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De Anza Theater's Final Farewell

By Linda Garrett

lgarrett@kgun9.com

Tucson - It's an end of an era in Tucson. Moviegoers say goodbye to the last remaining drive-in theater in the Old Pueblo.

Cars lined up for miles at the historic De Anza Drive-In Saturday night to catch the grand finale before the theater closes for good.

Stacey Peckham and her family of five waited several hours to get inside.

"It's usually our date night. We grab some chicken, sit in the back of the van and pretend we're teenagers," she said.

Only this time she's saying goodbye.

"Made a big pile of popcorn, the futon's ready, we're just going to enjoy every minute of it," Peckham added.

A lot of families are sorry to see it go. Highschool sweethearts Roger and Theresa Steilen have been coming to the theater for nearly 20 years. The say it reminds them of the time they first started dating.

"We're real sad. It's like losing a piece of America. What do you do without a drive-in?

A lot of people are asking the same question. Why is the theater closing? So we asked the owners.

"The theater is closing because of tough economic times. Like every other drive-in in Amercia, De Anza was really struggling because of the downturn in the economy," said Vice President of De Anza Land & Leisure Teri Oldknow.

The economic downturn, Oldknow tells us, wasn't showing signs of picking up anytime soon. She says the theater wasn't the moneymaker it used to be and that the company couldn't pay for costly repairs.

"We've been trying to sell it for awhile and someone finally came forward. The deal went through and that was that," she added.

The theater may be gone, but the memories aren't.

For Wendy Kippling, she just had to come back one last time before the screens fade to black.

"I didn't even care what movie was playing. I just wanted to come back and say goodbye," she said.