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Home » Theater Guide » Location » United States » Connecticut » Southington » Southington Twin Drive-In
Also known as Southington Drive-In

Southington Twin Drive-In

Southington, CT
CT Route 66 (formerly US Route 6A)
, Southington, CT, United States
(map)
Status: Closed
Screens: Twin
Style: Unknown
Function: Unknown
Seats: Unknown
Chain: Unknown
Architect: Unknown
Firm: Unknown
Add a photo for this theater!
Your typical drive-in of the 1960s. Featured in-car heaters that made the drive-in loads of fun in the winter. The Southington had a wonderful neon/flashing light roadside sign which, unfortunately, was downsized to about half its original design sometime in the late 1970s. Later, a second screen was added, which wasn't such a bad thing and actually made for better use of the property.

The theater went dark a few years ago, perhaps as late as 2001. One of the last remaining drive-ins in CT.
Contributed by Bob Whitworth

YOUR COMMENTS

 
This drive-in is listed as opening in 1955 and closing in 2002. The following is from a news article:

"The town voted in an April 27 referendum to buy the drive-in property for $1.6 million.

Parks and Recreation Superintendent Richard L. Egidio Sr. said the town plans to build an additional parking lot on the land for Recreation Park and to use the property for special events such as flea markets and fairs.

Egidio also said the department will keep screen 2 up and plans to renovate the concession stand to be able to show movies a few times each summer, although those plans would not come to fruition for two to three years".


posted by Lost Memory on Dec 21, 2004 at 9:17am
i went to this drive in naked one time
posted by weiner on Dec 21, 2004 at 10:00am
The Southington Drive-In closed after the 2002 season because the owners wanted to make a killing selling this property even though the drive-in was still profitable. Screen 1 has already been removed. While screen 2 remains, the property will become parking for enarby Recreation Park and will be used for flea markets, fairs, and the like.
posted by Roger Katz on Dec 21, 2004 at 5:45pm
There is an article about this drive-in here:
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=13128227&BRD=1641&PAG=461&dept_id=10112&rfi=6

There are some photos of this drive-in here:
http://www.carlweese.com/DI4.html

The last 3 photos on that webpage are the Southington Twin.
posted by Lost Memory on Dec 21, 2004 at 6:18pm
This place was owned by the same family that owned the Elm Theater in West Hartford. I worked at this drive-in occasionally as their relief projectionist.

It took a helluva bright bulb to get through that night air and onto the screen clearly! We'd broadcast sound in AM stereo since most of the window-hanging speakers had died. The gals in the concession stand would always bring me a bucket of french fries when they knew I was working. (Good to have friends in the right places, eh?) On weekend nights we'd have to contend with the baseball field directly behind the place since they had tons of lighting for night games. It would wreak havoc with our screens and we battled constantly.

Still, this place was virtually a license to print cash on a Friday or Saturday nights in the summer. We'd have to turn away cars because the place was filled for every show. How many theaters can say that?
posted by The Projectionist on Jul 24, 2006 at 2:33pm
See a 1955 newspaper ad for the Southington Drive-In with its "giant curved Cinemascope screen" at http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/7951/southingtonadso7.jpg

posted by An Ex Waterburian on Jun 16, 2007 at 7:38pm
Here is a recent photo.

posted by Lost Memory on Mar 16, 2008 at 6:26pm
I was there a couple of week ago and took these photos (one of which, Lost Memory already linked you to above):

http://www.flickr.com/photos/schummi/sets/72157604090821440/
and
http://www.flickr.com/photos/schummi/sets/72157604102733129/
posted by schummi on Mar 28, 2008 at 4:34pm
Car capacity in 1975 was 1,100.

posted by Lost Memory on Oct 26, 2008 at 12:42pm
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