Burnside Drive-In
5950 Van Dyke Road,
Burnside,
MI
48416
5950 Van Dyke Road,
Burnside,
MI
48416
No one has favorited this theater yet
Showing 4 comments
The overhead view from Google Maps shows the outline, ramps, and concession stand/projector booth still intact.
However, the latest street view (July 2021) shows the property overgrown with trees and grass.
The Burnside Drive-In was located at the intersection of M53 and M90 (5950 Van Dyke Road) in the unincorporated community of Burnside, about eight miles north of Imlay City, Michigan. My maternal grandfather’s Johnson Construction Company built the drive-in in 1951. This was the fifth known Michigan drive-in job of the company.
Three of A.S. “Al” Johnson’s slide images below were taken in January 1951. Two show the tower sheathing being painted, and the third is a picture of my paternal grandfather Robie Gray. He and my dad, Doug Gray, worked on several Johnson drive-in and conventional theater projects throughout Michigan.
The remaining four slides show the drive-in the day of its opening in June 1951. The marquee shows the “Mich. Premier of Country Parson with Peggy Stewart”- a film that (curiously) was released in 1915.
The drive-in, with its distinctive pheasant rising from a farm field mural, was a landmark for travelers for several years. The drive-in has since been demolished.
You Tube Video
More information Here