Starlite Drive-In

There is another theater in North Reading called the North Reading Cinemas not too far away from the Starlite also on Route 28, which will have its own Cinema Treasures page soon.

Thanks, Allistair! That’s the address. Sorry for missing your query, robboehm. I can get a photo if it would help (in it’s current state) as I live one mile from the location. Allistair, I’m just a few years older. I wonder if we ever fought over the same poster, lol!!

Jerry – YES! That’s the cinema. It was 2nd run twin and it had an outer lobby that rang the length of the front of the building. Just glass windows in metal framing. When you stepped through outer doors into this glass and metal framed outer lobby, to the left was a little room with a counter, just to the left of the doors leading into the cinema lobby. I recall this room was where they kept all the posters. I, too, loved going there for the same reason. I started my film poster collection at age 15 (I’m 53 now) thanks to that cinema and Salem Tri Cinema in Salem NY — also on RTE 28. I knew the projectionist at Salem Tri and he would just give me the posters after the film played. I used to love the North Reading Twin, though, a bit run down, mom & pop cinema. Saw The Exorcist, Rocky II, A Christmas Story, Smokey and the Bandit – a lot of great movies. Love that cinema. Shame there are no pictures. They converted a small room upstairs into a third screen – was really small. More of a screening room than theater auditorium. And you are correct, I believe the building is indeed now a travel agency with a dance school upstairs. Nice to know someone else remembers it.

Allistair, I don’t have any pictures, but I went there often. Second run house - prints were usually beat up, but it was a fun place to go to and I loved it; they also gave away movie posters when they were done with the run of the picture. I have a few (On Golden Pond, Song of the South, Disney’s Peter Pan, That’s Entertainment Part 2). The building is still standing - google maps shows it as a travel agency now.

Does anyone have pictures of or remember the second-run twin cinema (they later added a tiny ‘screening room’ upstairs) that used to be on 28? I seem to remember it being set back from 28, behind where Wendy’s and Joe’s Fish Seafood Bar is today. In fact, I think it might have occupied the space where the Dancing School is.

Can’t find anything anywhere on the internet about it. It’s like it never existed.

You got tell me where these stories are so i can go there.I hope he reads about my change over at the TRI-City Drive-in.

J.V. enjoyed the change over! I wrote about my first changeover on CT under TRI-City Drive-in,in Forest City,N.C. and i wasn’t a trained projectionist by any means. It is a cute story you can relate to being in the booth.
I was in management when we had real projectionists in the booth. I can’t think of the headaches they have now with kids in the booth.

Here is a very short clip I posted on youtube that I shot in 1983 of a manual changeover in the booth at the Starlite.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQ7VYU5h4w4

I remember it had a top notch playground.