Marietta Drive-in

1250 S. Marietta Parkway SE,
Marietta, GA 30060

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Additional Info

Previously operated by: Martin Theatres

Previous Names: Georgia Drive-In

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1956 grand opening marquee image courtesy Sherry Chisholm.

The Georgia Drive-In parked 425 cars making it the city’s largest drive-in. It opened in 1956 with James Cagney in “Tribute to a Bad Man”. It was owned by R.E. Martin Circuit, in other words, a Martin Theatre.

Contributed by MikeRogers

Recent comments (view all 20 comments)

Mike Durrett
Mike Durrett on April 10, 2011 at 8:49 am

I worked for WFOM Radio in Marietta for two periods between 1974 and 1980. I wrote and announced the commercials for the Martin Drive-ins in the area, 75 spots each weekend. The Georgia, Smyrna, and Marbro Twin were all operational in early 1980 when I left the station. I remained in the area, but don’t recall these theatres' specific closings. We did see STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN at the Marbro in June, 1982, our last visit to any of the locations.

karatattoo
karatattoo on April 10, 2011 at 8:20 pm

I don’t remember when any of the Cobb County drive-ins closed either, but I do remember that the last movie I saw at a drive-in was “The French Connection” at the Georgia Drive-In in 1972. I took my girlfriend there in my 1958 Edsel!

Mike Durrett
Mike Durrett on April 10, 2011 at 10:42 pm

If she wasn’t impressed, she should have been.

I hope you got to take the Edsel to see THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN.

WGT
WGT on October 14, 2012 at 7:36 pm

I spent many of my teen age years at the drive inns. Both at the Martin and the Georgia. That would be in the mid to late 60’s. The Martin was the nicer one. They showed the newer movies. Really miss those cool nights ..

jwmovies
jwmovies on October 21, 2012 at 12:48 pm

Approx. address for this drive-in was 1250 South Marietta Parkway Southeast. Now housing for Southern Poly Tech University.

rdavisr
rdavisr on July 25, 2014 at 9:39 am

I worked at the Martin Drive-in from 1954 thru 1957. Jerome Zimmerman was manager. He was the younger brother of James Zimmerman, who managed the Strand in Marietta. It was located on the north side of Roswell Road, directly across from East Marietta shopping center.

rdavisr
rdavisr on July 25, 2014 at 9:43 am

The Martin Drive-in opened about 1948 give or take a couple of years. Varner’s Grill was also on the north side of Roswell road, maybe an eighth of a mile west of the drive-in.

Mike Durrett
Mike Durrett on July 27, 2014 at 12:54 pm

Gee. I see by the aerial photo that the screen was not on the highway, but at the bottom of the hill. Interesting and good to know for certain. Also, notice the pre-CinemaScope screen. It’s 4:3 shape, which was so 1948.

DavidZornig
DavidZornig on August 20, 2020 at 7:05 pm

1956 grand opening marquee image as Georgia Drive-In Theatre added courtesy Sherry Chisholm. I will add a separate page for Martin Drive-In on Roswell Road.

50sSNIPES
50sSNIPES on March 18, 2024 at 2:35 pm

This closed in the 1980s. A 1981 aerial view shows the theater still in operation, but the screen was removed by 1988. With the exception of the screen, the rest of the drive-in remained standing for years. It was in good condition that the entire traces were converted into parking lots until it was gutted in late-2003.

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