Del-Air Drive-In

Dupont Boulevard and Quarter Mile Road,
Dagsboro, DE 19939

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MichaelKilgore
MichaelKilgore on June 25, 2023 at 9:57 pm

Opening day hints.

The Exhibitor, Dec. 24, 1952: “Delaware / Dogsboro - Al Goodyear, well-known in the industry and formerly with Motion Picture Advertising Service, is now building the Del-Air Drive-In.”

The Exhibitor, Feb. 18, 1953: “Delaware / Dogsboro - Alfred W. Goodyear announced that the buying and booking for his new Del-Air Drive-In, now in the process of being completed, will be handled by Independent Theatres Service, Inc., Washington, D. C.”

The Exhibitor, April 29, 1953: “Harley Davidson’s Independent Theatre Service is booking and buying for the new Del-Air Drive-In, Dagsboro, Del.”

Mr. Goodyear and the Del-Air were mentioned in a May 22, 1954 note in the Wilmington News Journal, so we know it was operating by then.

Kenmore
Kenmore on June 25, 2023 at 8:23 pm

A closer address is 32595 Dupont Blvd, Dagsboro, DE.

Google Maps has updated their addresses and this one puts it on a house where the entrance road once existed.

https://tinyurl.com/33k5dyfz

kennerado
kennerado on June 25, 2023 at 6:26 pm

The screen was gone by 1960, looks like it didn’t last very long at all.

Kenmore
Kenmore on November 11, 2019 at 10:33 pm

It appears this drive-in did not last long. A 1954 aerial shows it intact, but a 1963 aerial shows the screen down and the ramps starting to fade. Although the concession stand/projection booth is still in place.

By 1981, the concession stand/projection booth is gone along with all traces of the drive-in. Today, it is an empty field with no indication that a drive-in ever existed on the site.

MichaelKilgore
MichaelKilgore on November 11, 2019 at 9:58 pm

From the June 19, 1954 issue of Billboard: “In Dagsboro, Del., Alfred W. Goodyear, owner of the Dagsboro Drive-In, was held under $500 bail on each of two charges of exhibiting indecent pictures. State police said they visited the drive-in after receiving complaints about the show. After looking for a time at what they termed burlesque-style motion pictures, they stopped the show and confiscated the film. Goodyear was arraigned in Sussex County Court and held for further hearing.”

jwmovies
jwmovies on September 26, 2012 at 12:07 am

Approx. location for this drive-in was Dupont Blvd. and Quarter Mile Rd. The theatre was just SE of this location.

riverrox
riverrox on July 24, 2012 at 5:43 pm

I live on on the property next to where the Del-Air Drive-In was originally locted and would love to have a picture of this drive in. Any information or pictures is greatly appreciated.

rivest266
rivest266 on September 18, 2011 at 3:40 pm

This was on US 113 south of town

http://www.historicaerials.com/aerials.php?scale=8.54652588780133E-05&lat=38.5371411629512&lon=-75.2524677272626&year=1954