The 1948-49 Theatre Catalog listed the El Rancho with a capacity of 350, owner John Armm, status “CLOSED”. But the inaugural Motion Picture Almanac list in 1950-51 had the owner as R. C. Jones, capacity 400, and by implication, open again. That’s the way the MPA listed it until 1966, when it fell off the list.
A local historian was quoted in El Centro’s Imperial Valley Press on Feb. 27, 2002 that the drive-in “was on Highway 111 south of old Highway 80, about where the Texaco truck stop is now.”
There’s a 1953 aerial of the drive-in at that location that shows someone’s tiny farm slicing through the back of the ramp arcs all the way to the projection booth, splitting the back half into west and north fields though the rest of the ramps and the screen are intact. Did it really operate that way for over a decade? Weird!
I think that the El Rancho really ought to listed under El Centro, since it was just one mile east of the city limits with an approximate address of 397 E Evan Hewes Hwy, El Centro, CA 92243.
The Motor Vu was listed as under construction in nearby El Centro in the 1948-49 Theatre Catalog. It was listed under El Centro in the 1949 Film Daily Year Book list, which shifted it to Imperial for its 1950 edition.
A 1980 topo map showed the Motor Vu with just one screen, but a 1996 aerial photo showed both of them.
As of May 2019, Google Street View showed the sign, screens, and poles intact.
At some point, the Oakland and Stadium drive-ins merged. The 1977 Motion Picture Almanac had the first drive-in list to notice, calling it the “U A Stadium Drive In 3”, capacity 1100. But as early as 1972, the United Artists circuit entry in the MPA included the “Stadium/Oakland D.I.” in San Leandro.
The combined entry’s last appearance in the MPA was the 1979 edition, suggesting it closed in 1978 or earlier.
A 1972 aerial photo showed the Motor-In still intact and in good shape. It stayed on topo maps through at least 1981. The Motion Picture Almanac included it on its drive-in lists through the 1976 edition, but the MPA rarely noticed changes during 1967-76. The Motor-In fell off the list for good when the list rebooted in 1977.
Then again, that might have been because of the Motor-In’s content. I found a June 25, 1975 ad in the Fresno Bee for an X-rated triple feature there.
BTW, Google Maps prefers 3115 E Cartwright Ave for the current address. And the screen was still up as of a July 2015 Google Street View.
A 1946 aerial photo still showed the dog track, and a 1958 aerial showed a shopping center already built on the site.
The El Cerrito didn’t appear in the Film Daily Year Book drive-in list until the 1950 edition. It was still listed in the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog, and it stayed in the ever-slow-to-notice Motion Picture Almanac’s list through the 1959 edition.
The first listing in the Motion Picture Almanac for a drive-in in Brawley was the Family Motor Vu in the 1956 edition. The first mention by the Theatre Catalog of a drive-in in Brawley was the 1955-56 edition, also the Family Motor Vu. The MPA listed the Family Motor Vu through its 1976 edition, then had nothing for Brawley for three years. The 1980 edition introduced the Brawley Drive-In, which was listed that way until the 1985 edition, when it fell off the list.
OTOH, the 1963-64 Film Daily Year Books included “Brawley Drive-In” among Sero Amusement’s holdings in their circuit lists.
The July 7, 1958 issue of Variety included “Your Family Drive-In, Brawley” in an honor roll of Business Building campaign participants.
But I haven’t found another mention of the Valley View name for Brawley’s drive-in. I’d love to know Ken McIntyre’s source for that.
According to Google Street View, you can still see the screen foundation between two tall trees on the east side of the site: https://goo.gl/maps/DbC3RUEj1ovaUeaa9
The Film Daily Year Book first included the Auto-See in its 1950 edition; with Joe Vogel’s note, that suggests a 1949 opening.
The Auto-See was still outlined in a 1983 topo map, and the ramps were in decent shape in a 1998 aerial, but its final appearance in the Motion Picture Almanac’s drive-in lists was the 1984 edition.
The closest address that Google Maps likes is across the street, 29328 Rd 156. The Sequoia’s ramps are still visible, but the screen has been replaced by a cell phone tower.
Kenmore is accurate, but I’d still list this drive-in under Susanville. The Lassen was between the two chunks of Susanville (wait, what?), and Johnstonville is merely a census-designated place, apparently without borders or governance. But it was founded as Toadtown, so at least it upgraded its name.
The Lassen’s first appearance in the Film Daily Year Book’s lists was the 1951 edition, as “Drive-In”. Its first entry in the Motion Picture Almanac was the 1951-52 edition, and the first Theatre Catalog mention was 1952.
The Lassen’s screen was still visible in a 1980 aerial photo (masquerading as a topo map on HistoricAerials.com) but as Kenmore implied, it was gone in a 1981 aerial.
At some point, the Oakland and Stadium drive-ins merged. The 1977 Motion Picture Almanac had the first drive-in list to notice, calling it the “U A Stadium Drive In 3”, capacity 1100. But as early as 1972, the United Artists circuit entry in the MPA included the “Stadium/Oakland D.I.” in San Leandro.
The combined entry’s last appearance in the MPA was the 1979 edition, suggesting it closed in 1978 or earlier.
Thanks for the topo, rockyroadz. Old aerial photos show a very narrow viewing field with the screen at the west corner. The San Pablo was still in great shape in a 1959 photo, but the 1968 aerial shows the ramps run down and the screen gone.
Google Maps shows that site is now occupied by the Villa Alvarado Apartments, so a better address would be 1330 Contra Costa Ave, San Pablo, CA 94806.
The 1948 Film Daily Year Book included the “Automovie” under Pittsburgh (sic) CA, so it probably opened in 1947. It was also in the first Theatre Catalog drive-in list, the 1948-49 edition.
The Auto Movies' final appearances in the Motion Picture Almanac drive-in list were the 1960-61 editions. The drive-in list said it was operated by Blumenfeld Theas., although Blumenfeld’s circuit listing that year didn’t include it.
A 1959 aerial photo shows the drive-in in great shape, but a 1966 aerial photo of the site shows a fully built housing development.
The final appearance of the Airport Auto Movie in the Motion Picture Almanac’s drive-in lists was the 1979 edition, when it was said to have a capacity of 1000.
The drive-in was clearly visible in a 1968 aerial photo. I don’t see the screen in the 1981 aerial, but the ramps were still in good shape.
Although the aerial proves it opened earlier, the drive-in’s first appearance in the Motion Picture Alamanc was the 1970 edition, where the circuit list entry for United Artists Theatre Circuit listed the U.A. Marina Auto Movie under Monterey.
The 1972-76 MPA drive-in lists included “UAmarina” (capacity 620) under Marina CA. The rebooted 1977 MPA drive-in list had the Marina Auto Movie (capacity 754) under Monterey.
The Marina Auto Movie’s final appearance in the MPA drive-in list was 1982; the UA circuit’s holdings placed it in Marina that year. In the 1983 edition, the Marina Auto Movie was gone from all MPA lists.
Sorry, robertgippy, but this Westgate is not the same as the “West Gate” in distant Stockton, a town that also had the Hammer Drive-In.
As rivest266’s Grand Opening clipping in the photo section shows, the Westgate was a new drive-in when it opened in September 1966. The grand opening’s month argues strongly against it being merely a season opener.
Also, Google Maps likes 26375 County RD 105D, Davis, CA 95618 as the address for the old Westgate site.
The site was sufficiently intact (or the map folks were sufficiently slow to notice) that the drive-in was still included in a 1968 topo map. Its screen was just south of Oak Valley Creek. Its long driveway, projection building and traces of the ramps (but not the screen) were still visible in a 1983 aerial photo.
To better reflect that the Parkwood was at the northwest corner of Oat Valley Road and Cooley Lane, a better address for its entrance is 31260 Oat Valley Road.
HistoricAerials shows the drive-in adjacent to Atlantic Avenue north of the wash. The closest address to the Island’s entrance would be 2001 Bartlett Drive.
The drive-in still looked good in this aerial photo from 1985. But by this 1990 photo, two-foot weeds are visible in the ramps although the screen is intact.
Although the drive-in’s grand opening ad listed its address as 1520 N. Lemon Street (just off Orangethorpe), the 1960 photo and 1996 LA Times account verify davidcoppock’s note that it was where the Lowe’s is now, so a better address would be 1500 Lemon St.
To elaborate on my comment a couple of years ago, the El Rio was in the very first Motion Picture Almanac drive-in list (the 1950-51 edition), and the Park Vu was in the very last (1988). Considering how slow the MPA reacted to changed in the 1960s and 70s, the name change probably occurred within a few years of 1970.
The full MPA record, which was actually quite stable:
I thought you were right, dansdriveintheater, based on Google Earth images, so I drove all the way out to take a picture of what was left. When I arrived on a late Sunday morning, men were in the process of building something new where the concession stand had been. I missed it by weeks. :(
On the other hand, the sign still looked nice a few blocks away on the main road through town. I uploaded a picture for you.
The Valley News ran another story this week about a windstorm on May 24, 1962 that yanked the screen off its frame. The story includes a photo of the marquee that day, advertising the movie “All Fall Down”.
The article also said that the White River closed in spring 1987, citing VCRs as the final blow, and that the Midway Drive-In in Ascutney closed about the same time. Here’s a link to the Internet Archive version, which doesn’t include that nice marquee photo.
The 1948-49 Theatre Catalog listed the El Rancho with a capacity of 350, owner John Armm, status “CLOSED”. But the inaugural Motion Picture Almanac list in 1950-51 had the owner as R. C. Jones, capacity 400, and by implication, open again. That’s the way the MPA listed it until 1966, when it fell off the list.
A local historian was quoted in El Centro’s Imperial Valley Press on Feb. 27, 2002 that the drive-in “was on Highway 111 south of old Highway 80, about where the Texaco truck stop is now.”
There’s a 1953 aerial of the drive-in at that location that shows someone’s tiny farm slicing through the back of the ramp arcs all the way to the projection booth, splitting the back half into west and north fields though the rest of the ramps and the screen are intact. Did it really operate that way for over a decade? Weird!
I think that the El Rancho really ought to listed under El Centro, since it was just one mile east of the city limits with an approximate address of 397 E Evan Hewes Hwy, El Centro, CA 92243.
The Motor Vu was listed as under construction in nearby El Centro in the 1948-49 Theatre Catalog. It was listed under El Centro in the 1949 Film Daily Year Book list, which shifted it to Imperial for its 1950 edition.
A 1980 topo map showed the Motor Vu with just one screen, but a 1996 aerial photo showed both of them.
As of May 2019, Google Street View showed the sign, screens, and poles intact.
At some point, the Oakland and Stadium drive-ins merged. The 1977 Motion Picture Almanac had the first drive-in list to notice, calling it the “U A Stadium Drive In 3”, capacity 1100. But as early as 1972, the United Artists circuit entry in the MPA included the “Stadium/Oakland D.I.” in San Leandro.
The combined entry’s last appearance in the MPA was the 1979 edition, suggesting it closed in 1978 or earlier.
Since this drive-in was replaced by the South Hayward BART Station, the best address would be the station’s: 28601 Dixon St, Hayward, CA 94544.
Great photo, but it belongs to the UA Hayward Automovies, which didn’t close until the 1980s. The Hayward closed in 1968.
A 1972 aerial photo showed the Motor-In still intact and in good shape. It stayed on topo maps through at least 1981. The Motion Picture Almanac included it on its drive-in lists through the 1976 edition, but the MPA rarely noticed changes during 1967-76. The Motor-In fell off the list for good when the list rebooted in 1977.
Then again, that might have been because of the Motor-In’s content. I found a June 25, 1975 ad in the Fresno Bee for an X-rated triple feature there.
BTW, Google Maps prefers 3115 E Cartwright Ave for the current address. And the screen was still up as of a July 2015 Google Street View.
A 1946 aerial photo still showed the dog track, and a 1958 aerial showed a shopping center already built on the site.
The El Cerrito didn’t appear in the Film Daily Year Book drive-in list until the 1950 edition. It was still listed in the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog, and it stayed in the ever-slow-to-notice Motion Picture Almanac’s list through the 1959 edition.
The first listing in the Motion Picture Almanac for a drive-in in Brawley was the Family Motor Vu in the 1956 edition. The first mention by the Theatre Catalog of a drive-in in Brawley was the 1955-56 edition, also the Family Motor Vu. The MPA listed the Family Motor Vu through its 1976 edition, then had nothing for Brawley for three years. The 1980 edition introduced the Brawley Drive-In, which was listed that way until the 1985 edition, when it fell off the list.
OTOH, the 1963-64 Film Daily Year Books included “Brawley Drive-In” among Sero Amusement’s holdings in their circuit lists.
The July 7, 1958 issue of Variety included “Your Family Drive-In, Brawley” in an honor roll of Business Building campaign participants.
But I haven’t found another mention of the Valley View name for Brawley’s drive-in. I’d love to know Ken McIntyre’s source for that.
According to Google Street View, you can still see the screen foundation between two tall trees on the east side of the site: https://goo.gl/maps/DbC3RUEj1ovaUeaa9
The Film Daily Year Book first included the Auto-See in its 1950 edition; with Joe Vogel’s note, that suggests a 1949 opening.
The Auto-See was still outlined in a 1983 topo map, and the ramps were in decent shape in a 1998 aerial, but its final appearance in the Motion Picture Almanac’s drive-in lists was the 1984 edition.
The closest address that Google Maps likes is across the street, 29328 Rd 156. The Sequoia’s ramps are still visible, but the screen has been replaced by a cell phone tower.
Kenmore is accurate, but I’d still list this drive-in under Susanville. The Lassen was between the two chunks of Susanville (wait, what?), and Johnstonville is merely a census-designated place, apparently without borders or governance. But it was founded as Toadtown, so at least it upgraded its name.
The Lassen’s first appearance in the Film Daily Year Book’s lists was the 1951 edition, as “Drive-In”. Its first entry in the Motion Picture Almanac was the 1951-52 edition, and the first Theatre Catalog mention was 1952.
The Lassen’s screen was still visible in a 1980 aerial photo (masquerading as a topo map on HistoricAerials.com) but as Kenmore implied, it was gone in a 1981 aerial.
At some point, the Oakland and Stadium drive-ins merged. The 1977 Motion Picture Almanac had the first drive-in list to notice, calling it the “U A Stadium Drive In 3”, capacity 1100. But as early as 1972, the United Artists circuit entry in the MPA included the “Stadium/Oakland D.I.” in San Leandro.
The combined entry’s last appearance in the MPA was the 1979 edition, suggesting it closed in 1978 or earlier.
Thanks for the topo, rockyroadz. Old aerial photos show a very narrow viewing field with the screen at the west corner. The San Pablo was still in great shape in a 1959 photo, but the 1968 aerial shows the ramps run down and the screen gone.
Google Maps shows that site is now occupied by the Villa Alvarado Apartments, so a better address would be 1330 Contra Costa Ave, San Pablo, CA 94806.
The 1948 Film Daily Year Book included the “Automovie” under Pittsburgh (sic) CA, so it probably opened in 1947. It was also in the first Theatre Catalog drive-in list, the 1948-49 edition.
The Auto Movies' final appearances in the Motion Picture Almanac drive-in list were the 1960-61 editions. The drive-in list said it was operated by Blumenfeld Theas., although Blumenfeld’s circuit listing that year didn’t include it.
A 1959 aerial photo shows the drive-in in great shape, but a 1966 aerial photo of the site shows a fully built housing development.
The final appearance of the Airport Auto Movie in the Motion Picture Almanac’s drive-in lists was the 1979 edition, when it was said to have a capacity of 1000.
The drive-in was clearly visible in a 1968 aerial photo. I don’t see the screen in the 1981 aerial, but the ramps were still in good shape.
Although the aerial proves it opened earlier, the drive-in’s first appearance in the Motion Picture Alamanc was the 1970 edition, where the circuit list entry for United Artists Theatre Circuit listed the U.A. Marina Auto Movie under Monterey.
The 1972-76 MPA drive-in lists included “UAmarina” (capacity 620) under Marina CA. The rebooted 1977 MPA drive-in list had the Marina Auto Movie (capacity 754) under Monterey.
The Marina Auto Movie’s final appearance in the MPA drive-in list was 1982; the UA circuit’s holdings placed it in Marina that year. In the 1983 edition, the Marina Auto Movie was gone from all MPA lists.
The Fremont’s last appearance in the Motion Picture Almanac was its 1982 edition.
Sorry, robertgippy, but this Westgate is not the same as the “West Gate” in distant Stockton, a town that also had the Hammer Drive-In.
As rivest266’s Grand Opening clipping in the photo section shows, the Westgate was a new drive-in when it opened in September 1966. The grand opening’s month argues strongly against it being merely a season opener.
Also, Google Maps likes 26375 County RD 105D, Davis, CA 95618 as the address for the old Westgate site.
The site was sufficiently intact (or the map folks were sufficiently slow to notice) that the drive-in was still included in a 1968 topo map. Its screen was just south of Oak Valley Creek. Its long driveway, projection building and traces of the ramps (but not the screen) were still visible in a 1983 aerial photo.
To better reflect that the Parkwood was at the northwest corner of Oat Valley Road and Cooley Lane, a better address for its entrance is 31260 Oat Valley Road.
HistoricAerials shows the drive-in adjacent to Atlantic Avenue north of the wash. The closest address to the Island’s entrance would be 2001 Bartlett Drive.
The drive-in still looked good in this aerial photo from 1985. But by this 1990 photo, two-foot weeds are visible in the ramps although the screen is intact.
Although the drive-in’s grand opening ad listed its address as 1520 N. Lemon Street (just off Orangethorpe), the 1960 photo and 1996 LA Times account verify davidcoppock’s note that it was where the Lowe’s is now, so a better address would be 1500 Lemon St.
To elaborate on my comment a couple of years ago, the El Rio was in the very first Motion Picture Almanac drive-in list (the 1950-51 edition), and the Park Vu was in the very last (1988). Considering how slow the MPA reacted to changed in the 1960s and 70s, the name change probably occurred within a few years of 1970.
The full MPA record, which was actually quite stable:
I thought you were right, dansdriveintheater, based on Google Earth images, so I drove all the way out to take a picture of what was left. When I arrived on a late Sunday morning, men were in the process of building something new where the concession stand had been. I missed it by weeks. :(
On the other hand, the sign still looked nice a few blocks away on the main road through town. I uploaded a picture for you.
The Valley News ran another story this week about a windstorm on May 24, 1962 that yanked the screen off its frame. The story includes a photo of the marquee that day, advertising the movie “All Fall Down”.
The article also said that the White River closed in spring 1987, citing VCRs as the final blow, and that the Midway Drive-In in Ascutney closed about the same time. Here’s a link to the Internet Archive version, which doesn’t include that nice marquee photo.