Eugene Houck’s obituary (July 27, 1932 - Jan. 22, 2019) in the Waco Tribune Herald made it seem as though he didn’t stay in the business very long: “Eugene started working in the theater business. He owned the Joy Drive-In Theater and the Joy Theater downtown that was destroyed in the 1953 Waco tornado. He then went into the nursery and landscaping business with his father, Corbin Houck, starting up Westview Nursery, which has been around for over six decades.”
The Joy also advertised in the Las Cruces Sun-News, but the first ad I could find was later that month.
When did the Joy close? The last ad I could find was in the Sun-News on Aug. 25, 1974.
Sounds like it was definitely closed by 1980. “El Paso Times, Nov. 7, 1988: “Eight years ago, sisters Bertha Rizzuti and Ernestina Acosta decided to put the old Joy Drive-in movie theater on their family’s farm to good use. The former snack bar became a preschool classroom.”
I found a final-er ad for the Sunset in the Albuquerque Journal. Now I’d say that the last one was on Sept. 1, 1990, showing “Gremlins II”.
And I may have found the slightly misspelled D. Armino.
Albuquerque Journal, May 12, 2009: “The Sunset opened in the early ‘50s, built by a hard-working couple, Marlin and Carrie Butler, who years later, coincidentally became Caroline’s (Armijo Butler, 60) in-laws. Opened a wholesome family place, the Butlers did, and poured their hearts into it, till 1967 … Caroline’s father, David Armijo, owned the land. All the rest – exit signs, popcorn machine, restrooms, was leased.”
I couldn’t find any Silver Dollar ads in the Albuquerque Journal after Sept. 2, 1980. Spot checks in the summer of 1981 turned up nothing.
Albuquerque Tribune, Sept. 16, 1982: “The former Silver Dollar Drive-In movie theater off San Mateo Boulevard N. E. is on its way to becoming a high-rise apartment complex.”
Tesuque’s version of the Pueblo showed its final movies “The Creature Walks Among Us” and “The Last Hunt” on Saturday, Sept. 28, 1957. Its ad concluded, “The Pueblo will close Sat. nite for the season. Thank you for your patronage and we hope to see you next year.”
Santa Fe New Mexican, April 13, 1958: “Greer Enterprises now is in the process of building a “new home” for the Pueblo Drive-In in a more convenient location, and at the same time is expanding facilities at the movie theater. Site of the Pueblo is being switched from the end of Tesuque Drive to Cerrillos Road"
Santa Fe New Mexican, April 13, 1958: “Greer Enterprises now is in the process of building a “new home” for the Pueblo Drive-In in a more convenient location, and at the same time is expanding facilities at the movie theater. Site of the Pueblo is being switched from the end of Tesuque Drive to Cerrillos Road, and it is scheduled to begin operation about May 1. The new location will provide room for 600 cars, compared with 400 in the old location, and a new 40 by 80-foot, all-steel curved screen is being installed along with modern projection equipment and new snack bar and playground facilities. Second run films from the Lensic will be shown at the drive-in.”
This new location for the Pueblo held its Grand Opening on May 30, 1958, with a program of “Badlands” (probably “Badlands of Montana,” a 1957 movie starring Rex Reason) and “Les Girls” starring Gene Kelly.
A Hobbs Daily News-Sun retropective on Sept. 18, 1975 mentioned, “In 1948 Theatre Enterprises opened the Sky-Vu drive-in theater on Hobbs-Lovington Highway.” However, two contemporary notes suggest that the Sky Vu opened on May 5, 1949. An ad in the May 1, 1949 Hobbs Daily News-Sun said that would the date of the Grand Opening. And a roundup of new theater openings in the May 14, 1949 Boxoffice included "Hobbs, N. M. - Sky-Vue Drive-In opened May 5 by R. W. Ferguson.”
I don’t think the Eagle recovered from the Feb. 9, 1960 storm that knocked down its tower. I couldn’t find any ads in the Hobbs Daily News that summer or the summer of 1961 next to the Sky-Vu and the Flamingo. In May 1960, manager Kenneth Powell reported that someone stole three projector lenses from the Eagle. A 1976 note reported the theft of carpet from a storage building “at the old Eagle Drive-In”.
Since CT uses a theater’s final name in its entry, this drive-in of several lives probably ought to be the Northside. Although it ran a tiny one-column ad the day before, here’s a better ad from the Northside’s opening weekend.
An article in the Sept. 16, 1986 Journal said that former Video Independent Theaters employees Curtis and Melinda Ralston were behind the drive-in restoration. They put in FM radio sound before opening and were planning to add a playground and picnic tables for the 1987 season.
The last Northside ad I could find was on Nov. 12, 1988.
A few more notes after combing through the Albuquerque Tribune and Albuquerque Journal. Ralph Moody was the manager when it opened, but Roger G. Steiger was the manager by late September, when Life magazine took “panoramic pictures” of the Circle and its patrons. I wonder if those are around somewhere.
The Autoscope might have been a victim of a price war. The Route 25 was advertising triple features for 90c per carload, and the Circle went from 99c a carload on Sept. 28 to as low as 80c for four shows on Oct. 19.
Although its name was typically shortened to just “Circle Drive-In,” the Autoscope continued advertising in the Albuquerque Tribune and Journal through Dec. 1, 1963. On Dec. 2, the Circle’s ad was gone.
The last Chief ad I could find in the Lordsburg Liberal was Aug. 28, 1964. “Seven Ways From Sundown” was going to play until Sunday, Aug. 30, then “Drive-in closes after Sunday show for winter months.” Spot checks of summer 1965 issues showed ads for the indoor Coronado but nothing for the Chief.
The April 16, 1954 issue of the Lordsburg Liberal said the Chief Drive-In would open on April 17 with “Stalag 17” starring William Holden. “The Chief Drive-In has been under construction for several months now and is located about three miles east of town on Highways 70 and 80.”
T of C Herald, Dec. 14, 1972: “We would like to welcome Jim Moss to the community as one of our newest businessmen. Jim has purchased the El Rio Theatre from McCormick Theatres and will open for business with the first showing Thursday night December 14.”
James Moss wrote a letter to editor, appearing Sept. 4, 1975, that he was cancelling plans to show “Deep Throat” at the El Rio. “The people protesting this movie never come to our family features, nor do the organizations of this community support the theatre.”
I’d guess that the Whetzels didn’t arrive until late 1975 or later.
The Exhibitor, Sept. 3, 1952: “Raymond Gremillion, Southeastern Theatre Equipment, handled the sale of RCA’s latest sound and projection for the new Jet Drive-In, a 300-car operation near Cut Off, La., which associate owners Lefty Cheramie, Richard Guidry, and R. J. Soignet contemplate opening in September.”
The Exhibitor, Sept. 10, 1952: “Lefty Cheramie, Rebstock, Golden Meadows, La., advised that the Jet Drive-In that he, Richard Guidry, and R. J. Soignet have under construction in Bayouland country should be completed in the early fall.”
The Exhibitor, Sept. 24, 1952: “Lefty Cheramie, Rebstock, Golden Meadows, and Richard Guidry, Galliano, La., were shopping around for concession equipment for their Jet Drive-In, in the building stage near Cutoff (sic), La.”
Motion Picture Herald, Jan. 17, 1953: “The opening of the Jet drive-in, Cut Off, La., was postponed due to the re-erection of the screen tower, which was blown down in a recent storm. L. J. Cheramie one of the owners said that the approximate damage was $4,000. Others associated in the project are R. J. Soignet, Thibodaux, La., and Richard Guidry, Galliano, La.”
Motion Picture Herald, March 21, 1953: “Lefty Cheramie, Richard Guidry and R. J. Soignet opened their jet drive-in. Cut Off, La., March 16.”
The March 23-May 11, 1972 want ads in the Truth or Consequences Herald included: “For Sale By Owner – Palms Drive In Theatre, T or C. N. M. 2 miles SW of City limits on old Highway 85. Good 40 x 70 ft. screen. 24ft x 72 ft. block bldg. Projection room, Rest Rooms, Snack bar and store room. Good 8 in. water well. Ticket office, marquee, 180 car spaces plus additional space, 9.52 acres total. $35,000. Would consider terms, of $5,000 down or more. Oscar Conwell. Phone …”
The front page of the July 30, 1953 Jal Record had a short story on the Panther (yes, the same name as the local high school mascot). “Emilu Betty has announced special prices at the Panther Drive-In will be offered through the month of August … She stated the feature price is … to express … deep appreciation for the splendid patronage enjoyed since the Panther Drive-In was opened in the summer of ‘52.”
What’s weird about that is that I never found any mention of the Panther Drive-In in 1952 issues of the Record, which ran weekly ads for the indoor Rex and noted the opening of the Lariat Drive-In in Kermit TX during that period. The Panther was advertising in 1953.
Jal (NM) Record, Sept. 18, 1952: “Kermit, Texas, Sept. 20 - The grand opening of the newest addition to Kermit’s theaters will be held this week end when the Lariat Drive-In Theater will welcome guests at an open-house celebration to be held from 2 until 10 p.m. Thursday, with opening night set to begin at 6:30 Friday night. The 446-car capacity theater will show first-run movies … Opening night picture will be Rancho Notorious, starring Marlene Dietrick, Arthur Kennedy and Mel Ferrer, which will be shown Friday and Saturday nights.”
Thanks. Those are excellent reasons for keeping the existing opening date, wherever it came from.
OTOH, I just double-checked my source. (My kid’s college library link to ProQuest. I don’t know what I’ll do for research after graduation, coming later this year. But I digress.) I verified that the first page of the Southwest section of the Aug. 6, 1962 Boxoffice had at its top the headline “New Tarpon Drive-In / Is Opened in Texas” and the story I typed in full above.
So something happened. It was too late in the year for this to be a misunderstood season opener. The same guys who built the drive-in 10 years earlier were lauded for this “new” Tarpon. Shifted location? Probably not; Kenmore is the best at spotting those. Recovery from disaster? Teardown and rebuild? For now, I just don’t know.
Showmen’s Trade Review, July 15, 1944: “Equipment damaged in the Palace theatre fire at Lordsburg, N. M., will be replaced. Mrs. S. E. Allen was in Denver securing priorities and arranging for new material.”
The Hobbs News-Sun had a lengthy story about the Panther, picked by the AP and printed in the March 26, 1984 Carlsbad Current-Angus. It said that the Panther opened “more than 30 years ago,” and was purchased by Larry Stapler in 1977 “on the spur of the moment.” Stapler jerry-rigged an AM radio broadcasting system and took down the speaker poles. The drive-in’s only real problem was caused “about 15 years ago by a tornado that blew down the screen and knocked out the concession windows.”
Boxoffice, Aug. 6, 1962: “Word received on the (Dallas Film) Row that a fire destroyed the Rex Theatre in Jal, N. M. Bruce Wilkerson, owner, said he could attribute the fire only to faulty wiring.”
Boxoffice, July 23, 1973: “Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Norman Pender, Rex Theatre, Jal., N.M., whose daughter Lonna Ree Pender has nearly doubled her weight since her recent birth.”
Could it be that the Tarpon opened on July 3, 1962?
Boxoffice, Aug. 6, 1962: “Aransas Pass, Tex. - E. F. Falgout, mayor of Aransas Pass, and C. L. Walker, well-known local businessman, have opened their new Tarpon Drive-In on Farm Road 632, south of town. The massive tilted screen overlooks a parking area which will accommodate 377 cars. The ramp area has been hard surfaced to permit easy access and terracing has been employed to permit full view by patrons in cars. In front of the screen is a well-equipped playground.”
Eugene Houck’s obituary (July 27, 1932 - Jan. 22, 2019) in the Waco Tribune Herald made it seem as though he didn’t stay in the business very long: “Eugene started working in the theater business. He owned the Joy Drive-In Theater and the Joy Theater downtown that was destroyed in the 1953 Waco tornado. He then went into the nursery and landscaping business with his father, Corbin Houck, starting up Westview Nursery, which has been around for over six decades.”
When did the Joy open? The first ad I could find in the El Paso Times was on May 5, 1954, but it looked nothing like a Grand Opening ad.
The Joy also advertised in the Las Cruces Sun-News, but the first ad I could find was later that month.
When did the Joy close? The last ad I could find was in the Sun-News on Aug. 25, 1974.
Sounds like it was definitely closed by 1980. “El Paso Times, Nov. 7, 1988: “Eight years ago, sisters Bertha Rizzuti and Ernestina Acosta decided to put the old Joy Drive-in movie theater on their family’s farm to good use. The former snack bar became a preschool classroom.”
I found a final-er ad for the Sunset in the Albuquerque Journal. Now I’d say that the last one was on Sept. 1, 1990, showing “Gremlins II”.
And I may have found the slightly misspelled D. Armino.
Albuquerque Journal, May 12, 2009: “The Sunset opened in the early ‘50s, built by a hard-working couple, Marlin and Carrie Butler, who years later, coincidentally became Caroline’s (Armijo Butler, 60) in-laws. Opened a wholesome family place, the Butlers did, and poured their hearts into it, till 1967 … Caroline’s father, David Armijo, owned the land. All the rest – exit signs, popcorn machine, restrooms, was leased.”
I couldn’t find any Silver Dollar ads in the Albuquerque Journal after Sept. 2, 1980. Spot checks in the summer of 1981 turned up nothing.
Albuquerque Tribune, Sept. 16, 1982: “The former Silver Dollar Drive-In movie theater off San Mateo Boulevard N. E. is on its way to becoming a high-rise apartment complex.”
Don’t you hate it when the microfilmers use bound newspapers?
Found on Newspaperarchive.com
Tesuque’s version of the Pueblo showed its final movies “The Creature Walks Among Us” and “The Last Hunt” on Saturday, Sept. 28, 1957. Its ad concluded, “The Pueblo will close Sat. nite for the season. Thank you for your patronage and we hope to see you next year.”
Santa Fe New Mexican, April 13, 1958: “Greer Enterprises now is in the process of building a “new home” for the Pueblo Drive-In in a more convenient location, and at the same time is expanding facilities at the movie theater. Site of the Pueblo is being switched from the end of Tesuque Drive to Cerrillos Road"
Santa Fe New Mexican, April 13, 1958: “Greer Enterprises now is in the process of building a “new home” for the Pueblo Drive-In in a more convenient location, and at the same time is expanding facilities at the movie theater. Site of the Pueblo is being switched from the end of Tesuque Drive to Cerrillos Road, and it is scheduled to begin operation about May 1. The new location will provide room for 600 cars, compared with 400 in the old location, and a new 40 by 80-foot, all-steel curved screen is being installed along with modern projection equipment and new snack bar and playground facilities. Second run films from the Lensic will be shown at the drive-in.”
This new location for the Pueblo held its Grand Opening on May 30, 1958, with a program of “Badlands” (probably “Badlands of Montana,” a 1957 movie starring Rex Reason) and “Les Girls” starring Gene Kelly.
The final ad for the Pueblo, in the Commonwealth Theatres section, was on Sunday, Sept. 14, 1980. The program was “Friday the 13th” and “Up in Smoke.”
A Hobbs Daily News-Sun retropective on Sept. 18, 1975 mentioned, “In 1948 Theatre Enterprises opened the Sky-Vu drive-in theater on Hobbs-Lovington Highway.” However, two contemporary notes suggest that the Sky Vu opened on May 5, 1949. An ad in the May 1, 1949 Hobbs Daily News-Sun said that would the date of the Grand Opening. And a roundup of new theater openings in the May 14, 1949 Boxoffice included "Hobbs, N. M. - Sky-Vue Drive-In opened May 5 by R. W. Ferguson.”
I don’t think the Eagle recovered from the Feb. 9, 1960 storm that knocked down its tower. I couldn’t find any ads in the Hobbs Daily News that summer or the summer of 1961 next to the Sky-Vu and the Flamingo. In May 1960, manager Kenneth Powell reported that someone stole three projector lenses from the Eagle. A 1976 note reported the theft of carpet from a storage building “at the old Eagle Drive-In”.
The Eagle opened on Aug. 8, 1950. Its first program was “The Kid from Texas” starrting Audie Murphy, plus two color cartoons.
Found on Newspaperarchive.com
Since CT uses a theater’s final name in its entry, this drive-in of several lives probably ought to be the Northside. Although it ran a tiny one-column ad the day before, here’s a better ad from the Northside’s opening weekend.
An article in the Sept. 16, 1986 Journal said that former Video Independent Theaters employees Curtis and Melinda Ralston were behind the drive-in restoration. They put in FM radio sound before opening and were planning to add a playground and picnic tables for the 1987 season.
The last Northside ad I could find was on Nov. 12, 1988.
A few more notes after combing through the Albuquerque Tribune and Albuquerque Journal. Ralph Moody was the manager when it opened, but Roger G. Steiger was the manager by late September, when Life magazine took “panoramic pictures” of the Circle and its patrons. I wonder if those are around somewhere.
The Autoscope might have been a victim of a price war. The Route 25 was advertising triple features for 90c per carload, and the Circle went from 99c a carload on Sept. 28 to as low as 80c for four shows on Oct. 19.
Although its name was typically shortened to just “Circle Drive-In,” the Autoscope continued advertising in the Albuquerque Tribune and Journal through Dec. 1, 1963. On Dec. 2, the Circle’s ad was gone.
The last Chief ad I could find in the Lordsburg Liberal was Aug. 28, 1964. “Seven Ways From Sundown” was going to play until Sunday, Aug. 30, then “Drive-in closes after Sunday show for winter months.” Spot checks of summer 1965 issues showed ads for the indoor Coronado but nothing for the Chief.
The April 16, 1954 issue of the Lordsburg Liberal said the Chief Drive-In would open on April 17 with “Stalag 17” starring William Holden. “The Chief Drive-In has been under construction for several months now and is located about three miles east of town on Highways 70 and 80.”
T of C Herald, Dec. 14, 1972: “We would like to welcome Jim Moss to the community as one of our newest businessmen. Jim has purchased the El Rio Theatre from McCormick Theatres and will open for business with the first showing Thursday night December 14.”
James Moss wrote a letter to editor, appearing Sept. 4, 1975, that he was cancelling plans to show “Deep Throat” at the El Rio. “The people protesting this movie never come to our family features, nor do the organizations of this community support the theatre.”
I’d guess that the Whetzels didn’t arrive until late 1975 or later.
Independent Film Journal, Aug. 20, 1955: “Matthew Suraci sold his Jet Drive-In at Montgomery, Ala.”
The Exhibitor, Sept. 3, 1952: “Raymond Gremillion, Southeastern Theatre Equipment, handled the sale of RCA’s latest sound and projection for the new Jet Drive-In, a 300-car operation near Cut Off, La., which associate owners Lefty Cheramie, Richard Guidry, and R. J. Soignet contemplate opening in September.”
The Exhibitor, Sept. 10, 1952: “Lefty Cheramie, Rebstock, Golden Meadows, La., advised that the Jet Drive-In that he, Richard Guidry, and R. J. Soignet have under construction in Bayouland country should be completed in the early fall.”
The Exhibitor, Sept. 24, 1952: “Lefty Cheramie, Rebstock, Golden Meadows, and Richard Guidry, Galliano, La., were shopping around for concession equipment for their Jet Drive-In, in the building stage near Cutoff (sic), La.”
Motion Picture Herald, Jan. 17, 1953: “The opening of the Jet drive-in, Cut Off, La., was postponed due to the re-erection of the screen tower, which was blown down in a recent storm. L. J. Cheramie one of the owners said that the approximate damage was $4,000. Others associated in the project are R. J. Soignet, Thibodaux, La., and Richard Guidry, Galliano, La.”
Motion Picture Herald, March 21, 1953: “Lefty Cheramie, Richard Guidry and R. J. Soignet opened their jet drive-in. Cut Off, La., March 16.”
The Exhibitor, Oct. 15, 1952: “Martin Theatres opened the Jet Drive-In, Columbus, Ga.”
The March 23-May 11, 1972 want ads in the Truth or Consequences Herald included: “For Sale By Owner – Palms Drive In Theatre, T or C. N. M. 2 miles SW of City limits on old Highway 85. Good 40 x 70 ft. screen. 24ft x 72 ft. block bldg. Projection room, Rest Rooms, Snack bar and store room. Good 8 in. water well. Ticket office, marquee, 180 car spaces plus additional space, 9.52 acres total. $35,000. Would consider terms, of $5,000 down or more. Oscar Conwell. Phone …”
The front page of the July 30, 1953 Jal Record had a short story on the Panther (yes, the same name as the local high school mascot). “Emilu Betty has announced special prices at the Panther Drive-In will be offered through the month of August … She stated the feature price is … to express … deep appreciation for the splendid patronage enjoyed since the Panther Drive-In was opened in the summer of ‘52.”
What’s weird about that is that I never found any mention of the Panther Drive-In in 1952 issues of the Record, which ran weekly ads for the indoor Rex and noted the opening of the Lariat Drive-In in Kermit TX during that period. The Panther was advertising in 1953.
Jal (NM) Record, Sept. 18, 1952: “Kermit, Texas, Sept. 20 - The grand opening of the newest addition to Kermit’s theaters will be held this week end when the Lariat Drive-In Theater will welcome guests at an open-house celebration to be held from 2 until 10 p.m. Thursday, with opening night set to begin at 6:30 Friday night. The 446-car capacity theater will show first-run movies … Opening night picture will be Rancho Notorious, starring Marlene Dietrick, Arthur Kennedy and Mel Ferrer, which will be shown Friday and Saturday nights.”
Thanks. Those are excellent reasons for keeping the existing opening date, wherever it came from.
OTOH, I just double-checked my source. (My kid’s college library link to ProQuest. I don’t know what I’ll do for research after graduation, coming later this year. But I digress.) I verified that the first page of the Southwest section of the Aug. 6, 1962 Boxoffice had at its top the headline “New Tarpon Drive-In / Is Opened in Texas” and the story I typed in full above.
So something happened. It was too late in the year for this to be a misunderstood season opener. The same guys who built the drive-in 10 years earlier were lauded for this “new” Tarpon. Shifted location? Probably not; Kenmore is the best at spotting those. Recovery from disaster? Teardown and rebuild? For now, I just don’t know.
Showmen’s Trade Review, July 15, 1944: “Equipment damaged in the Palace theatre fire at Lordsburg, N. M., will be replaced. Mrs. S. E. Allen was in Denver securing priorities and arranging for new material.”
The Hobbs News-Sun had a lengthy story about the Panther, picked by the AP and printed in the March 26, 1984 Carlsbad Current-Angus. It said that the Panther opened “more than 30 years ago,” and was purchased by Larry Stapler in 1977 “on the spur of the moment.” Stapler jerry-rigged an AM radio broadcasting system and took down the speaker poles. The drive-in’s only real problem was caused “about 15 years ago by a tornado that blew down the screen and knocked out the concession windows.”
Boxoffice, Aug. 6, 1962: “Word received on the (Dallas Film) Row that a fire destroyed the Rex Theatre in Jal, N. M. Bruce Wilkerson, owner, said he could attribute the fire only to faulty wiring.”
Boxoffice, July 23, 1973: “Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Norman Pender, Rex Theatre, Jal., N.M., whose daughter Lonna Ree Pender has nearly doubled her weight since her recent birth.”
Could it be that the Tarpon opened on July 3, 1962?
Boxoffice, Aug. 6, 1962: “Aransas Pass, Tex. - E. F. Falgout, mayor of Aransas Pass, and C. L. Walker, well-known local businessman, have opened their new Tarpon Drive-In on Farm Road 632, south of town. The massive tilted screen overlooks a parking area which will accommodate 377 cars. The ramp area has been hard surfaced to permit easy access and terracing has been employed to permit full view by patrons in cars. In front of the screen is a well-equipped playground.”