The Riverside Drive-In actually closed after the 1984 season. Martin Theatres operated the Riverside throughout most of its history since the early-1960s.
The Mall Cinema III opened its doors in 1976 by Mann Theaters. Later operated by Commonwealth Theatres, United Artists, and First International before becoming a Carmike theater in 1998.
NOTE: Michael Paul managed the theater throughout most of its history from 1983 until 2005.
The Mall Cinema III closed on November 17, 2005 with “Chicken Little” at Screen 1, “Legend Of Zorro” at Screen 2, and “Dreamer” at Screen 3 when Carmike opened the six-screener nearby.
It looks identical but it appears that it’s not the right building. I recently looked it up on Historic Aerials, and the building is not old at all. The building did not appear in any of the older aerials, meaning that it was built between the 1990s or 2000s.
It also appears that a 2005 Google Earth view shows that it was used as its current Lasseter John Deere dealership.
NOTE: Businesses on Bowen Mills Road did receive growth in the 1980s, but the current John Deere building wasn’t even built yet.
The Comet Drive-In opened its gates on April 28, 1950 with Larry Parks in “Renegade” along with a few unnamed short subjects. It was first operated by John Blakeman and Jim Rochell.
Exactly two weeks later, Waite T. Kerr and Mrs. Izah Adams opened the Starlite Drive-In right next door on the opposite side on May 8, 1950 with William Bendix in “Life Of Riley” with no extra short subjects. Both the Comet and the Starlite battle with each other until the Starlite closed for the final time in 1955, leaving the Comet the only drive-in theater in Sulphur.
The Comet Drive-In continued operating into the late-1980s, but was gone by the mid-1990s.
I saw the building in a drone view on ABC World News Tonight.
And actually, this started life as the Ritz Theatre. I cannot find its opening date but it opened as early as 1937. It was renamed the Carlton Theatre on October 21, 1956. It did not had a short closure in early-1959, as it immediately changed its name back to Ritz Theatre during the first week of March 1959.
Edited from my December 7, 2022 (2:42 PM) comment:
The Stereo Drive-In, named after the theater’s sound equipment (very unusual), originally planned to open on Easter 1959 but postponed due to rain. It opened later in April 1959 and was renamed Drive-In Cinema in 1962.
The Drive-In Cinema closed for the final time on January 30, 2000 with a very UNUSUAL special event. The Drive-In Cinema did not close with a movie. But instead, it closed with the screen showing live WFTS-TV coverage of Super Bowl XXXIV playing from a digital projector being hooked up from a Time Warner Cable box.
The Tampa Bay Times reported the Drive-In Cinema as the most unusual drive-in theater in the world just before its closure.
It was demolished in 2001 to make way for a Walmart as a relocated store from the previous 1989-built 8900 US Highway 19 North location. The Walmart opened on October 24, 2001.
The Lincolndale Twin Drive-In appears to be EXTREMELY short-lived. The Indianapolis Star reported that the Lincolndale on US-30 East in Warsaw was completely closed in September 1986 and also stated that the buildings and equipment were at auction.
The Roxy Theatre opened its doors on January 23, 1909 on a site of a former local newspaper building.
Fun Fact: Several survivors of the December 28, 1908 Messina 7.1 magnitude earthquake (that killed around 80,000 people) attended its grand opening ceremonies.
It was renamed the Roxy Theatre on May 11, 1931 and closed in 1946.
The Capitol Theatre opened with Jane Withers in “Little Miss Nobody” along with a few short subjects (both unnamed and unlisted in grand opening ad), and was operated by the Comerford chain. Special ceremonies outside the theater were also presented before opening on grand opening.
The Capitol Theatre last operated as a seasonal theater, and closed in the early-1970s.
The Lyric Theatre that operated before 1922 opened in September 1910 in the Jones & Bagby building. At the time, Vinita had two other theaters as well, which were the Auditorium Theatre and the Vaudette Theatre. The original Lyric received an updated front in August 1912.
The current Lyric Theatre opened in 1919 following relocation. On December 10, 1950, it was renamed the Center Theatre.
The Capitol Theatre actually opened its doors on July 28, 1934 with Shirley Temple in “Baby Take A Bow” (unknown if any short subjects added). It originally had a capacity of 1,250 seats, with 850 in the main auditorium, 200 in the lounge, and 200 in the balcony.
The Cord Theatre opened its doors on October 11, 1914 with an unknown vaudeville by the Pantages Circuit. It was first operated by E.W. Trenbeth. It was renamed the Liberty Theatre in 1939.
The Liberty Theatre was a first-run movie house for most of its life, but in 1971, the Liberty Theatre briefly began screening X-rated movies as well as selected Spanish features.
This didn’t last long, and the Liberty Theatre closed for the final time in November 1971. It was originally scheduled to be closed for two weeks due to repairs, but it never reopened.
The Benton Theatre opened its doors on February 9, 1945 with Alan Carney in “Girl Rush” along with several short subjects. It was first operated by Midstate Amusement, who operated most theaters in the area at the time, and the theater building was constructed by Salem, Oregon’s Halvorsen Construction Company. It was first managed by C.C. Miller.
The Benton Theater closed for the final time on January 31, 1971 with Walt Disney’s “Son Of Flubber” and “The Cockeyed Cowboys Of Calico County”.
Construction of the Clearwater Cinemas started on February 7, 1980 by SRO Theatres, who also operated many other theaters across the tri-cities. It was originally planned to be built as a 600-seat twin (with 400 seats at Screen 1 and 200 seats at Screen 2) but ended up adding another screen before construction started.
The Clearwater Cinemas opened its doors by SRO on June 20, 1980 with “Rough Cut” at Screen 1, “Can’t Stop The Music” at Screen 2, and “The Black Stallion” at Screen 3.
After SRO was sold in December 1986, all of its indoor theaters there became part of Cineplex Odeon and later Act III Theatres. It was last operated by Regal before closing for the final time in December 2000, alongside the nearby Metro 4 in Richland, due to financial troubles.
Also opened with Walt Disney’s “The Legend Of The Boy And The Eagle”.
Once operated by Mann Theaters.
The Riverside Drive-In actually closed after the 1984 season. Martin Theatres operated the Riverside throughout most of its history since the early-1960s.
The Mall Cinema III opened its doors in 1976 by Mann Theaters. Later operated by Commonwealth Theatres, United Artists, and First International before becoming a Carmike theater in 1998.
The Mall Cinema III closed on November 17, 2005 with “Chicken Little” at Screen 1, “Legend Of Zorro” at Screen 2, and “Dreamer” at Screen 3 when Carmike opened the six-screener nearby.
It looks identical but it appears that it’s not the right building. I recently looked it up on Historic Aerials, and the building is not old at all. The building did not appear in any of the older aerials, meaning that it was built between the 1990s or 2000s.
It also appears that a 2005 Google Earth view shows that it was used as its current Lasseter John Deere dealership.
Correction: It was an EF3.
The actual opening date is May 8, 1950 with William Bendix in “Life Of Riley” with no extra short subjects.
Opened in 1913, closed in March 1937 when the Ritz Theatre nearby opened.
Closed in 1955.
The Comet Drive-In opened its gates on April 28, 1950 with Larry Parks in “Renegade” along with a few unnamed short subjects. It was first operated by John Blakeman and Jim Rochell.
The Comet Drive-In continued operating into the late-1980s, but was gone by the mid-1990s.
I saw the building in a drone view on ABC World News Tonight.
And actually, this started life as the Ritz Theatre. I cannot find its opening date but it opened as early as 1937. It was renamed the Carlton Theatre on October 21, 1956. It did not had a short closure in early-1959, as it immediately changed its name back to Ritz Theatre during the first week of March 1959.
First operated by Martin Theatres.
Edited from my December 7, 2022 (2:42 PM) comment:
The Stereo Drive-In, named after the theater’s sound equipment (very unusual), originally planned to open on Easter 1959 but postponed due to rain. It opened later in April 1959 and was renamed Drive-In Cinema in 1962.
The Drive-In Cinema closed for the final time on January 30, 2000 with a very UNUSUAL special event. The Drive-In Cinema did not close with a movie. But instead, it closed with the screen showing live WFTS-TV coverage of Super Bowl XXXIV playing from a digital projector being hooked up from a Time Warner Cable box.
It was demolished in 2001 to make way for a Walmart as a relocated store from the previous 1989-built 8900 US Highway 19 North location. The Walmart opened on October 24, 2001.
Also, not to be confused with the Drive-In Cinema in nearby Pinellas Park (formerly known as the Stereo Drive-In).
The Lincolndale Twin Drive-In appears to be EXTREMELY short-lived. The Indianapolis Star reported that the Lincolndale on US-30 East in Warsaw was completely closed in September 1986 and also stated that the buildings and equipment were at auction.
The Roxy Theatre opened its doors on January 23, 1909 on a site of a former local newspaper building.
It was renamed the Roxy Theatre on May 11, 1931 and closed in 1946.
The Capitol Theatre opened with Jane Withers in “Little Miss Nobody” along with a few short subjects (both unnamed and unlisted in grand opening ad), and was operated by the Comerford chain. Special ceremonies outside the theater were also presented before opening on grand opening.
The Capitol Theatre last operated as a seasonal theater, and closed in the early-1970s.
The Lyric Theatre that operated before 1922 opened in September 1910 in the Jones & Bagby building. At the time, Vinita had two other theaters as well, which were the Auditorium Theatre and the Vaudette Theatre. The original Lyric received an updated front in August 1912.
The current Lyric Theatre opened in 1919 following relocation. On December 10, 1950, it was renamed the Center Theatre.
Final year of operation, 1996.
The Capitol Theatre actually opened its doors on July 28, 1934 with Shirley Temple in “Baby Take A Bow” (unknown if any short subjects added). It originally had a capacity of 1,250 seats, with 850 in the main auditorium, 200 in the lounge, and 200 in the balcony.
Opened in September 1944.
Opened on July 3, 1920 as Liberty, renamed Roxy in April 1939, closed in early 1953.
The Cord Theatre opened its doors on October 11, 1914 with an unknown vaudeville by the Pantages Circuit. It was first operated by E.W. Trenbeth. It was renamed the Liberty Theatre in 1939.
The Liberty Theatre was a first-run movie house for most of its life, but in 1971, the Liberty Theatre briefly began screening X-rated movies as well as selected Spanish features.
This didn’t last long, and the Liberty Theatre closed for the final time in November 1971. It was originally scheduled to be closed for two weeks due to repairs, but it never reopened.
The Benton Theatre opened its doors on February 9, 1945 with Alan Carney in “Girl Rush” along with several short subjects. It was first operated by Midstate Amusement, who operated most theaters in the area at the time, and the theater building was constructed by Salem, Oregon’s Halvorsen Construction Company. It was first managed by C.C. Miller.
The Benton Theater closed for the final time on January 31, 1971 with Walt Disney’s “Son Of Flubber” and “The Cockeyed Cowboys Of Calico County”.
Construction of the Clearwater Cinemas started on February 7, 1980 by SRO Theatres, who also operated many other theaters across the tri-cities. It was originally planned to be built as a 600-seat twin (with 400 seats at Screen 1 and 200 seats at Screen 2) but ended up adding another screen before construction started.
The Clearwater Cinemas opened its doors by SRO on June 20, 1980 with “Rough Cut” at Screen 1, “Can’t Stop The Music” at Screen 2, and “The Black Stallion” at Screen 3.
After SRO was sold in December 1986, all of its indoor theaters there became part of Cineplex Odeon and later Act III Theatres. It was last operated by Regal before closing for the final time in December 2000, alongside the nearby Metro 4 in Richland, due to financial troubles.