By MIKE COURSONGreat Bend Post
Josh Webb saved the Kanopolis Drive In when he reopened the facility in 2011, five years after the last time it was open. A strong storm in 2021 again threatened to close the facility, which was shut down for the 2022 season but returned in 2023. Business at one of the last remaining drive-ins around the state is booming in 2024, thanks in part to some big titles, but also because of Webb's revamped use of social media.
"Prior to this year, I kept it nice and boring and mundane," he said. "Just the facts. This year, I was trying to do something fun with it and inject a little humor into it. That's kind of what Facebook is good for is satire, humor, and getting the word out. People have really responded to some of the posts."
Webb's posts now include jokes about the concession stand menu (somehow, they are usually out of Peking Duck and Alaskan King Crab), local events, the movies, and behavior that is expected at a drive-in theater. His posts are routinely shared more than 60 times now, helping drive in a regional crowd for the double features that are shown each Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night during movie season, which is typically the first weekend of April through Labor Day.
"It's almost like families will tell other families," Webb said. "We'll see one family from Lyons, then we'll see their friends the next weekend. It's kind of odd how it works. They'll put it on Facebook that they were there. Someone else will see it and take their kids."
As the drive-in's webpage says, the theater uses a 60-foot screen to display its movies. Whereas indoor theaters have switches to dim their house lights, the drive-in "has to wait for God to dim ours."
"We'll usually open the gates at 7 or 8 p.m., depending on when it gets dark," Webb said. "We try to open an hour before dark hits. That's usually enough time for people to get flooded in and get through the concession stand."
The Kanopolis Drive In is now fully digital. Audio can be heard by tuning to 101.1 FM on a radio. For those who want to watch from a lawn chair or the benches near the screen, the Drive In has that covered.
"Inside the concession stand, we have little portable FM radios," said Webb. "All you have to do is fill out a little piece of paper and leave a credit or debit card and you get your radio. We'll tune it for you and turn the volume up. You can take it out to your car and, as long as you bring it back, it's a free rental."
The drive-in cannot book movies in advance and Webb usually announces which movies are playing the Monday before the weekend. Webb said the drive-in will take a short break after the Labor Day weekend, then re-open for its all-night Monsterrama sometime in October.