Franklin Bridge at the Delaware River in Camden, Camden ...
in Pennsauken Township NJ on June 6, 1933. The marquee title read "Drive-In Theatre" - "World's First Sit In Your Car - See and Hear Movies".
RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...
provided three six foot (1.8 m) by six foot speakers to go with the 40 foot (12 m) by 50 foot (15 m) screen. Following complaints from passengers in the rear of the theater lot, Hollingshead worked with RCA to design small speakers that could be mounted on cars and receive sound through a radio signal. The first movie screened was '' Wives Beware'', starring
Adolphe Menjou Adolphe Jean Menjou (February 18, 1890 – October 29, 1963) was an American actor whose career spanned both silent films and talkies. He became a leading man during the 1920s, known for his debonair and sophisticated screen presence. He was no ...
and having its second theatrical run. The charge was $0.25 per person and $0.25 per car, with 3 or more persons for $1. Hollingshead sold the theatre in 1935 and opened another one. Park-It Theatres licensed the concept to Loews Drive-In Theatres, Inc., but had trouble collecting
royalties A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset or ...
in 1937. Eventually, after Loews was taken to court, Hollingshead's patent was ruled invalid in 1950.


Personal life

According to the New Jersey State Census, Richard Milton Hollingshead married Elsa Hermine Collins on March 28, 1923, in Philadelphia. They had a son, Richard Milton Hollingshead III (born April 23, 1924, in Camden), who served as captain of the
1946 Yale Bulldogs football team The 1946 Yale Bulldogs football team represented Yale University in the Ivy League during the 1946 college football season. The Bulldogs were led by fifth-year head coach Howie Odell, finished the season with a 7–1–1 record, and were rank ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hollingshead, Richard Milton, Jr. 1975 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American inventors 1900 births