Riverside Drive-In
1560 E. 71st Street,
Tulsa,
OK
74136
1560 E. 71st Street,
Tulsa,
OK
74136
2 people
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: Griffith Amusement Company, Video Independent Theaters Inc.
Nearby Theaters
The Riverside Drive-In was originally owned and operated by Griffith Theatres when it opened on May 7, 1948 with Margaret O'Brien in “Our Vines have Tender Grapes”. By 1955 it was operated by Video Independent. The ozoner closed in 1970 and demolished in the late-1970’s. It was a single screen with a 602 car capacity. It was still open in 1984.
After being demolished the road was widened taking part of the old ozoner and an apartment complex and restaurant built on the remainder of the property.
Contributed by
Chuck
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Recent comments (view all 8 comments)
Go here for complete history of Tulsa’s Riverside Drive-In Theatre;
http://tulsatvmemories.com/aida.html
See 1950s images of this drive-in by typing word “riverside,
View link
To expound on xxx’s link to my material on Mike Ransom’s excellent Tulsa TV memories site:
Riverside Drive-in Theatre (ad)
Location given as between Peoria and Lewis Ave. on 71St Street
Location: N 36° 3.64'N, W 95° 58.19'
Satellite photo shows site occupied by buildings (apartments?)
Grand opening Friday, May 7, 1948
Operated By Video Theatres 30 April 1948 until 10 Nov 1977
Opening ad states “Tulsa’s Third and Nearest Drive-in Theatre”
1948-49 Theatre Catalog lists Griffith Theatre as Exec M8-C602-D7-CH3
1949-1950 Theatre Catalog lists Ralph Talbot as Exec M9-C600-D7
1955 Theatre Catalog lists Video Theatres as owner C600
1965 IMPA lists Griffith Metropolitan Theatres as owner (Video Theatres)
1965 IMPA lists capacity as 604
1979 IMPA, lists capacity as 500. Owned by Video Theatres
1984 IMPA lists Video Theatres as owner
Talbot owned downtown theatres
Wesley Horton AIDA
Just for the record, it was not on S. Delaware, it was on the South Side of 71st street. .
Approx. address for this drive-in was 1560 E 71st Street, Tulsa, OK 74136.
Chuck, when the Riverside DI was opened in 1948, the entity was then known as “Griffith Theatres.” Griffith Theatres later became “Video Theatres.”
Tulsa World wrote a couple of years ago about the local White House Mansion, which looks nice when decked with Christmas lights and which was completed in 1985. We care about that here only because of one sentence, “Pieces from a defunct drive-in theater, the Riverside Drive-In, were used as support beams for the mansion’s ballroom floor.”
That story’s behind a paywall now, but you can still see it at the Internet Archive.
The Riverside Drive-In opened on May 7th, 1948. Grand opening ad posted.