\u201cThis is historic. You are not going to find this anywhere else. It\u2019s a vibe,” one regular said. <\/p>\n
FORT WORTH, Texas \u2014 They came early Thursday night, grabbing popcorn and hoping to claim some of the best parking spots at Coyote Drive-In.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But for many, the trip was about more than seeing a movie. They came to make memories at a Fort Worth landmark before it closes for good.<\/a><\/p>\n Before the sun went down, moviegoers were already checking in at the gate.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m excited,\u201d one customer said.<\/p>\n Car after car arrived at the drive-in theater, where employees have welcomed customers since 2013.<\/p>\n \u201cOur normal guests are probably here two hours early before the movie starts,\u201d Coyote Drive-in General Manager Chris Fortune said.<\/p>\n Assistant Manager Brian Smith oversees the staff as they prepare for another movie night, right down to making the popcorn.<\/p>\n \u201cMy heart\u2019s broken. I\u2019m gonna miss this place,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n Coyote Drive-in became more than just a place to go to work for Smith. For starters, it\u2019s where he met the one person who changed his life forever.<\/p>\n \u201cI met the love of my life here,\u201d Smith said, \u201cI met my fianc\u00e9e here. The person I\u2019m going to spend the rest of my life with every day and who I love very much.\u201d<\/p>\n Smith said he also loves the fact that Coyote Drive-in served as a place for him to mentor young people and teach them life skills. Many of the staff are teenagers who work part-time at the drive-in.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the perfect place to, for kids to come get their first job. So, I\u2019m having the opportunity to help teach the untransferable skills that are needed to go out into the workplace today,\u201d said Smith.<\/p>\n As night falls, the familiar drive in experience comes to life. Cars parked beneath the open sky; moviegoers tuned into the FM radio and giant screens illuminated against the backdrop of Downtown Fort Worth.<\/p>\n But soon, that scene will be gone.<\/p>\n \u201cWe always knew we were kind of a temporary place mark here. We knew that we had an end date,\u201d Fortune said.<\/p>\n The drive-in has also been part of Fortune\u2019s own family memories. He shared photos of his children from their early years spent at Coyote Drive-In.<\/p>\n \u201cMy kids have grown up here, so I have pictures of them at Coyote Drive-in when they were little kids, at 5 and 6, all the way up until about their teenagers, so I feel like there\u2019s a lot of families whose kids grow up at the drive-in,\u201d Fortune said. \u201cSo, it\u2019s been my goal to make it the safest place as possible for kids to enjoy.\u201d<\/p>\n