Quoted from Sparky:Although the movie was released in 1954, the game's "setting" actually takes place a few years later. I think I remember Trudeau at show was asked why the match feature had a car with a license plate of a later year (1959, I think?), and he explained that drive-in's often re-released movies during the summer from previous years, so the idea was to create that "feel" for the machine. To make it a few years after the release rather than a new release.
A little off-topic from the mod, but I thought that was interesting since it came up.
That is very true. I remember when our mom and her sister took all of us kids to the Drive-In in the late 60's (1966, 1967 or 1968-ish) to see "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" which was actually released in 1963.
I also remember going to the Drive-In in the early to mid-70's and the movies at the Drive-In back then were usually 'B' movies that had been released a few years earlier.
Gord