Boxoffice, Jan. 29, 1949: “M. C. Burles, district manager for Nace Theatres, made his first official swing through northern Arizona recently and spent part of two days discussing the theatre situation in Holbrook with William G. Trout, manager of the Roxy there. Upshot of the meeting was an announcement by Burles that a Nace theatre will be constructed in Holbrook some time in the spring. The site already has been selected. The house originally was scheduled to be built in 1948, but material shortages resulted in postponement of the project.”
Deadlines kept slipping even then. Motion Picture Herald, Aug. 7, 1948: “Wayne Baur putting in 300-seat theatre, Mancos, Colo., opening about September 15.”
Boxoffice, Jan. 1, 1949: “Wayne Bauer is building a 300-seat theatre at Mancos, Colo., which he hopes to open January 16”
Boxoffice, Oct. 19, 1957: “Porter Smith, owner of a drive-in at Aztec, N. M., and his manager, Paul Campbell, are building another drive-in. This one is between Aztec and Farmington, N. M., and will open in the spring”
Boxoffice, May 12, 1958: “Paul Campbell and Porter Smith have opened their new 350-car (with room for expansion) drive-in at Aztec, N. M. Campbell will manage”
Boxoffice, Jan. 7, 1950: “UINTAH (sic), COLO. – C. H. Ellison, who recently purchased the Uintah Theatre building, has renovated the heating plant and repaired and redecorated the front.”
Boxoffice, April 7, 1958: “E. M. Boughton has bought the Uintah, Fruita, Colo., from Mrs. Whitey Laumer.”
Boxoffice, March 31, 1958: “A $60,000 fire that destroyed the screen at the Starlite Drive-In March 12 may have been started by three boys, according to deputy sheriffs. A 13-year-old boy has admitted that he and two other boys, both 14, set fire to a fence running alongside the theatre the day of the screen fire. The boys said they tried to put out the fence fire with sand, then fled when this method failed to work.”
Boxoffice, June 16, 1951 (with photo): “Mr. and Mrs. Merle Swank of the Nova Theatre, Stockton, Kas., residents of Denver, and Don Phillips of Colby, Kas., recently purchased a drive-in at Longmont, Colo.”
Boxoffice, March 10, 1958: “Carl Halberg, owner of the Tri-C Drive-In, Albuquerque, has bought the Starvue at Longmont from Don Phillips and Merle Swank.”
Boxoffice, Feb. 10, 1958: “The Orpheum Theatre and Sunset Drive-In here have been purchased by Myron Bean and Lee Riley, owners and operators of the Starlite Drive-In at Forsyth, which they plan to sell.”
The Jan. 6, 1958 issue of Boxoffice ran a two-page spread, with photos, of the owners' work to turn the Apache into a twin. “Different than many twin drive-ins, the screens are not exactly opposite each other. Instead of being on a straight line one of the screens is about a quarter of the way off of the straight layout. This was done so that the ramps would not interfere with the playground which was already located just past the boxoffice.”
Boxoffice, Jan. 6, 1958: “Russell Allen and Kelly Crawford are staring their third drive-in at Farmington, N. M. The new ozoner, to be named the Oasis, will accommodate 986 cars, and employ all of the latest improvements. … It will be located on a new highway being built into the city. The Apache was built in 1952, and was expanded into a twin last year, and the Valley was finished in 1954.”
Boxoffice, Dec. 21, 1957: “The Vista Drive-In, a new airer, was opened recently. It is on State Highway 78 near Lomita drive, halfway between Vista and Escondido.”
The Dec. 7, 1957 issue of Boxoffice ran a full-page spread, with photos, on the new Valli and the Veseth family that built it. “According to Carl Veseth, the drive-in has proven a very good venture, drawing people they have never seen in (their local) indoor house.”
I’ll post this here, even though I can’t find any other evidence that Gillette had a drive-in in the 1950s.
Boxoffice, Oct. 5, 1957: “GILLETTE, Wyo. – A couple of deer actually stopped the show at the local drive-in theatre recently. A buck and doe deer retreated to the drive-in, where they stood in front of the screen, blocking the film. The projectionist finally had to turn off the machines, while patrons chased the deer away so the show could continue.”
Boxoffice, Oct. 5, 1957: “The Western Star Drive-In has been reopened by the Long circuit after reconstruction of the screen which was destroyed in a windstorm last spring. Bill Kee, manager, said the new screen was anchored in foundations of concrete.”
Boxoffice, April 16, 1949: “SHERIDAN, WYO. – Articles of incorporation have been filed by the Sheridan Drive-In Theatre, Inc., and work will begin soon on a 438-car drive-in to be located one-quarter mile east of the Sheridan Flouring mill on Highway 14. The theatre will be semi-enclosed with a ten-foot galvanized metal fence to prevent lights from oncoming cars from flashing on the screen. The new firm is headed by H. M. Bennett.”
Boxoffice, May 21, 1949: “H. M. Bennett is building a 500-car drive-in, the Skyline, near Sheridan, Wyo., equipping it with Simplex booth and sound and National Theatre Supply car speakers”
Boxoffice, Aug. 10, 1957: “A bolt of lightning ripped through the Kit Carson drive-in, Taos, N. M., digging a ditch up to three feet deep across the ozoner. The storm took place in the afternoon. A bulldozer was utilized to put the ramps back in shape for the show at night.”
Boxoffice, July 27, 1957: “Walter Bell recently opened his new 600-car drive-in just north of Arcata in northern California. The $140,000 operation covers ten acres. Bell opened his first "airdome” theatre back in 1911. It cost a total of $225 and seated 96 persons on wooden benches. It proved so profitable that Bell built four others on the prairie in Kansas. Later he moved to Humboldt County, Calif., and built three theatres in a span of five years."
Boxoffice, July 13, 1957: “FORT HUACHUCA, ARIZ. – The 500-car Sierra Vista Drive-In is being completed here by the A. J. Enterprises, organized by A. J. Bronstein. The $200,000 outdoor theatre is part of a shopping center being developed by the Bronstein organization.”
Boxoffice, July 13, 1957: “RICHMOND, VA. – The Circle Drive-In, the ninth airer for this area, has been opened near the Southside Plaza shopping center at McGuire circle. The new drive-in provides parking space for 1,200 cars and is equipped with a screen 75x120 feet. It is being operated by Johnson & Saunders, the same circuit that manages the Glen Drive-In, another local outdoor theatre.”
Boxoffice, July 6, 1957: “The Clark Drive-In at Summer Hill, Ill., owned by Russell Armentrout of Louisiana, Mo., was flattened by the tornado of June 11 … The screen tower was blown down and considerable damage was done to the concession-projection building. Armentrout hoped to have it ready for opening at the end of this week.”
Boxoffice, June 29, 1957: “Frank Sheffield of Denver, Colo., has contracted for the purchase of the O'Neill Drive-In … from R. V. Fletcher. The transaction has been pending for some time. The O'Neill Drive-In was built in 1950 by Fletcher and has been operated by him since that time.”
Boxoffice, June 22, 1957: “The Graceville Drive-In is the new name under which the former Spears Drive-In will be operated. It has also been operated in the past as the Jackson Drive-In. Roy Butler, the present operator, has closed the Jones Drive-In which he has been operating in Graceville, and will devote his full time to the Graceville.”
Boxoffice, May 11, 1957: “CHINOOK, MONT. – Three people in this area were winners in a contest … for naming the new drive-in theatre at the west side of town. Red Rock is the name chosen for the new drive-in.” (The winner and two other entrants, suggesting Spur and Many Moons, won annual passes.)
Boxoffice, June 15, 1957: “Chinook’s newest enterprise, the Red Rock Drive-in Theatre, was opened to the public recently for the first time by Herb Bonifas. The Red Rock, which will accommodate 200 cars, is equipped with RCA sound and has a CinemaScope screen.”
Boxoffice, Jan. 29, 1949: “M. C. Burles, district manager for Nace Theatres, made his first official swing through northern Arizona recently and spent part of two days discussing the theatre situation in Holbrook with William G. Trout, manager of the Roxy there. Upshot of the meeting was an announcement by Burles that a Nace theatre will be constructed in Holbrook some time in the spring. The site already has been selected. The house originally was scheduled to be built in 1948, but material shortages resulted in postponement of the project.”
Deadlines kept slipping even then. Motion Picture Herald, Aug. 7, 1948: “Wayne Baur putting in 300-seat theatre, Mancos, Colo., opening about September 15.”
Boxoffice, Jan. 1, 1949: “Wayne Bauer is building a 300-seat theatre at Mancos, Colo., which he hopes to open January 16”
Boxoffice, Oct. 19, 1957: “Porter Smith, owner of a drive-in at Aztec, N. M., and his manager, Paul Campbell, are building another drive-in. This one is between Aztec and Farmington, N. M., and will open in the spring”
Boxoffice, May 12, 1958: “Paul Campbell and Porter Smith have opened their new 350-car (with room for expansion) drive-in at Aztec, N. M. Campbell will manage”
Boxoffice, Jan. 7, 1950: “UINTAH (sic), COLO. – C. H. Ellison, who recently purchased the Uintah Theatre building, has renovated the heating plant and repaired and redecorated the front.”
Boxoffice, April 7, 1958: “E. M. Boughton has bought the Uintah, Fruita, Colo., from Mrs. Whitey Laumer.”
Boxoffice, March 31, 1958: “A $60,000 fire that destroyed the screen at the Starlite Drive-In March 12 may have been started by three boys, according to deputy sheriffs. A 13-year-old boy has admitted that he and two other boys, both 14, set fire to a fence running alongside the theatre the day of the screen fire. The boys said they tried to put out the fence fire with sand, then fled when this method failed to work.”
Boxoffice, Aug. 10, 1957: “The operators of the Tab Drive-In have filed a petition for bankruptcy.”
Boxoffice, March 24, 1958: “Wayne Arnold has renamed the Sage Drive-In in Phoenix the Vale”
Boxoffice, June 16, 1951 (with photo): “Mr. and Mrs. Merle Swank of the Nova Theatre, Stockton, Kas., residents of Denver, and Don Phillips of Colby, Kas., recently purchased a drive-in at Longmont, Colo.”
Boxoffice, March 10, 1958: “Carl Halberg, owner of the Tri-C Drive-In, Albuquerque, has bought the Starvue at Longmont from Don Phillips and Merle Swank.”
Boxoffice, Feb. 10, 1958: “The Orpheum Theatre and Sunset Drive-In here have been purchased by Myron Bean and Lee Riley, owners and operators of the Starlite Drive-In at Forsyth, which they plan to sell.”
The Jan. 6, 1958 issue of Boxoffice ran a two-page spread, with photos, of the owners' work to turn the Apache into a twin. “Different than many twin drive-ins, the screens are not exactly opposite each other. Instead of being on a straight line one of the screens is about a quarter of the way off of the straight layout. This was done so that the ramps would not interfere with the playground which was already located just past the boxoffice.”
Boxoffice, Jan. 6, 1958: “Russell Allen and Kelly Crawford are staring their third drive-in at Farmington, N. M. The new ozoner, to be named the Oasis, will accommodate 986 cars, and employ all of the latest improvements. … It will be located on a new highway being built into the city. The Apache was built in 1952, and was expanded into a twin last year, and the Valley was finished in 1954.”
Boxoffice, Dec. 21, 1957: “The Vista Drive-In, a new airer, was opened recently. It is on State Highway 78 near Lomita drive, halfway between Vista and Escondido.”
The Dec. 7, 1957 issue of Boxoffice ran a full-page spread, with photos, on the new Valli and the Veseth family that built it. “According to Carl Veseth, the drive-in has proven a very good venture, drawing people they have never seen in (their local) indoor house.”
I’ll post this here, even though I can’t find any other evidence that Gillette had a drive-in in the 1950s.
Boxoffice, Oct. 5, 1957: “GILLETTE, Wyo. – A couple of deer actually stopped the show at the local drive-in theatre recently. A buck and doe deer retreated to the drive-in, where they stood in front of the screen, blocking the film. The projectionist finally had to turn off the machines, while patrons chased the deer away so the show could continue.”
Boxoffice, Oct. 5, 1957: “The Western Star Drive-In has been reopened by the Long circuit after reconstruction of the screen which was destroyed in a windstorm last spring. Bill Kee, manager, said the new screen was anchored in foundations of concrete.”
Boxoffice, April 16, 1949: “SHERIDAN, WYO. – Articles of incorporation have been filed by the Sheridan Drive-In Theatre, Inc., and work will begin soon on a 438-car drive-in to be located one-quarter mile east of the Sheridan Flouring mill on Highway 14. The theatre will be semi-enclosed with a ten-foot galvanized metal fence to prevent lights from oncoming cars from flashing on the screen. The new firm is headed by H. M. Bennett.”
Boxoffice, May 21, 1949: “H. M. Bennett is building a 500-car drive-in, the Skyline, near Sheridan, Wyo., equipping it with Simplex booth and sound and National Theatre Supply car speakers”
Boxoffice, Aug. 10, 1957: “A bolt of lightning ripped through the Kit Carson drive-in, Taos, N. M., digging a ditch up to three feet deep across the ozoner. The storm took place in the afternoon. A bulldozer was utilized to put the ramps back in shape for the show at night.”
Boxoffice, Aug. 10, 1957: “The operators of the Tab Drive-In have filed a petition for bankruptcy.”
Boxoffice, July 27, 1957: “Walter Bell recently opened his new 600-car drive-in just north of Arcata in northern California. The $140,000 operation covers ten acres. Bell opened his first "airdome” theatre back in 1911. It cost a total of $225 and seated 96 persons on wooden benches. It proved so profitable that Bell built four others on the prairie in Kansas. Later he moved to Humboldt County, Calif., and built three theatres in a span of five years."
Boxoffice, July 13, 1957: “FORT HUACHUCA, ARIZ. – The 500-car Sierra Vista Drive-In is being completed here by the A. J. Enterprises, organized by A. J. Bronstein. The $200,000 outdoor theatre is part of a shopping center being developed by the Bronstein organization.”
Boxoffice, July 13, 1957: “RICHMOND, VA. – The Circle Drive-In, the ninth airer for this area, has been opened near the Southside Plaza shopping center at McGuire circle. The new drive-in provides parking space for 1,200 cars and is equipped with a screen 75x120 feet. It is being operated by Johnson & Saunders, the same circuit that manages the Glen Drive-In, another local outdoor theatre.”
Boxoffice, July 6, 1957: “The Clark Drive-In at Summer Hill, Ill., owned by Russell Armentrout of Louisiana, Mo., was flattened by the tornado of June 11 … The screen tower was blown down and considerable damage was done to the concession-projection building. Armentrout hoped to have it ready for opening at the end of this week.”
Boxoffice, June 29, 1957: “Frank Sheffield of Denver, Colo., has contracted for the purchase of the O'Neill Drive-In … from R. V. Fletcher. The transaction has been pending for some time. The O'Neill Drive-In was built in 1950 by Fletcher and has been operated by him since that time.”
Boxoffice, June 22, 1957: “The Graceville Drive-In is the new name under which the former Spears Drive-In will be operated. It has also been operated in the past as the Jackson Drive-In. Roy Butler, the present operator, has closed the Jones Drive-In which he has been operating in Graceville, and will devote his full time to the Graceville.”
Boxoffice, May 11, 1957: “CHINOOK, MONT. – Three people in this area were winners in a contest … for naming the new drive-in theatre at the west side of town. Red Rock is the name chosen for the new drive-in.” (The winner and two other entrants, suggesting Spur and Many Moons, won annual passes.)
Boxoffice, June 15, 1957: “Chinook’s newest enterprise, the Red Rock Drive-in Theatre, was opened to the public recently for the first time by Herb Bonifas. The Red Rock, which will accommodate 200 cars, is equipped with RCA sound and has a CinemaScope screen.”
Boxoffice, June 15, 1957: “Jim Boyd, who operates a theatre supply company on (Los Angeles Film) Row, opened his 400-car Lake Drive-In at Big Bear.”