Last week I asked what significant motoring news happened in Camden, NJ in 1933? It was the opening of the first Drive-In movie theatre, attended by 600 motorists. (From the History website: Richard Hollingshead, a movie fan, came up with the idea of an open-air theater where patrons watched movies in the comfort of their own automobiles. The young entrepreneur received a patent for the concept in May of 1933 and opened Park-In Theaters, Inc. less than a month later, with an initial investment of $30,000. The idea caught on, and after Hollingshead’s patent was overturned in 1949, drive-in theaters began popping up all over the country. One of the largest was the All-Weather Drive-In of Copiague, New York, which featured parking space for 2,500 cars, a kid’s playground and a full service restaurant, all on a 28 acre lot.)
So to this week. Who invented the first practical windscreen wiper? Clue: 1911.
For the Automania free beer this week, be the first correct answer to email [email protected].
