DES MOINES, Iowa -- Cultural institutions in the U.S. are facing scrutiny to be more accessible and inclusive.

The organization in charge of Iowa's main history center is making another attempt to reach all parts of the state. This month, a mobile museum led by the State Historical Society of Iowa began visiting various counties, with more stops planned for August and September.

The pandemic forced the custom-built Winnebago carrying artifacts to stop traveling for more than a year.

Michael Morain, communications manager for the State Historical Society of Iowa, said the project began in 2017, amid calls to boost accessibility for those who are not in a position to visit historical sites.

"Sometimes, history can seem sort of dusty and a little bit distant if we just see an old black and white photograph, or if we just read about it in a magazine article," Morain noted. "But when you see the artifact, it's often easier to put yourselves in the shoes of the people who lived through that chapter of history."

The project works with hosts such as community centers and festivals so that people from all walks of life can be reached. The first tour made 175 stops across all 99 counties, attracting nearly 65,000 visitors.

In light of the racial reckoning, Morain emphasized the historical society is continuing efforts through exhibits at its main site in Des Moines to try to tell a more complete history of Iowa.

"So I think history can help us understand Iowa in a more complex and more interesting way than you can see in a textbook," Morain contended.

He added "Iowa's People and Places" exhibit, which allows some artifacts to go into the mobile museum, represents a more robust telling of the state's history.

STOYSTOWN, Pa. -- Many have called United Flight 93, one of the four hijacked planes on Sep. 11, 2001, the first battle in the war on terror. This week, chalk artists from across the country are creating portraits, to honor those on board who attempted to retake control of the plane.

Flight 93 is the only hijacked plane from 9/11 that did not reach its intended target, believed to be Washington, D.C. Instead, it crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killing the 40 passengers and crew members.

Erik Greenawalt, a chalk artist from Pittsburgh, will display his art, along with nine other artists, at the Flight 93 National Memorial near the crash site. Greenawalt said he is proud to create art on hallowed ground.

"Flight 93 is very close to our hearts, and still in our memory and still in our collective minds," Greenawalt reflected. "I think I, along with the artists, really recognize the solemnity of what it is that we're doing. And this is going to be one to memorialize those heroes from that day and, at least for a moment, let the visitors at the memorial see who those people were."

The portraits will be made on three-by-five-foot cement boards that are transportable in case of rain. The artists will use photos provided by the National Park Service, which runs the memorial.

Nate Baranowski, a Chicago-based chalk artist, visited the Flight 93 National Memorial during a road trip earlier this year and was moved by its tribute to the victims. He said he is looking forward to participating in the project, and using an art form like chalk is a great way to symbolically remember the lives lost on 9/11.

"Because in a lot of ways, honoring those on Flight 93 is honoring their lives, but also acknowledging the sort of ephemeral nature of life and how it is short in a lot of ways," Baranowski remarked. "It shows the beauty of lives, although tragically cut short."

More events at the memorial this weekend include a speaker series with local first responders and family members of Flight 93 passengers, as well as a lantern vigil.

BOSTON -- A new photo exhibit in the Seaport District showcases the surprising ties between a wide swath of Boston residents.

The Boston Uncornered Photo Project features larger-than-life portraits taken by photographer John Huet of the six people running for Boston mayor, beside former gang members and community leaders.

They're accompanied by stories of a time each person felt cornered by a negative experience, like racism, a traumatic event, or people not believing in them, and how they pushed through.

Michelle Caldeira, co-founder and senior vice president of Boston Uncornered, based in Dorchester, said it is important to amplify a variety of voices.

"So that the world can see that the gang-involved individuals are no different than you or me," Caldeira explained. "They have hopes, they have dreams, they have goals; they just need resources and opportunities to be able to achieve those things."

Caldeira added Boston Uncornered, part of College Bound Dorchester, was formed to help already influential gang leaders become positive, rather than negative, influences in the city. A 2020 impact study found 70% of Uncornered students go on to college; more than double the percentage of gang members who enroll nationally.

The photo exhibit is open to the public until Sep. 15.

Caldeira pointed out the upcoming mayoral election is a milestone for Boston. Five of the six candidates are people of color, including Acting Mayor Kim Janey, the first woman and the first Black person to serve in her role.

"This is 200 years in the making, right, the first Black woman leading the city," Caldeira remarked. "We can 'uncorner' Boston, we can end violence, we can create opportunities for young people in Boston."

Since the Uncornered program started, incidents of crime have been three times less prevalent in neighborhoods where Uncornered students were most engaged. Caldeira emphasized the portraits also are beautiful works of art, with powerful stories, and urged people to see them in person.

By Maria McGinns/ Broadcast version by Mary Schuermann Kuhlman
Reporting for the Kent State-Ohio News Connection Collaboration

COLUMBUS, Ohio - It's a warm summer night at the movies. This year, with the majority of indoor theaters in Ohio still closed because of COVID-19, lines of cars form outside the ticket booths of drive-in theaters instead.

After getting their tickets, drivers pull their cars slowly into the lot marked with poles indicating where to park. Moviegoers then tune their car radios to the right station to hear the old blockbuster feature that night. They listen to ads for the concession stand, where people can wait in line - six feet apart - for their popcorn and snacks. When the sun finally starts to go down, headlights turn off and the movie begins.

As co-owner of the Holiday Auto Theatre in Hamilton, Ohio, Mark Althoetmar has seen an increase in weekday business and first-time guests at the drive-in.

The movie theater industry in general had been dwindling before the pandemic, especially with the increase in streaming services. But now, in a time when social distancing is a top priority, drive-ins are experiencing a resurgence.

"We've seen high school graduations, we've seen weddings," said Nick Hensgen, the owner/operator of driveinmovie.com, a database of all the drive-in theaters currently in operation, worldwide. "Not only are they showing movies now, but several of them have found other ways, other sources of revenue, to help get by until movies start coming out again - which will be later this summer, hopefully."

The first drive-in movie theater opened in 1933 in Camden, New Jersey. By the late 1950s to early 1960s, the number of drive-in theaters in the United States exploded, with more than 4,000 drive-ins opening from coast to coast.

But this "golden age" of drive-ins lasted only about a decade. Most were built in more rural areas, and as urban sprawl continued in the 1970s, it became more profitable to sell the land than operate a drive-in on it, Hensgen explained.

In addition, he said, the implementation of daylight saving time in the summer pushed the drive-in movie start times back by an hour.

"I live in Louisville, Kentucky," Hensgen said. "We're in the very western part of the Eastern time zone. So, during the peak summer, drive-ins around here don't start until 10 p.m. So it's late, especially on weeknights when people have to work. And there's so many entertainment options; it kind of started way back to the '70s and '80s with VHS tapes. But, of course, now we have streaming - just so many in-home entertainment options that folks have now. It's not just drive-ins; the number of indoor theaters has also been decreasing the last several years."

Drive-ins continued to close throughout the 1980s and 1990s. But in the late '90s to early 2000s, the drive-in theater industry experienced a minor comeback as previously closed theaters were renovated and reopened, and some new ones emerged as well.

Then, when the movie industry began using digital cinematography rather than film in the 2000s, some small, rural theaters were forced to close because they couldn't afford the new digital projectors, costing anywhere from $50,000 to $250,000.

Despite the challenges, there are 305 functioning drive-in theaters in the U.S, according to United Drive-in Theatre Owner Association (UDITOA) figures from October 2019. Ohio is home to 24 of them, making it the third-largest state for drive-ins behind New York and Pennsylvania.

"Drive-ins are kind of made for social distancing," Hensgen said. "A lot of these [drive-ins] have gone to online ticket sales, online concession ordering. So, you could literally go to the drive-in and stay in your car the entire time, if that's what you want to do. And inside your car is an environment you can control, versus going to an indoor movie theater - you don't know who's been there, who might be positive for COVID and things like that. But when you're in your car, you can control that environment."

Businesses across the board that have reopened in the pandemic are implementing new policies to keep employees and customers safe, and drive-in theaters are no exception.

At the Skyway Twin Drive-in Theatre in Warren, Ohio, owner Brian DeCiancio said they are enforcing a six-feet-between-vehicles rule, as well as having people order and pick up concessions at windows, since the customers are not allowed inside.

Althoetmar said the Holiday Auto Theatre has also made changes to keep customers and staff safe. He said they've always offered online ticket sales, and have seen an increase - because purchasing tickets beforehand guarantees a spot at the drive-in.

Social distancing markers have been added to the concession stand and restrooms to keep customers at a safe distance, as well as Plexiglas barriers separating customers and employees in the concession area.

Althoetmar added that doorknobs are also regularly sanitized along with general, extensive cleaning at the theater. All employees wear masks and patrons are welcome to either stay inside their cars, or sit outside of them, to watch the movies.

Some drive-ins also host events other than movies. DeCiancio said the Skyway Twin Drive-in Theatre has hosted six graduations, a dance studio recital and is planning other special occasions, as well.

Hensgen said drive-ins are also turning out to be good venues for concerts. Country music artist Garth Brooks performed live on June 27 in Nashville, Tenn., and the concert was shown on screens at 300 drive-ins in the U.S. Tickets cost $100 per vehicle.

Some people will stay home and stream their entertainment; others will go to indoor theaters as they reopen. The big screen and sound system of the indoor movie experience is an immersive way to enjoy a show without household interruptions. Still, Althoetmar said, the drive-in offers a unique experience that can't be duplicated - at home or indoors.

"Going to a drive-in is not only experiencing a movie on a large screen, but also a social experience," he said. "It's almost more like going to a theme park in a lot of ways. It's not just about the movie, but it's sitting outside, watching the sunset and seeing a film under the stars in lawn chairs. During the trip to the concession stand, one may see friends and neighbors. Drive-ins offer entertainment and a sense of community."

The sheer uniqueness of the experience leads Althoetmar to believe the industry won't see much of a decline, although he acknowledged that it depends on what the companies producing and releasing films decide to do.

In the past, when a movie was released, it would not be available on streaming platforms for several months. Now, that window has shrunk - it can be anywhere from 45 days to two months. This has long been a source of contention between theater owners and film companies, as theaters like having an exclusive window of time to show movies before they are more widely available.

Althoetmar said he doesn't think this will affect drive-ins, however.

"People do want to just get out of the house right now," he said. "So, even though there's not a big movie that's been released, people are coming out to the drive-in. That could be something that might be unique to COVID-19, is that people are willing just to go out to see a movie, no matter what movie it is."

Hensgen agrees that drive-ins can survive financially this season, even if they only show retro films or older movies released before the pandemic.

"I do think it's possible," he said. "Now, one of the reasons they're selling out is, most drive-ins are operating at 50% capacity because they're leaving a space between cars. But so far, most of these drive-ins appear to be having no problem filling up."

DeCiancio said drive-ins are at the mercy of the movie studios for new fare, as new releases aren't likely to happen until many more indoor theaters have reopened. He said there simply aren't enough drive-ins for film studios to justify putting new movies out at this time.

Althoetmar's Holiday Auto Theatre is going to continue to show retro movies, with new releases as the studios provide them. AMC Theaters, the world's largest theater owner, plans to reopen all its theaters in July - bringing good news to drive-in owners.

"Disney pushed back Mulan, which was the very first, big movie of the summer season," Althoetmar said. "So, we're looking forward to that hitting the screen and having a new movie. After that, I think there will be other films that start to get released. I think they're all just taking it week by week, maybe throwing something out there, and then seeing how it works."

The drive-in theater pioneers of the 1950s probably could not have predicted that this form of entertainment would go out of style - or that a health crisis would prompt its surprise resurgence some seven decades later. Drive-ins may be seen as a novelty, but these businesses operate in their own unique niche in the entertainment world.

"Over the next decade, we may lose a couple more, but I think the majority of the ones that are around today are still going to be around," Hensgen said. "Most of them don't have competition from other drive-ins. Of course, they have competition from other entertainment options - indoor movie theaters, streaming services. But most drive-ins that are still around, there's a lot of them where there's not another drive-in for hundreds of miles."

This collaboration is produced in association with Media in the Public Interest and funded in part by the George Gund Foundation.


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