Hillman Family Connections

April 5, 2025 – Puzzle Discussion

DRIVE-INS WE WENT TO

RUSTIC, CRANSTON, QUONSET, HILLTOP

When the first drive-in in Rhode Island opened in 1937, the price of admission was 35¢ per person. Today, it’ll cost you just over $30 (per car) to get into Rhode Island’s only remaining drive-in. The RUSTIC Tri-View or Rt. 146 Drive-in opened in 1951. In 1988 the drive-in underwent changes and became a three-screen venue, hence the “Tri-View” in the current name. If you’re anxious to get into your jammies and out to catch a movie, opening night for this year’s season is April 25. You’ll have to pack 85 or so of your closest friends into your car in order to get in at that 1937 rate.

In the heyday of drive-ins, Rhode Island was home to 15 such venues. Here’s 3 of them I’m sure some of us attended: The CRANSTON Drive-in on Oaklawn Avenue; there’s a shopping plaza there now. I’m not even sure what’s in the plaza. I only know it as where the Bob’s store was – and that’s been gone for a few years already. I believe I saw 101 Dalmatians at the Cranston Drive-in. A feature of many drive-ins was a playground usually located below the giant screen. I seem to remember the playground at Cranston Drive-in to be rather scant. I only remember it having the puke-wheel (EVERYONE knows what I’m talking about here, no need to come up with what it really might be called), no swings. Thumbs down from my school-aged self on that major deficit.

QUONSET Drive-in (in North Kingstown) and HILLTOP Drive-in (in East Greenwich) were probably our go-to outdoor movie locations as they were the closest. The location that once housed Quonset Drive-in is now an apartment complex (Saw Mill Square) and the area once occupied by Hilltop Drive-in is now Saint Elizabeth Home (Skilled Nursing & Rehabilitation Center). Both of these locations had better playgrounds. My early memory of drive-ins is admittedly limited — I was a kid, I fell asleep during many of my early encounters. I remember a bit more about going when I got older, primarily because I remember the game of squeezing people into the car and hiding people in the trunk in order to maximize our “car load” cost. I recall Kathy McWilliams and I sucking up the per car load price and going – just the two of us – to Quonset to see a movie I don’t recall the name of but do remember it being a conspiracy theory about the moon landing. It blew our young, truth-seeking minds.

MOVIE THEATERS WE WENT TO

KENT, GREENWICH, AVON, CAMPUS

KENT and GREENWICH Theaters were both located in East Greenwich. The Greenwich operates now as a performance/event venue which fits its original function as a vaudeville space. The Kent is long-gone. It was located further south along the Main Street strip near where the CVS is now. The Kent originally had one screen but in order to compete with the likes of the multiplex cinemas in the 70s it eventually divided the space into three screens/theaters. I think that Mondays or Tuesdays were Ladies’ Nights when I was a teen and admission (for ladies) was set at $1. I’m not sure when this theater was closed but I do know when Michaela was a kid she saw the movie Roxanne, starring Steve Martin and Daryl Hannah at the Kent Theater.

The AVON Theater is located on Thayer Street on Providence’s East Side. I’ve only been there for 48 Hour Film screenings but I know it was a regular Saturday night date location for Jan and John.

The CAMPUS Theater was in Wakefield. I can only remember going to this theater once. Norma and Karen may remember more details of this outing. There were a bunch of us girls that had gone to see something there – what I remember most though was that Karen Sherlock(?) was mad about something and left the theater mid-movie to walk home. Norma, Karen, am I remembering that correctly?

“PLACES” WE HAVE VISITED

SESAME, PROVIDENCE, PATRIOT, MAE’S

Russell, Annette, Lowell, and Chelsea visited SESAME PLACE as part of their vacation one summer. Many of us have visited (or even worked at) PROVIDENCE PLACE MALL – some as recently as a few weeks ago to see the Secret Mall Apartment movie (if you haven’t seen it….GO!). Likewise, I imagine I’m not the only one to have visited PATRIOT PLACE in Foxborough, MA. Granted, I’ve only been there twice. Once, I went to bring Jim to a doctor’s appointment and the other time, oddly, I stopped on the way to a Red Sox game. In that case, I was with a friend from work and he needed to stop at the Bass Pro Shop for some reason. I bought sunglasses – for a game that had a 2 hour rain delay!

MAE’S PLACE s a breakfast spot in North Kingstown. It’s located in what was once a Honey Dew Donuts (Michaela worked there…keep that in mind for a return of the “early jobs” grouping). I’ve gotten take-out from Mae’s, Amber and Piper have been for Birthday Breakfast (photo below), how about you?

DAVE! IT’S HIS BIRTHDAY TODAY!

LIKES CATS, A BEST MAN, GUITAR ENTHUSIAST

Speaking of birthdays…today is Dave’s! Happy Birthday!

So, yeah, Dave likes CATS. He used to stop by The 461 to visit my cat Earl. Nobody explicitly stops by to visit the current feline living at The 461. No one, not even Dave likes cats that much. The picture of Dave below is from October of 2024 when he served as BEST MAN at Lowell and Loralei’s wedding. And, it seems impossible to mention Dave without acknowledging him being a GUITAR ENTHUSIAST — an enthusiast, and incredibly talented!

Have a great day, Dave!

Nancy Knott

5 responses to “April 5, 2025 – Puzzle Discussion”

  1. So we went to URI to see Romeo & Juliette. Show was sold out so we then went to Wakefield to see a movie. Anyway Karen Sherlock walked out. She was at the end of the row so none of knew she was gone till the movie was over.
    And I got this puzzle!!!!

  2. Got Dave! Happy Birthday Dave!

    Was so on track with the others and just couldn’t get the right combos – even went in and out. Kept trying theaters and drive ins in different sets LOL Couldn’t get it!