Rig Drive-In
Route 66 and Oil Company Road,
Davenport,
OK
74026
Route 66 and Oil Company Road,
Davenport,
OK
74026
No one has favorited this theater yet
Related Websites
Additional Info
Nearby Theaters
Named to reflect nearby oil fields that brought great wealth to the region, the Rig Drive-In had a 200 car capacity, a large screen, and was located along prosperous Route 66. It was opened in July, 1953 and closed in 1962 when it was demolished.
Contributed by
Cactus Jack
Want to be emailed when a new comment is posted about this theater?
Just login to your account and subscribe to this theater.
Recent comments (view all 9 comments)
The Rig Drive-in was dismantled in 1962, according to Boxoffice Magazine of August 13 that year. The owner, Joe Stribling, cited a decline in business, as well as a lack of time to look after the theaters, for his decision to close the Rig Drive-In and Davenport’s only other theater, the Gem.
Yep, still barely visible……..
H E R E
O.K.
This links showss that nothing remains of the former Rig Drive-In Theatre.
Property is once again a ranch.
http://www.roadsideoklahoma.com/node/66
Excellent find Joe Vogel and SiliconSam… This one was unknown to me. .
Wesley Horton AIDA
The Motion Picture Almanac series whiffed completely on the Rig. Another reason to believe that there were more drive-ins than any single source ever listed.
I could find a few hints elsewhere. It was listed in the 1955 Film Daily Year Book and the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog (capacity 200, owner J. E. Stribling).
An ad in the May 5, 1957 Daily Oklahoman included the Rig as one of the theatres to show The Buster Keaton Story.
Thanks to Joe Vogel for the citation. Here’s the full one-paragraph story from Boxoffice, Aug. 13, 1962, under the Oklahoma City column:
Another little town, Davenport, a few miles east of Chandler, has lost its theatres. Joe E. Stribling and wife, who have operated the Gem Theatre and Rig Drive-In there for years, called it quits and closed both. The drive-in is being dismantled and the equipment stored in the Gem. They have a fine set of CinemaScope lenses and about 50 Simplex speakers, all for sale at a very reasonable price. Stribling was a manager for Griffith Amusement Co. and its successor, Video Independent, for many years, then entered exhibition on his own at the Ritz in Stroud, also in the Chandler area. For several years he has had a job with the telephone company which keeps him out of town during the week, while his wife is busy teaching piano. They admit they have not had time to look after the theatres properly. That and a decline in business caused them to call it quits.
I just uploaded a grainy third-generation image of the Rig’s screen tower. If it was originally taken in March 1955 as its source described, then it’s possible that the Rig opened earlier.
From the August 12, 1953 issue of The Exhibitor: “J. E. Stribling, Gem, Davenport, Okla., opened his new Rig Drive-In, Davenport.”