During its later years, the Polk Theatre was operated by the Plitt Theatres chain. The Polk ended its first-run movie-house run on September 23, 1984 with “Muppets Take Manhattan” following a short closure after its run. The Polk Theatre reopened on October 15, 1984 as a performing arts house. The Polk later screened back movies years later under the independent and foreign category.
Yep, it looks like it did close on November 8, 1990. And thanks to the Lakeland Ledger archives, I was able to find more Lakeland Mall Twin showings from later than 1985. In the late-1980s, the Lakeland Mall Twin went towards a sub-run dollar house.
The Tampa Tribune did not show every single Lakeland Mall Twin showing in portions of the mid-1980s (although it did made a short comeback in some 1988 Tampa Tribune issues for a time during its last days as a first-run theater before becoming sub-run dollar).
The Meadowbrook Drive-In’s opening date in the 1950s has not been found yet, but it looks like it closed on August 12, 1982 with “E.T.” and “Smokey And The Bandit”.
Taunton did had a Hoyts (former United Artists) eight-screen theater on 290 Winthrop Street before the Silver City Galleria 10 launched in 1992. Both theaters compete each other until the Hoyts Taunton Cinema 8 (formerly known as the Route 24 Cinema) closed in July 1997 after a nearly 20+ year run.
Edited from my April 28, 2022 comment: The Lewiston Drive-In Opened Its Gates On July 1, 1949 With “Coroner Creek” And Abboott And Costello’s “Pardon My Strong” Along With Two Unnamed Cartoons (And A Special Fireworks Show Only On Grand Opening).
It Was First Operated By John F. Murray Of Boston, Who Also Operated Waterville’s Opera House, And Had His First Theater Connection In Fall River, MA. The Theater Actually Opened Privately To 500 People The Day Prior To Opening. The Original Planned Capacity (Before Reaching Its 1000-Capacity Goal) Was 600 And The Original Screen Was Measured 50x50 Before CinemaScope. A Deal Went Through On May 26, 1949 In The Offices Of A.A. Lamarre Agency of Park Street whereby a local real estate dealers had transferred to Boston’s Lockwood & Gordon Enterprises where 10 acres of the historic Dulac Farm (site of some of the first locally developed agricultural land being acquired by Adelard Dulac in 1937. Adelard was also a plumber and heater at the time with his own business in town of 12 Lowell Street) on Sabattus Road being the site with the purchase price of $5,000.
New information: The Lewiston Drive-In closed for the final time on Labor Day 1985 with “Gremlins” and “Oh God You Devil”.
The Vue Dale Drive-In grand opening advertisement was found, but I cannot read the newspaper date because on how freaking blurry the picture is, so its opening date was partially found but was lost still. The theater opened as a single-screener with “I’ll See You In My Dreams” and “The Rose Bowl Story” with no extra short subjects, and was twinned sometime in the 1970s.
The Clarksville Drive-In closed for the final time with a triple feature on September 30, 1984 with “The Jungle Book” (the reissue of the 1967 Disney classic), “Splash”, and “Mr. Mom” as its final films.
The theater I believe was still mostly abandoned right after the adjacent Walmart opened south of the former drive-in on October 18, 1994. So I believe that Walmart did not purchased the drive-in property and decided to buy it south of it.
The Lexington Drive-In became statewide headlines in its last year of operation after a 24-year-old man was shot there right after the Lexington Drive-in reopened for the 1987 season. The suspect, 22-year-old Stephen Michael Jones, was later charged with first-degree murder.
The New Albany Drive-In opened its gates on July 9, 1954 with Jeff Hunter in “Three Young Texans”, William Holden in “Escape From Fort Bravo”, and John Wayne in “Island In The Sky” with no extra short subjects.
The New Albany Drive-In looks like it closed for the final time on September 5, 1994 with “Jurassic Park” and “Forrest Gump” as its final films. A 1995 article said that the drive-in didn’t reopen in mid-1995.
The Family Outdoor Theatre opened its gates on September 24, 1948 with John Wayne in “Tycoon” along with an unnamed Disney cartoon. The theater changed its name to the Family Drive-In by 1955, and later the Grayslake Outdoor Theatre by 1960.
After almost 50 years of operation, the Grayslake Outdoor Theatre closed for the final time on September 6, 1998 with “Saving Private Ryan” and “Blade”.
This Liberty Theatre is the second theater with the “Liberty Theatre” name to operate in Libertyville. There’s an earlier Liberty Theatre in Libertyville which operated from 1915 until 1923 beforehand.
The LaVilla Theatre first opened its doors as the Auditorium Theatre on August 13, 1921 with Tom Moore in “Hold Your Horses” along with a two-reel mermaid comedy “A Fresh Start”. The theater opened on Red-Letter Day.
The Auditorium Theatre became the LaVilla Theatre in June 1929, and a couple of weeks after its name change, the then-manager of the LaVilla Theatre, Nathan Slepyan, announced the installation of both Vitaphone and Mastertone sound systems in July 1929. The sound was purchased from Richard Budd, the engineer of the Milwaukee-based Sound Reproducing Corporation.
Information about the installation and details on the LaVilla Theatre as of 1929 goes as follows: In the projection booth features non-synchronized projection, but in the rear of the LaVilla contains a double-channel amplification system that was installed during talkie-transition and in connection of its sound installment. Each of its projectors is attached a turntable but it supports a large disc record as well which comes with each reel of film. As the film feeds through the machine, tones are reproduced from the record carried by wire to the 400-seat capacity auditorium and resonated through two dynamic speakers set in six-foot squared baffleboards being located on each side of the screen. Its first talkie attraction was Dolores Costello in “The Glad Rag Doll” with no sign of selected short subjects on July 17, 1929.
The LaVilla’s flashing neon marquee is 22½ feet in length and 3½ feet wide, but during the talkies installation, it was extended 10 feet above the roof and the top of the sign has an installation of a large sunburst with each side containing 200 orange/amber bulbs. A double row of bulbs on either side of the sign contains a running green border, and the word “Talkie” in flashing orange/opel neon was also installed at the bottom of the sign.
A few years right after talkies were installed, special events were also held at the LaVilla Theatre sometimes but it was still a main movie house.
While the new Liberty Theatre (the second theater with the “Liberty Theatre” name in Libertyville) was still under construction in early 1937, the then-manager of the LaVilla, simply named Mr. Mikesell, cannot make up his mind on who should be owner of the “new” Liberty. He has five operators to choose left but ended up choosing Robert Coller as the manager of the Liberty.
The opening of the “New” Liberty Theatre forced the LaVilla Theatre to close for the final time on August 26, 1937 after 16 years and 13 days of operation.
Opened as early as 1952, closed in the 1980s.
Yes, and the answer is a yet another roller-coaster.
During its later years, the Polk Theatre was operated by the Plitt Theatres chain. The Polk ended its first-run movie-house run on September 23, 1984 with “Muppets Take Manhattan” following a short closure after its run. The Polk Theatre reopened on October 15, 1984 as a performing arts house. The Polk later screened back movies years later under the independent and foreign category.
Yep, it looks like it did close on November 8, 1990. And thanks to the Lakeland Ledger archives, I was able to find more Lakeland Mall Twin showings from later than 1985. In the late-1980s, the Lakeland Mall Twin went towards a sub-run dollar house.
The Tampa Tribune did not show every single Lakeland Mall Twin showing in portions of the mid-1980s (although it did made a short comeback in some 1988 Tampa Tribune issues for a time during its last days as a first-run theater before becoming sub-run dollar).
Opened with “Rawhide” and “Call Me Mister” with no extra short subjects.
Later known as the “Cinema 3”. The theater is still running into as late as the mid-1990s.
The Meadowbrook Drive-In’s opening date in the 1950s has not been found yet, but it looks like it closed on August 12, 1982 with “E.T.” and “Smokey And The Bandit”.
Taunton did had a Hoyts (former United Artists) eight-screen theater on 290 Winthrop Street before the Silver City Galleria 10 launched in 1992. Both theaters compete each other until the Hoyts Taunton Cinema 8 (formerly known as the Route 24 Cinema) closed in July 1997 after a nearly 20+ year run.
Edited from my April 28, 2022 comment: The Lewiston Drive-In Opened Its Gates On July 1, 1949 With “Coroner Creek” And Abboott And Costello’s “Pardon My Strong” Along With Two Unnamed Cartoons (And A Special Fireworks Show Only On Grand Opening).
It Was First Operated By John F. Murray Of Boston, Who Also Operated Waterville’s Opera House, And Had His First Theater Connection In Fall River, MA. The Theater Actually Opened Privately To 500 People The Day Prior To Opening. The Original Planned Capacity (Before Reaching Its 1000-Capacity Goal) Was 600 And The Original Screen Was Measured 50x50 Before CinemaScope. A Deal Went Through On May 26, 1949 In The Offices Of A.A. Lamarre Agency of Park Street whereby a local real estate dealers had transferred to Boston’s Lockwood & Gordon Enterprises where 10 acres of the historic Dulac Farm (site of some of the first locally developed agricultural land being acquired by Adelard Dulac in 1937. Adelard was also a plumber and heater at the time with his own business in town of 12 Lowell Street) on Sabattus Road being the site with the purchase price of $5,000.
New information: The Lewiston Drive-In closed for the final time on Labor Day 1985 with “Gremlins” and “Oh God You Devil”.
Opened on June 10, 1950 with a one-day showing of “The Big Cat” with no extra short subjects.
The Vue Dale Drive-In grand opening advertisement was found, but I cannot read the newspaper date because on how freaking blurry the picture is, so its opening date was partially found but was lost still. The theater opened as a single-screener with “I’ll See You In My Dreams” and “The Rose Bowl Story” with no extra short subjects, and was twinned sometime in the 1970s.
The Clarksville Drive-In closed for the final time with a triple feature on September 30, 1984 with “The Jungle Book” (the reissue of the 1967 Disney classic), “Splash”, and “Mr. Mom” as its final films.
Opened in 1956, closed in the 1980s.
The LeRose Theatre suffered a Christmas Eve fire in 1923, so this probably opened sometime in the late-1910s or early-1920s.
The theater I believe was still mostly abandoned right after the adjacent Walmart opened south of the former drive-in on October 18, 1994. So I believe that Walmart did not purchased the drive-in property and decided to buy it south of it.
The Lexington Drive-In became statewide headlines in its last year of operation after a 24-year-old man was shot there right after the Lexington Drive-in reopened for the 1987 season. The suspect, 22-year-old Stephen Michael Jones, was later charged with first-degree murder.
Second screen added in 1996.
Early July 1994.
The New Albany Drive-In opened its gates on July 9, 1954 with Jeff Hunter in “Three Young Texans”, William Holden in “Escape From Fort Bravo”, and John Wayne in “Island In The Sky” with no extra short subjects.
The New Albany Drive-In looks like it closed for the final time on September 5, 1994 with “Jurassic Park” and “Forrest Gump” as its final films. A 1995 article said that the drive-in didn’t reopen in mid-1995.
It was demolished right after the 2021 season.
Grand Opening ad posted.
The Family Outdoor Theatre opened its gates on September 24, 1948 with John Wayne in “Tycoon” along with an unnamed Disney cartoon. The theater changed its name to the Family Drive-In by 1955, and later the Grayslake Outdoor Theatre by 1960.
After almost 50 years of operation, the Grayslake Outdoor Theatre closed for the final time on September 6, 1998 with “Saving Private Ryan” and “Blade”.
This Liberty Theatre is the second theater with the “Liberty Theatre” name to operate in Libertyville. There’s an earlier Liberty Theatre in Libertyville which operated from 1915 until 1923 beforehand.
The LaVilla Theatre first opened its doors as the Auditorium Theatre on August 13, 1921 with Tom Moore in “Hold Your Horses” along with a two-reel mermaid comedy “A Fresh Start”. The theater opened on Red-Letter Day.
The Auditorium Theatre became the LaVilla Theatre in June 1929, and a couple of weeks after its name change, the then-manager of the LaVilla Theatre, Nathan Slepyan, announced the installation of both Vitaphone and Mastertone sound systems in July 1929. The sound was purchased from Richard Budd, the engineer of the Milwaukee-based Sound Reproducing Corporation.
Information about the installation and details on the LaVilla Theatre as of 1929 goes as follows: In the projection booth features non-synchronized projection, but in the rear of the LaVilla contains a double-channel amplification system that was installed during talkie-transition and in connection of its sound installment. Each of its projectors is attached a turntable but it supports a large disc record as well which comes with each reel of film. As the film feeds through the machine, tones are reproduced from the record carried by wire to the 400-seat capacity auditorium and resonated through two dynamic speakers set in six-foot squared baffleboards being located on each side of the screen. Its first talkie attraction was Dolores Costello in “The Glad Rag Doll” with no sign of selected short subjects on July 17, 1929.
The LaVilla’s flashing neon marquee is 22½ feet in length and 3½ feet wide, but during the talkies installation, it was extended 10 feet above the roof and the top of the sign has an installation of a large sunburst with each side containing 200 orange/amber bulbs. A double row of bulbs on either side of the sign contains a running green border, and the word “Talkie” in flashing orange/opel neon was also installed at the bottom of the sign.
A few years right after talkies were installed, special events were also held at the LaVilla Theatre sometimes but it was still a main movie house.
While the new Liberty Theatre (the second theater with the “Liberty Theatre” name in Libertyville) was still under construction in early 1937, the then-manager of the LaVilla, simply named Mr. Mikesell, cannot make up his mind on who should be owner of the “new” Liberty. He has five operators to choose left but ended up choosing Robert Coller as the manager of the Liberty.
The opening of the “New” Liberty Theatre forced the LaVilla Theatre to close for the final time on August 26, 1937 after 16 years and 13 days of operation.
On April 8, 2023, two people were taken into custody after shots were fired inside the ICON right after a fight.