‘Pope of Trash’ John Waters will preside over a filth-filled film fest at his dream drive-in in Pa.

In John Waters’ 1981 film Polyester, former teen heartthrob Tab Hunter played the proprietor of a drive-in movie theater that catered to the upper crust. Patrons could enjoy a triple feature by the French experimental filmmaker Marguerite Duras while dining on oysters and caviar.

The concession stand at the Mahoning Drive-In in Lehighton isn’t quite so refined, but its programming suits Waters just fine. On the weekend of Sept. 29, only 11 days after Waters’ star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was unveiled, Philly horror presenters Exhumed Films will partner with the Mahoning to present the John Waters Filthy Film Festival.

It will feature 35mm prints of several Waters classics and appearances by the “Pope of Trash” himself.

“These days, Barbie is a giant hit at the drive-in,” Waters lamented over the phone from his longtime summer residence in Provincetown, Mass. “When I was young, it was as close as you could get to porn or snuff. … [The Mahoning] is my dream drive-in. If I had one, it would be this.”

While Waters’ own films found more success indoors at midnight screenings, the filmmaker recalls honing his tastes — cinematic and otherwise — at drive-ins in his native Baltimore.

“The first time I ever had sex was probably at a drive-in. I got arrested at the Carlin Drive-In for underage drinking,” he said. “I still have claustrophobia from being in the trunk of a car, sneaking in. Then there was the Bengies Drive-In, which showed the lowest exploitation films. I always wanted my early movies to look like the meatball sub ad that they showed in between the films.”

The Filthy Film Fest will feature films from throughout Waters’ career, from Pink Flamingos (1972) and Female Trouble (1974) to 2004′s A Dirty Shame, his last directorial credit to date.

That drought may finally come to an end. Last year, he announced he would helm the forthcoming adaptation of his novel Liarmouth: A Feel-Bad Romance. Those plans are currently on hold due to the ongoing Writers Guild strike, which also made talking to Waters about his films a touchy subject — the rare occasion when the notoriously outspoken raconteur censored himself. Questions about his films were answered gingerly, with the caveat that he could only speak as a director; topics that he felt required him to wear his (striking) writer’s hat were apologetically declined.

Though “Philadelphia has always been a great audience for everything I do,” Waters never spent much time in the city despite living just a few hours away in Baltimore.

He did frequent Philly to attend the trials of MOVE members, and marvels now at the 2020 City Council vote to formally apologize for the 1985 bombing of MOVE homes in West Philadelphia.

“You never know how things can change,” he said, comparing the shift to the reception that now greets Pink Flamingos, his most notorious film, in which Divine plays the “filthiest person in the world.” (Proved in part by eating dog poop for the camera.) The film has now been added to the Library of Congress National Film Registry.

“The Philadelphia government apologizing to MOVE is the only thing I can think of to compare that to. It shows you what happens if you just stick to your guns. Well, no — that’s a bad idiom to use for MOVE.”

While it’s unlikely that the carloads of attendees at the Mahoning will take offense at Water’s oeuvre, that’s OK with the director — shock was never his primary goal, he insists. “I never want to just have a shocking idea. That’s too easy. I want to have an alarming idea that makes you laugh and maybe makes you consider how you think.”

The John Waters Filthy Film Fest takes place Sept. 29 to Oct. 1 at the Mahoning Drive-In in Lehighton, Pa. Tickets and information at mahoningdrivein.ticketleap.com/fff-johnwaters