Exton Drive-In

In the late 80’s, in HS, I worked at the Budco Twin Cinema in Exton — on the opposite east side of Rt. 100 — near Exton Mall & K-Mart. This was after the drive-in closed, but before they demolished it to build a shopping center. A local (West Chester PA) rock/pop group in the 80’s called The Hooters, who gained national notoriety with a video on MTV, filmed part of one of their videos (And She Danced), on the grounds of the closed Exton Drive-In. My uncles (who ride motorcylces) were actually in the video. Kind of interesting.

I also worked at the Budco Twin cinema from 92-94. I was only 14 when they hired me, it was the only job I could get. By them it was an AMC theater and already on it’s way to being ripped down. Budcoboy71, do you have any pictures of that theater that used to be next to Kmart? I’ve still got friends I met while working there 15 years ago.

It looks like this theater was built in the early 1950s, according to this suit:

This action was commenced in 1956 when Exton Drive-In, Inc. (Exton) filed a complaint in assumpsit against The Home Indemnity Co. (Home) seeking damages under a performance bond in which Home and W. Arnold Blythe (Blythe) had bound themselves jointly and severally to Exton in the sum of $52,000. The bond was conditioned on the full and prompt performance by Blythe of a contract between him and Exton for the grading and paving of a site for an out-door motion picture theater. Exton alleged that this contract had not been fully and promptly performed and claimed damages in the amount of $42,500, being the profits allegedly lost because of delay in performance plus the estimated cost of remedying the defects in performance. Because the bond was a joint undertaking of Blythe as principal and Home as surety, Home impleaded Blythe as an additional defendant asserting joint and several liability. In his answer to the third party complaint, Blythe denied that he had breached the contract and brought a counterclaim against Exton for the unpaid balance of the contract price and for payment for certain additional work he had performed, allegedly at the request of Exton.

The case came on for trial before a judge sitting without a jury in May, 1960. Not until June, 1967, over seven years after the trial was completed did the judge enter his decision in this case. This decision was in the form of a verdict in favor of defendants Home and Blythe on plaintiff’s original complaint and a verdict for Blythe on his counterclaim against Exton in the sum of $ 13,692.49; there were no findings of fact or conclusions of law. Exton filed numerous exceptions to this decision, which were overruled by the court en banc in June, 1968. This appeal followed. Not until April 18, 1969, seventeen days before this appeal was argued, did the trial judge file an opinion explaining the overruling of Exton’s exceptions.

1985…. was the video..

Approx. address for this drive-in was 137 West Lincoln Highway. The box office was actually closer to Hwy 100 due to the very long driveway.