Bridgeport Drive-In
600 Cherry Lane,
Lawrenceville,
IL
62439
600 Cherry Lane,
Lawrenceville,
IL
62439
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The theatre was built by Frisina Amusement in Fall of 1956 as an 8-ramp, 322 car venue with expansion possible to 500 in the future. It opened June 7, 1957 with “Hell and High Water” and “River of No Return” in CinemaScope with a bonus feature of “The Catman of Paris” on June 8th.
The last advertised show was on August 2, 1982 with “Things Are Tough All Over” and “The Blues Brothers.” In January of 1983 article said that Frisna sold the land for redevelopment along with a half dozen other drive-ins as it reduced its ozoner footprint. The entry should be the Midway Drive-In - its name from beginning to end.
This started life as the Midway Drive-In, opened by the Frisina Amusement Company on June 7, 1957 with Richard Widmark in “Hell And High Water” and Robert Mitchum in “River Of No Return” (unknown if extras added). Its original screen measures 40x80ft. Frisina first planned on the theater exactly three years before its construction started.
A 1985 aerial shows the drive-in intact, but overgrown. It looks like it had closed years earlier.
Demolished in the early 1990s.