Melody Cruise-In Auto Theatre
4025 E. National Road,
Springfield,
OH
45505
4025 E. National Road,
Springfield,
OH
45505
6 people
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Jan of 2023, showed to be in the process of being demo’d.. By Aug of 2023, it was all gone.. Per Googlemaps. RAC Photography
Shame!
Demolition has begun. New housing will be built.
Opened July 3rd, 1947 per:
Melody Cruise In opening 29 Jun 1947, Sun The Springfield Daily News (Springfield, Ohio) Newspapers.com
and
The second screen opened on May 16th, 1980, with yellow speaker posts. the Ramps were not realigned. Grand opening ad posted
Grand opening ads posted.
Boxoffice, July 5, 1947: “SPRINGFIELD — Clark county’s first drive-in theatre, Melody Cruise-In, opened July 2 at a site a mile and a half east of Springfield on U.S. 40. The drive-in has a 500-car capacity. It is owned by Raymond K. Stout of Dayton. Manager is E. G. Babb, Springfield. ‘The theatre will operate on four changes a week. Bookings are handled by “Woody” Bressler of Cincinnati.”
Boxoffice, Nov. 14, 1953: “A number of improvements are planned at the Melody Cruise-In before its reopening next spring, according to Michael H. Chakeres, general manager of the Springfield Theatres Co. A 65-foot-wide screen will be installed, along with about 100 more speakers, at the airer on Route 40 east of Springfield.”
my bad it does have two screens!
yes.
Did it close because they couldn’t afford a digital projector?
Opened on 7/3/1947 with “Bowery to Bagdad” and “Southwest passage”. Closed in 2016. A church (St. John Lutheran) holds church services here in summer.
the drive-in across the street was called the showboat drive-in also you have an extra screen listed than what is there it has only ever had one screen there was never two screens.
Church services are being held every Sunday at 8 a.m. until Labor Day.
Status should be changed to Closed. It, along with the Skyborn in Fairborn and the Wilmington did NOT open for the 2016 season, and are currently not opening in 2017.
Chakeres lists this on their website as the Melody Cruise-In. This like all Chakeres theatres has been converted to digital projection.
Cool marquee photo ken mc.
Here is another photo:
http://tinyurl.com/ye24zwg
Lost Memory, what was the name of the old drive on the north side of E. National Road at View link
?