Guide to Pittsburgh’s Drive-Ins: Check them out before they “Go Digital or Go Dark”

Waiting for the start of the double-feature at...

Waiting for the start of the double-feature at the Fork Union drive-in. Show starts at sundown. Drive-ins rock, and we have one of the last ones in America. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Summertime and warm weather bring the indoor activities outside with concerts, markets, and movies. The iconic drive-ins are opening for the Summer 2013 season. While many aren’t around anymore, Pittsburgh and the surrounding area boast several spots to watch the flicks under the stars.

A unique and affordable activity (most theaters charge under $10 a ticket), drive-ins are a creative alternative to the megaplex where you get gum stuck to your shoe, and people answer their phones in the middle of the movie. Plus, they have those fun animations before the feature films begin.

Unfortunately, many of these spots are in jeopardy due to the “Go Digital or Go Dark” switch from 35mm film to digital projection. Indoor theaters across the country have been making the switch, and now drive-ins are being asked to do the same. According to NPR:

“Switching to digital reduces production and shipping costs, and the picture quality is better. The transition away from film started several years ago, but many drive-ins and mom and pop theaters put it off because of the high cost of new projectors.”

Todd Ament, owner of the Riverside Drive-In in North Vandergrift, says the prices of the digital projectors vary. “We are basically on our own to raise the funds for the Digital Projection equipment. Somewhere from $30,000 (Used) to $60,000 (New). We’re doing what we can to raise the funds from Flea Markets on Sundays to a Poker Run on Saturday July 27th.” The Riverside Drive-In is also accepting donations at the snack bar.

Other drive-ins have already made the transition. According to its site, Dependable Drive-In in Moon installed digital projectors at the end of its 2012 season.

Although no cut-off date has been announced, movie-goers should take advantage of the summer standard while local drive-ins remain open.

 Guide to Pittsburgh Drive-Ins (UPDATED)

Dependable Drive-In

  • Where: 549 Moon Clinton Road, Moon Township, PA
  • Phone: 412-264-7011
  • When: Open 7 days a week, shows start at sundown
  • What Else: double features on every screen, cash only

Evergreen Drive-In Theater

  • Where: 309 Drive-In Lane, Mount Pleasant, PA
  • Phone: 724-547-4747
  • When: Open 7 days a week, shows start at sundown
  • What Else: double feature on every screen, cash only, pets allowed (on leash)

Riverside Drive-In

  • Where: 2780 River Road, Vandergrift, PA
  • Phone: 724-568-1250
  • When: Open 7 Days a week, shows start at sundown
  • What Else: Poker Run fundraiser July 27th

Twin Hi- Way Drive-In

  • Where: 5588 Steubenville Pike, Robinson Township
  • Phone: 412-494-49
  • When: Open Weekends (Fri, Sat, Sun)
  • What Else: double feature on every screen, classic car night every Saturday.

Comet Drive-In

  • Where: Morrell Road – Off Hwy 119, Connellsville (Dunbar) Pa.
  • Phone: 724-628-6160
  • When: Open 7 Days a week, shows start at sundown
  • What Else: Double features on every screen, Flea Market every Sunday starting at 5a.m.

Brownsville Drive-In

  • Where: 6229 National Pike, Grindstone, PA
  • Phone: 724- 785-7190
  • When: Open Weekends (Fri, Sat, Sun)
  • What Else: Double features on every screen

Pioneer Drive-In

  • Where: 1985 N. Main Street, Butler, PA
  • Phone: 724-284-5003
  • When: Open 7 Days a week, shows start at sundown
  • What Else: $14 car load Thursday, admission for an entire car only $14
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Weekend Music Events: Where You Should Be and When

So there are a ton of exciting things happening music and concert-wise this weekend through the Three Rivers Arts Festival starting Friday, June 7th as well as the start of the “Weather Permitting” concert series this Sunday, June 9th. Here’s a chronological list of all the bands coming by day and time of performance as well as what stage they will be performing on.

Three Rivers Arts Festival: 

Because there are multiple stages, you may find this map to be helpful.

Friday June 7th: 

12:00pm-1:00pm Indie pop rock band Jd Eicher and the Goodnights will be playing on the Dollar Bank Stage

Acousticafe, “Pittsburgh’s Best new singer/songwriters”, will be performing on the Second Stage at Gateway Center from 5:00pm-7:00pm

Jazz band Poogie Bell will be playing from 5:30pm-9:00pm in Katz Plaza

And the River City Brass Band will play at Point Stage Park  from 5:00pm-6:00 pm

6:15pm- 6:55pm Happy, dance music from Donora also on the Dollar Bank Stage

7:30pm-9:00pm The Headliner for Friday night is California-native, indie folk rock band Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.

English: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros ...

English: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros performing at Lollapalooza Chile Español: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros tocando en Lollapalooza Chile (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Known for the popular singles “Home”,  “Janglin”, and “40 Day Dream” from their debut album Up from Below, as well as songs from last year’s follow-up album Here,  Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros will cap off the evening on the Dollar Bank Stage. The band will also be releasing a self-titled third album set to release on July 23rd. As a side note lead singer Alex Ebert is also the lead singer of Ima Robot, the group responsible for the awesome theme song of the popular USA network series Suits. 

All fan-hood aside, I digress from the rest of the weekend music happenings.

Saturday June 8th: 

Arts Greenhouse Collective, a local hip hop education program, will school you with original beats and rhymes while performing from 12:00pm-12:30pm as well as 2:00pm-2:30pm on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone.

Soundwaves Steel Band will be performing from 12:30pm-1:00pm as well as 1:30pm-2:00pm also on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone

The Unknown String Band, “folk-grass pickin’ partners” from Pittsburgh will be on the Second Stage at Gateway Center from 1:00pm-2:00pm

The Shelf Life String Band, a bluegrass string quintet, will be performing from 3:00pm-4:00pm and from 5:00pm-5:45pm on the Second Stage at Gateway Center

YMCA Lighthouse Music Crew & Step Team, which features youth hip-hop and step routine, will perform on the  Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone from 3:00pm-4:00pm

The Arts Festival will feature a ton of other great bluegrass bands on Saturday. Starting with the Allegheny Drifters from 2:00pm-3:00pm on the Dollar Bank Stage.

Great American Taxi will be bringing bluegrass infused rock Americana to the Dollar Bank Stage from 6:00 pm-7:15pm

Saturday night will cap off with bluegrass and American music legend Ralph Stanley, who will also be performing on the Dollar Bank Stage from 7:30pm-9:00pm

Sunday June 9th:

Acousticafe will play a second show from 1:00pm-5:00pm on the Second Stage at Gateway Center

AcoustiKids (a branch off of Acousticafe) will perform a show for children on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone from 2:00pm-4:00pm

WYEP Re(imagiNATION) Showcase will be, well, showcasing some of Pittsburgh’s emerging teen musicians from 4:00pm-6:00pm on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone

Big With Seed, an 8-piece “groove-laden rock” band, will perform from 1:00pm-2:30pm on the Dollar Bank Stage

Sleep Experiments will be bringing “ambient dream pop” to the Dollar Bank Stage from 3:00pm-4:00pm

The Deceptions will perform a rock, folk, Americana fusion from 4:30pm-5:30pm  on the Dollar Bank Stage

Grand Piano, a 6-piece local rock band, will perform on the Dollar Bank Stage from 6:00pm-7:00pm

And the first weekend of Arts Fest Music will cap off with Cello Fury featuring Joy Ike and Scott Blasey of the Clarks, this one-night only collaboration will perform from 7:30pm-9:00pm on the Dollar Bank Stage

WEATHER PERMITTING CONCERT SERIES BEGINNING JUNE 9TH:Weather Permitting Concert Series June 9th Poster

Starting June 9th Shadyside Nursery will be hosting a concert series in collaboration with Fukuda and Pandemic titled “Weather Permitting PGH.” Together they’re bringing a great mix of music, relaxation, food, drink, and summer fun every Sunday evening from 5:00 pm-9:00 pm. The concert series is called Weather Permitting and it boasts a “chilled out, relaxed, bring a blanket and some wine, nurse the hangover, bring the kids” environment.

The weekly outdoor concert will take place every Sunday through the rest of summer and is looking to bring in a diverse audience through, for lack of a better word, a diverse collection of musical groups, food vendors/trucks and children’s activities.

Admission is $10, which includes a complimentary beverage with proof of ID. Kids get in free, again this weekly event is family friendly. Shadyside Nursery is located on 510 Maryland Avenue (at the corner of Ellsworth Ave.) This looks like a great event if you’re looking to experience something a little different each week.

This Sunday’s Performers Include:

Lungs Face Feet, a local 8 piece brass, accordion, percussion band. They’re great fun as evidenced here:

Check out them out on Facebook.

Sunday will also feature Taluna, a Mediterranean folk/”Spacefolk” band from Italy.

Listen to more Taluna on their website.

Phew, that’s a lot to digest (and that’s not another strange band name, don’t worry). See you out there this weekend, I’ll be cutting it up at a few of these shows. Check back each week for more weekend music updates.

City of Champions, or: Why You Should Stop Worrying and Learn to Love the Pirates

If you’re reading this blog, there’s a good chance that you know a thing or two about the city of Pittsburgh.  You know that we’re the Steel City, and that we pride ourselves on hard work, especially in times of adversity. You know the skyline—the one that rivals even the tallest of skyscrapers in the biggest of cities—and, if pressed, I’m sure that you even know how to spell “Monongahela.” You know that we’re the City of Champions. You know about the Super Steelers, and “One For the Thumb,” and when we won that fifth Super Bowl, you know that fans and players alike were instantly hungry for a sixth. You know about the Penguins, Le Magnifique, and Sid the Kid. You know that there are people who are willing to lug couches up Centre Avenue so they can sit in the spot where “The Igloo” once stood, and watch the Pens on an enormous TV screen with tens of thousands of other fans who would prefer watching the game in the dark, on a vacant gravel lot, to watching it in the comfort of their own homes.

No doubt, you know about the Pirates, too. You know about Clemente, “We Are Fam-A-Lee,” and you know about Sid Bream’s slide into home in 1992 that sent the Pirates wandering in the desert for the next 20 seasons. Since then, you probably know that the Pirates have become a punch line. You know that we prefer winners to losers, and an inconsistent team equals an inconsistent fan base. A consistently bad team probably deserves a worse one

Roberto Clemente at PNC Park

WWRD: What Would Roberto Do? (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Naturally, I’ve had my doubts. In 2010, the Pirates recorded a paltry 57-105 record, and I was laughing right along with the rest of them. There didn’t even seem to be anyone within the Pirates’ organization who really cared all that much; why should I?

Clint Hurdle changed my mind. He took over managing the Pirates in 2011, after their dismal eighteenth consecutive losing season, and saw an opportunity within the crisis. Improbably, Hurdle seemed eager to join the organization who owns the record for futility, not only in baseball, but also in all of North American sports. In fact, he called it “the greatest opportunity in the world… [to rebond] a city with a ball club.” With such enthusiasm in Pirates’ leadership, it was hard for me not to follow suit, and now, I would encourage you to do the same. The iron will that was alive in Franco Harris, Mario Lemieux, and Roberto Clemente is alive in the Pirates today, even if they may not have demonstrated it in the win-loss column quite yet. They want to win, and more than anything, they want you to want them to win.

So here’s what I’m proposing. Don’t give up on the Pirates. If, after 20 long seasons, by some miracle, you haven’t given up on them yet, don’t give up on them now.

I always say that one of the reasons that I love the Pirates the way that I do is because the other teams give me high blood pressure. I love the Penguins and the Steelers too, but for different reasons. I get excitement from hockey and football, but I also expect success. When our teams fail, it stresses me out. With the Pirates, it’s different. Excitement isn’t always expected, but it’s always welcome, and losing one game is only a small setback. Baseball is a marathon. There’s room to brush off some of the losses. Especially with twenty years of losing, it’s nice to remember that there’s really nowhere to go but up.

The twenty-year monkey on our backs reminds me of another good reason to embrace the Battlin’ Bucs. When I dove headlong into fanaticism, I did so, in part, because I wanted to be able to say, “I told you so.” Slowly, but surely, it’s occurred to me that hundreds of thousands of voices crying “We told you so,” would be a lot more satisfying (Especially when “you” becomes, I don’t know, Cleveland or something).

I’m not going to talk to you about how PNC Park deserves to have a winner, and I’m not going to spew nostalgia about the good old days, sitting on the porch, listening to the Pirates on KDKA. You know that PNC Park is beautiful, and you know that the Pirates were a pretty good baseball team in the ‘60s and ‘70s. Right now, I’m asking you to make a leap of faith. I’m asking you to commit to a loser right now, which seems counterproductive, but I’m convinced that that commitment will pay off when the Pirates win their eighty-second game. I hope that you are too.

Treader’s Choice: Festival Weekend

Treading Art has been putting together an amazing list of weekend events around Pittsburgh.  Each week we will highlight one of those events here on IheartPGH and link you back over to Treading Art’s weekly events post.

In honor of all the great festivities that begin this weekend we’ve put together a Treading Art must-see-&-do guide for both festivals. Check out the links below to explore our top picks.

three-rivers-arts-festival

Pittsburgh JazzLive International Festival (June 7th-9th)

Locations & times vary // all three days FREE

 

Three Rivers Arts Festival: MUSIC & ART+FILM (June 7th-16th)

Locations & times vary // keep the festival FREE

 

Click here to see all of the Weekend Treadings For June 6-June 9th, 2013

 

Pens Game Day: Bar Specials Around Town

With all the trouble and conflict of interest in drinking Samuel Adams in this Eastern Conference Finals match-up against the Boston Bruins, I thought it’d be a good idea to provide some possible options of places to watch the Pens game for tonight, Friday night’s game, and future game nights (Pens in 6, of course).

Samuel Adams BanSo here’s a quick list of some good places and where they’re located that have some great specials for game nights:

Primanti Bros– All Suburban Location Primanti Bros offer $1.00 drafts and $1.00 pizza slices for dine-in customers during all Penguin games. Plus there’s also the chance to get some free cheese fries through their twitter promotion, “Twitter Fries.” So if you haven’t already follow Primanti Bros and get your hands on some free fries.

Buckhead Saloon in Station Square is offering private Pens parties to watch the game on one of their four large projectors or multiple flat screen televisions. Reservations guarantee a free Miller Lite pitcher plus $2 20 oz. Miller Lite drafts (4 person minimum). You can register for a reservation here.

The Blind Pig Tavern- 2210 East Carson Street in the South Side is offering 16 oz. Labatt Blue during the games for only $2.50.

Carson City Saloon-1401 East Carson Street also in the South Side offers a rooftop deck along with “the best game time specials in the ‘Burgh.”

Smiling Moose- Another South Side bar offering drink specials for the game (surprised?), the Smiling Moose is starting a $2 Labatt Blue pint special along with special food offers when the puck drops on their 180″ projector screen. Reservations are also available.

James Street Gastropub and Speakeasy  on 422 Foreland St. is also offering a projector screen for live game action along with $2 Labatts.

Red Beard’s Bar and Grill- There are two locations for this place, the original at 201 Shiloh Street (Mt. Washington), and the new location Downtown on Sixth Street. They’re both offering pretty much the same special for the games which is $2 Off any Starter & $2 Miller Lite Bottles. However the Downtown location offers $3 Miller Lite drafts instead of $2 bottles.

Hough’s Taproom and Brewpub at 563 Greenfield Ave. will also offer a $3 20 oz. Labatt Blue offer with wing specials as well.

I’m sure there are tons of other specials that I missed so if you know of any others feel free to comment here or share on our twitter or facebook page. But for now if you’re thirsty (particularly for Miller Lite or Labatt Blue in the South Side)  and looking to head somewhere to watch the Pens game tonight give one of these places a shot. Hopefully there will be plenty of reasons to have a celebratory drink tonight unlike the first two games in this series. Let’s Go Pens!