The Loft was an interesting little theater. It alternated between sexploitation and arthouse films, but it didn’t segregate the trailer screenings to match the audiences. I went here to see a Joseph Strick double bill (ULYSSES and THE BALCONY) and they showed the trailer for LOVE CAMP SEVEN.
Since I grew up near Grant and Country Club, this was the drive-in we went to the most often when I was a kid. Films I remember seeing here include FORBIDDEN PLANET, ANGRY RED PLANET, BORN FREE, and (much later) WILD IN THE STREETS.
In the late fifties and early sixties, this was the place to see triple bill science fiction and horror movies. The original Chicago Store location was a couple doors down from it. It was sort of like the poor man’s Fox Theater.
The Google map pin isn’t exactly right. The theater was right at the corner of Prince and Campbell. The screen faced the street, yet in spite of this they often showed pretty racy stuff. I remember once driving by it when they were showing the nudist film, GARDEN OF EDEN. My mom was trying to steer the car and cover my eyes at the same time.
I used to go here when it was still called the Biltmore Drive-in. There was an area in front of the screen with speakers where people without cars could sit and watch the movies at a reduced price. I saw a fair number of films here including THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH, and THE FLESH EATERS.
The brief description here doesn’t really do the sad story of the Richelieu justice. As davidkaye mentioned, when the Richelieu showed The Birth of a Nation, a group of particularly obnoxious protestors came in and completely destroyed the theater. The theater was repaired but was never ever able to recoup the costs of the repairs and folded shortly thereafter.
The Loft was an interesting little theater. It alternated between sexploitation and arthouse films, but it didn’t segregate the trailer screenings to match the audiences. I went here to see a Joseph Strick double bill (ULYSSES and THE BALCONY) and they showed the trailer for LOVE CAMP SEVEN.
Since I grew up near Grant and Country Club, this was the drive-in we went to the most often when I was a kid. Films I remember seeing here include FORBIDDEN PLANET, ANGRY RED PLANET, BORN FREE, and (much later) WILD IN THE STREETS.
In the late fifties and early sixties, this was the place to see triple bill science fiction and horror movies. The original Chicago Store location was a couple doors down from it. It was sort of like the poor man’s Fox Theater.
The Google map pin isn’t exactly right. The theater was right at the corner of Prince and Campbell. The screen faced the street, yet in spite of this they often showed pretty racy stuff. I remember once driving by it when they were showing the nudist film, GARDEN OF EDEN. My mom was trying to steer the car and cover my eyes at the same time.
I used to go here when it was still called the Biltmore Drive-in. There was an area in front of the screen with speakers where people without cars could sit and watch the movies at a reduced price. I saw a fair number of films here including THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH, and THE FLESH EATERS.
The brief description here doesn’t really do the sad story of the Richelieu justice. As davidkaye mentioned, when the Richelieu showed The Birth of a Nation, a group of particularly obnoxious protestors came in and completely destroyed the theater. The theater was repaired but was never ever able to recoup the costs of the repairs and folded shortly thereafter.