Starlite Drive In
US-41 and County Road 350 S,
Princeton,
IN
47670
US-41 and County Road 350 S,
Princeton,
IN
47670
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Affiliated Theatres
Previous Names: Highway 41 Drive-In, Princeton Drive-In
Nearby Theaters
Located on Highway 41 South. The Highway 41 Drive-In was opened on July 6 1949 with Maria Montez in “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”. On March 25, 1950 it was renamed Princeton Drive-In. It was operated by Princeton Drive-In Corp. and Affiliated Theatres Inc. In 1952 it was renamed Starlite Drive-In The drive in itself was NE of this intersection. The entrance on U.S.41, the exit on the county road. It was closed in the late-1970’s.
Contributed by
James Monroe
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
a 1990’s aerial shows a race track surrounding the drive-in.
It opened in 1949 as the Highway 41, then became the Princeton, and finally to the end was the Starlite.
The Hi-Way 41 Drive-In opened its gates on July 7, 1949 with “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves” along with an unnamed cartoon and an unnamed comedy (despite accidental listings on a one-week stunt as the Princeton Drive-In by advertisements from the Princeton Daily Clarion, it was still named “Hi-Way 41” until correctly resolved a week later).
It was renamed the Princeton Drive-In one season later on March 25, 1950, and the Starlite Drive-In in 1952 (and yes, it was notable for a deadly vehicle accident near the theater on June 17, 1955).
Its closing date hasn’t been found yet, but still in operation into the 1970s.
Boxoffice, Nov. 26, 1949: “Princeton, Ind. - Princeton Drive-In purchased by Ted Mendelssohn.”
The drive-in was SE of the intersection. A 1982 aerial shows the screen gone with a small building in its place and a dirt track around the drive-in. So, the drive-in appears to have not made it into the 1980s.
All traces of the drive-in were obliterated when the Toyota Manufacturing Plant and Tulip Tree Drive were constructed in the late 1990s.