Hyde Park Drive-In
4114 Albany Post Road,
Hyde Park,
NY
12538
4114 Albany Post Road,
Hyde Park,
NY
12538
13 people
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The drive-in definitely needs some fixing up. The screen as you drive by you can see is in need of a repaint for sure. Don’t know if the structure in the back of the screen needs fixing also. Whoever takes it over again will have to get a new projector Set up. Also things for the concession stand. Lots of money to invest to open it up again. The former operators took all the electronic equipment
I do hope this drive in opens
Although the Hyde Park hasn’t reopened yet for the 2023 season, and its previous operators seem to be out of the picture, its owner says the drive-in is not closed for good. That’s the essence of a story that ran today (behind a paywall) at the Daily Freeman of Kingston NY.
The National Park Service, which bought the site in 2011, had a lease with the drive-in’s operators through last year. This year, the NPS requested proposals to operate the Hyde Park. They’ve received several such proposals, though none from the folks who used to run the drive-in.
“John Harlan Warren, a spokesman for the National Park Service Region 1, … declined to say whether there was a timeline for making a decision” about who the NPS would choose to operate the Hyde Park.
I remember going to see Airplane here with a friend’s family and it rained like hell. We missed about two thirds of the jokes. I also wanted to see Alien 3 so badly that when it was sold out at the Roosevelt that I went here instead. That film was so dark I could hardly see it.
Also known as Hyde Park Auto Vision.
Opened on 28/7/1950 with “You gotta stay happy” and “Red canyon”.
The Observer of Red Hook printed a nice history of the Hyde Park in Sept. 2014. It included a copy of the July 28, 1950 Grand Opening ad for the Hyde Park Auto Vision Theatre. The article said it was opened by Sidney Cohen and has been in the family ever since.
The Poughkeepsie Journal’s history (printed Aug. 3, 2011) added that Cohen’s brother-in-law Phil Eisenberg also helped establish the drive-in. “In 1977, we won county rights to show ‘Star Wars’ and it became one our biggest successes,” Fred Cohen recalled. “We ran it for 32 weeks and it grossed as much the first week it showed than we made our entire first year in business.”
The 1952-56 Theatre Catalogs listed it as the Auto-Vision, owners P. Eisenberg and S. F. Cohen.
Its listing in the 1951-52 International Motion Picture Almanac called it the “Hyde Park Auto Vision”, capacity 480, owners P. Eisenberg and S. F. Cohen. It stayed that way through the 1966 edition. The IMPA changed the listing to just “Hyde Park” by the 1969 edition. The 1978-88 IMPAs listed only S. F. Cohen as the owner.
Apparently Scenic Hudson did not want a Wal-Mart or something along those lines going in across the street from the FDR homestead, so they bought the land under the DI and leased it back to the owners.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/14driveinct.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=drive%20in&st=cse&oref=slogin
Yeah thanks Chris1982. Now someone needs to reopen the Fair Oaks it already has the digital projection.
The Hyde Park Drive-In and the Overlook Drive-In have both converted to Barco digital projection.
Still in operation as of May, 2012.
Playing in 1969 “THE LOVE BUG” and “BLUE SURF-ARI” both G rated.
This Thursday the 17th will BE the LAST day for the 2008 Season. The Drive In Will re-open inn April 2009.
The Overlook Drive In Will be open until mid Oct
Mentioned in the NYTimes CT Section about the last drive-ins in Connecticut.
View link
I’ve been going to the HP Drive-In for years and years. I’m so glad it’s still around… We almost lost it a few years ago.
The Hyde Park Drive In WILL OPEN FOR THE 2008 SEASON in Mid April
It was still open for the 2007 season, and there is a farmers market there on Saturday mornings in the fall and summer. There is talk of Senic Hudson, which owns the property, building a welcome center or some other type of tourist oriented facility linking the FDR home and library across the road with some hiking trails to Eleanor Roosevelts house (Val Kill) nearby. Its future as a drive in is unknown.