The Grand Opening of the Valley was on Friday, Aug. 19, 1955, based on an ad in the previous day’s issue of The Paonian. The opening program was “Timberjack,” “Trouble in Store,” and a cartoon.
The Paonia held its grand opening on June 7, 1957, based on a front-page article the previous day in The Paonian. Owner Tom Poulos said that some of the equipment hadn’t yet arrived, but the incomplete theater would open on schedule.
The drive-in had 260 speakers and a 78x34-foot screen. “Don Poulos, manager of the Paonia and Hotchkiss theatres, will also manage the drive-in.”
The opening program was “Sierra Stranger,” “Walking My Baby Back Home,” a cartoon and a Three Stooges short.
The Uranium had its opening on Sunday, March 13, 1954, showing “War Paint” and “Africa Screams,” based on a report six days later in the Nucla Forum. Bill Moore opened the place even though the concession stand was incomplete; its first ad in that newspaper was that March 19 edition. Moore said he planned a double feature every night of the week.
The drive-in was still advertising in 1976, and it stayed on the Motion Picture Almanacs' drive-in lists through the final list in 1988.
In its May 7, 1949 issue, Boxoffice raved about the soon-to-open Bel-Air’s sign: “The largest Illinois sign ever to be displayed in Will county is now under construction by the Lotz Sign Co. The sign is being manufactured for the Bel Air Theatre Co. and will grace the huge screen tower of the drive-in being built at the southeast junction of Route 66-A and Romeo road, five miles north of Joliet.
“The sign will weigh three-and-a-half tons when it is completed. It will contain 12,000 feet of neon tubing. If stretched in a straight line, that tubing would cover seven city blocks. And the sign will be as wide a Joliet’s main thoroughfare. The letters in it will be more than 12 feet high.”
Boxoffice, Feb. 19, 1949: “Herbert Gumper hopes to be able to open his new 450-seat Fawn, Center, Colo., by Easter.”
Boxoffice, April 30, 1949: “CENTER, COLO. – The 434-seat New Center Theatre has opened here following a year of construction work. Owned by Mr. and Mrs. Herb Gumper, the New Center is housed in a 50x20-foot two-story building which houses, in addition to the auditorium, projection booth, cry room and restrooms, two small store spaces on the ground floor and an apartment and three office spaces on the second floor. The Fawn, which has served Center for the past 20 years, will be closed for the present, but will be reopened during the potato harvest in the fall, it was reported.”
Boxoffice, March 19, 1949: “Wyoming drive-ins to be completed for spring opening include the Motor Vu, Cheyenne; Skyline, Casper; Skyline, Rawlins and West, Cody.”
Boxoffice, April 30, 1949: “The Motor-Vu 600-car drive-in, Cheyenne, has been opened by Russ Dauterman, Al Knox, O. J. Hazen and Ray Davis”
Boxoffice, April 2, 1949: “Harry Baird, Max Story and E. C. Jones are building a 400-car drive-in at Delta, Colo., leaving room to expand if needed. The spot will open about May 7, and will use Motiograph sound and booth equipment and Service Supply car speakers, all bought from Ted Knox.”
Boxoffice, April 30, 1949 (possibly erroneously anticipating the event): “Mr. and Mrs. Harry Barrett and Max Stotey have opened their new 500-car drive-in at Delta, Colo.”
I wonder whether this drive-in changed its name before or after it opened. From Boxoffice, April 2, 1949: “CASPER, WYO. – April 10 has been set as the opening date for the Adams Drive-In, located near the fairgrounds. At present the theatre is about 60 per cent complete, Robert Adams, head of the enterprise, reported. Finishing touches and installation of equipment are all that remains to be done. The drive-in is owned by Allen and his brothers who also plan to operate an outdoor theatre in Rawlins.”
The opening date lines up with the nameless Boxoffice note three weeks later on April 23, “Robert Adams has opened a 640-car drive-in at Casper, Wyo., with new Motiograph booth equipment, sound and Service Theatre Supply car speakers, sold by Ted Knox”
Anthony L. Vazquez-Hernandez’s article link from Sept. 2006 is now dead, but I found what it might have been at NewsLibrary.com (available through some public libraries, or with money). Vail Daily published an article on July 25, 2003 about the Groy family and the Comanche. A few highlights:
John Sr. and Pearl Groy (for whom Buena Vista’s indoor Pearl was named), opened the Comanche in August 1966. The drive-in lost its final 40 in-car speakers “to lightning” in 2002. At the time of the article, they were still using a two-projector system instead of a platter.
The Hotchkiss Drive-In was listed in the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog, capacity 300, owner F. M. Peterson. But it was never included in the Motion Picture Almanacs' drive-in lists.
As suggested by its inclusion in the 1960 Motion Picture Almanac, the Paonia was open by 1959. A note under the Paonia news in Grand Junction CO’s Daily Sentinel of May 27, 1959 said that the Paonia high school’s freshman class “enjoyed a hobo party at the Paonia Drive-In Patio Thursday evening.”
I wonder where Chris1982 found his 1958 info, because the Paonia’s first appearance in the Motion Picture Almanac series was the 1960 edition. The 1960-66 MPAs listed the Paonia with a capacity of 300, owner Tom Poulos. The next update was in the 1977 MPA reboot, when the Paonia’s owner was D. Linza, and that’s how it stayed through the final MPA drive-in list in 1988.
Boxoffice, April 16, 1949: “GREELEY, COLO. – Changes in the Greeley Drive-In, which recently reopened for the season, include addition of wings on each side of the screen to close out the tower and traffic lights. The fence has also been improved to prevent lights from incoming cars shining on those already parked. Other improvements have been made in the restrooms, boxoffice and snack bar. The Greeley is located on Highway 34 across from the Greeley Country club. Owners Emmett Savard and R. W. Meyer also plan to landscape the front of the area later in the season.”
Boxoffice, Feb. 1, 1960: “Emmett Savard, owner of the Greeley Drive-In, has moved his offices to the swanky 655 Broadway Bldg.”
The Midway’s recent renovation isn’t its first. Boxoffice had this note on April 9, 1949: “BURLINGTON, COLO. – Renovation work at the Midway Theatre here got under way recently with improvements to include a new masonry front, a new neon sign, stainless steel marquee, new doors and windows, air conditioning, restrooms and complete redecoration. Manager Neil Beezley said the job would complete the thorough renovation project started several months ago. New projection, sound and screen equipment also has been installed.”
Boxoffice, April 9, 1949: “CLOVIS, N. M. – Final papers were expected to be signed immediately for sale of the Yucca Drive-In here by owner Tom Griffing to Russell Hardwick.”
Boxoffice, March 26, 1949: “SOCORRO, N. M. – Edsel Cavasos recently opened his Sunset Drive-In here. The Sunset is equipped with 100 in-car speakers and plans are to add more as they are needed, Cavasos said.”
Boxoffice, March 26, 1949: “Mitchell Kelloff has bought the Segundo in Segundo, formerly operated by the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co., and has reopened the theatre”
Boxoffice, March 19, 1949: “Wyoming drive-ins to be completed for spring opening include the Motor Vu, Cheyenne; Skyline, Casper; Skyline, Rawlins and West, Cody.”
Boxoffice, March 19, 1949: “Wyoming drive-ins to be completed for spring opening include the Motor Vu, Cheyenne; Skyline, Casper; Skyline, Rawlins and West, Cody.”
Looks like Wolfe had one detail just a little wrong. The Plainsman Herald of Springfield’s July 4, 1957 issue proclaimed that the Sunset would open the following evening, July 5.
Also, early ads called it the “Sunset Drive Inn Theatre”. What was up with that double n?
In a Feb. 21, 2010 article about “Night Lights,” local historian Mike Thomason’s book on Pueblo’s theaters, the Pueblo Chieftain wrote that the Pueblo Drive-In’s opening night was March 17, 1950.
But that just proves that some reporter got suckered by a season re-opening ad and didn’t read the book, which is admittedly hard to find. In Night Lights, Thomason clearly wrote that the Pueblo opened on May 20, 1948, closed on Sept. 4, 1988, and saw its screen tower burn down on Nov. 7, 1995.
A note in the Feb. 12, 1949 issue of Boxoffice said that the guy who ran the Eagle had more than one theater back then. “John Greve, Eagle, Colo., exhibitor, was on Filmrow for the first time in several months. His son, Lloyd, is doing most of the work of operating the theatres.”
In a fun article in the Feb. 5, 1949 issue of Boxoffice, titled “Drive-Ins as the Projectionist Sees Them,” Don Kennedy described an occasional problem at the East Side.
“Screen visibility has another enemy – the moonbeams. My advice is to never place a screen so that it faces toward the southeast. (If you are going to build in South America, I guess the position is just the opposite.) We found that out at the East Side Drive-In in Detroit, which faces in just about that position. When the moon is in its full period, conditions are worst. On a clear night it will hit the side of the screen structure as it rises, throwing deep shadows and then as it moves around to a more direct view of the screen, the light may become intense enough to cut down visibility and clarity of the picture on the screen.”
A note in the July 17, 1959 issue of Motion Picture Daily mentioned that Donald Monson owned the Ute and Chief theaters in Rifle. Don Munson was Fred Lind’s son-in-law, according to a note in the Feb. 5, 1949 Boxoffice.
The Grand Opening of the Valley was on Friday, Aug. 19, 1955, based on an ad in the previous day’s issue of The Paonian. The opening program was “Timberjack,” “Trouble in Store,” and a cartoon.
The Paonia held its grand opening on June 7, 1957, based on a front-page article the previous day in The Paonian. Owner Tom Poulos said that some of the equipment hadn’t yet arrived, but the incomplete theater would open on schedule.
The drive-in had 260 speakers and a 78x34-foot screen. “Don Poulos, manager of the Paonia and Hotchkiss theatres, will also manage the drive-in.”
The opening program was “Sierra Stranger,” “Walking My Baby Back Home,” a cartoon and a Three Stooges short.
The Uranium had its opening on Sunday, March 13, 1954, showing “War Paint” and “Africa Screams,” based on a report six days later in the Nucla Forum. Bill Moore opened the place even though the concession stand was incomplete; its first ad in that newspaper was that March 19 edition. Moore said he planned a double feature every night of the week.
The drive-in was still advertising in 1976, and it stayed on the Motion Picture Almanacs' drive-in lists through the final list in 1988.
In its May 7, 1949 issue, Boxoffice raved about the soon-to-open Bel-Air’s sign: “The largest Illinois sign ever to be displayed in Will county is now under construction by the Lotz Sign Co. The sign is being manufactured for the Bel Air Theatre Co. and will grace the huge screen tower of the drive-in being built at the southeast junction of Route 66-A and Romeo road, five miles north of Joliet.
“The sign will weigh three-and-a-half tons when it is completed. It will contain 12,000 feet of neon tubing. If stretched in a straight line, that tubing would cover seven city blocks. And the sign will be as wide a Joliet’s main thoroughfare. The letters in it will be more than 12 feet high.”
Boxoffice, Feb. 19, 1949: “Herbert Gumper hopes to be able to open his new 450-seat Fawn, Center, Colo., by Easter.”
Boxoffice, April 30, 1949: “CENTER, COLO. – The 434-seat New Center Theatre has opened here following a year of construction work. Owned by Mr. and Mrs. Herb Gumper, the New Center is housed in a 50x20-foot two-story building which houses, in addition to the auditorium, projection booth, cry room and restrooms, two small store spaces on the ground floor and an apartment and three office spaces on the second floor. The Fawn, which has served Center for the past 20 years, will be closed for the present, but will be reopened during the potato harvest in the fall, it was reported.”
Boxoffice, March 19, 1949: “Wyoming drive-ins to be completed for spring opening include the Motor Vu, Cheyenne; Skyline, Casper; Skyline, Rawlins and West, Cody.”
Boxoffice, April 30, 1949: “The Motor-Vu 600-car drive-in, Cheyenne, has been opened by Russ Dauterman, Al Knox, O. J. Hazen and Ray Davis”
Boxoffice, April 2, 1949: “Harry Baird, Max Story and E. C. Jones are building a 400-car drive-in at Delta, Colo., leaving room to expand if needed. The spot will open about May 7, and will use Motiograph sound and booth equipment and Service Supply car speakers, all bought from Ted Knox.”
Boxoffice, April 30, 1949 (possibly erroneously anticipating the event): “Mr. and Mrs. Harry Barrett and Max Stotey have opened their new 500-car drive-in at Delta, Colo.”
I wonder whether this drive-in changed its name before or after it opened. From Boxoffice, April 2, 1949: “CASPER, WYO. – April 10 has been set as the opening date for the Adams Drive-In, located near the fairgrounds. At present the theatre is about 60 per cent complete, Robert Adams, head of the enterprise, reported. Finishing touches and installation of equipment are all that remains to be done. The drive-in is owned by Allen and his brothers who also plan to operate an outdoor theatre in Rawlins.”
The opening date lines up with the nameless Boxoffice note three weeks later on April 23, “Robert Adams has opened a 640-car drive-in at Casper, Wyo., with new Motiograph booth equipment, sound and Service Theatre Supply car speakers, sold by Ted Knox”
Boxoffice, April 23, 1949: “F. A. Maller has bought the Isis in Metetsie (sic), from Alfred Triplett”
Anthony L. Vazquez-Hernandez’s article link from Sept. 2006 is now dead, but I found what it might have been at NewsLibrary.com (available through some public libraries, or with money). Vail Daily published an article on July 25, 2003 about the Groy family and the Comanche. A few highlights:
John Sr. and Pearl Groy (for whom Buena Vista’s indoor Pearl was named), opened the Comanche in August 1966. The drive-in lost its final 40 in-car speakers “to lightning” in 2002. At the time of the article, they were still using a two-projector system instead of a platter.
The Hotchkiss Drive-In was listed in the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog, capacity 300, owner F. M. Peterson. But it was never included in the Motion Picture Almanacs' drive-in lists.
As suggested by its inclusion in the 1960 Motion Picture Almanac, the Paonia was open by 1959. A note under the Paonia news in Grand Junction CO’s Daily Sentinel of May 27, 1959 said that the Paonia high school’s freshman class “enjoyed a hobo party at the Paonia Drive-In Patio Thursday evening.”
I wonder where Chris1982 found his 1958 info, because the Paonia’s first appearance in the Motion Picture Almanac series was the 1960 edition. The 1960-66 MPAs listed the Paonia with a capacity of 300, owner Tom Poulos. The next update was in the 1977 MPA reboot, when the Paonia’s owner was D. Linza, and that’s how it stayed through the final MPA drive-in list in 1988.
Boxoffice, April 16, 1949: “GREELEY, COLO. – Changes in the Greeley Drive-In, which recently reopened for the season, include addition of wings on each side of the screen to close out the tower and traffic lights. The fence has also been improved to prevent lights from incoming cars shining on those already parked. Other improvements have been made in the restrooms, boxoffice and snack bar. The Greeley is located on Highway 34 across from the Greeley Country club. Owners Emmett Savard and R. W. Meyer also plan to landscape the front of the area later in the season.”
Boxoffice, Feb. 1, 1960: “Emmett Savard, owner of the Greeley Drive-In, has moved his offices to the swanky 655 Broadway Bldg.”
The Midway’s recent renovation isn’t its first. Boxoffice had this note on April 9, 1949: “BURLINGTON, COLO. – Renovation work at the Midway Theatre here got under way recently with improvements to include a new masonry front, a new neon sign, stainless steel marquee, new doors and windows, air conditioning, restrooms and complete redecoration. Manager Neil Beezley said the job would complete the thorough renovation project started several months ago. New projection, sound and screen equipment also has been installed.”
Boxoffice, April 9, 1949: “CLOVIS, N. M. – Final papers were expected to be signed immediately for sale of the Yucca Drive-In here by owner Tom Griffing to Russell Hardwick.”
Boxoffice, March 26, 1949: “SOCORRO, N. M. – Edsel Cavasos recently opened his Sunset Drive-In here. The Sunset is equipped with 100 in-car speakers and plans are to add more as they are needed, Cavasos said.”
Boxoffice, March 26, 1949: “Mitchell Kelloff has bought the Segundo in Segundo, formerly operated by the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co., and has reopened the theatre”
Boxoffice, March 19, 1949: “Wyoming drive-ins to be completed for spring opening include the Motor Vu, Cheyenne; Skyline, Casper; Skyline, Rawlins and West, Cody.”
Boxoffice, March 19, 1949: “Wyoming drive-ins to be completed for spring opening include the Motor Vu, Cheyenne; Skyline, Casper; Skyline, Rawlins and West, Cody.”
Looks like Wolfe had one detail just a little wrong. The Plainsman Herald of Springfield’s July 4, 1957 issue proclaimed that the Sunset would open the following evening, July 5.
Also, early ads called it the “Sunset Drive Inn Theatre”. What was up with that double n?
In a Feb. 21, 2010 article about “Night Lights,” local historian Mike Thomason’s book on Pueblo’s theaters, the Pueblo Chieftain wrote that the Pueblo Drive-In’s opening night was March 17, 1950.
But that just proves that some reporter got suckered by a season re-opening ad and didn’t read the book, which is admittedly hard to find. In Night Lights, Thomason clearly wrote that the Pueblo opened on May 20, 1948, closed on Sept. 4, 1988, and saw its screen tower burn down on Nov. 7, 1995.
A note in the Feb. 12, 1949 issue of Boxoffice said that the guy who ran the Eagle had more than one theater back then. “John Greve, Eagle, Colo., exhibitor, was on Filmrow for the first time in several months. His son, Lloyd, is doing most of the work of operating the theatres.”
In a fun article in the Feb. 5, 1949 issue of Boxoffice, titled “Drive-Ins as the Projectionist Sees Them,” Don Kennedy described an occasional problem at the East Side.
“Screen visibility has another enemy – the moonbeams. My advice is to never place a screen so that it faces toward the southeast. (If you are going to build in South America, I guess the position is just the opposite.) We found that out at the East Side Drive-In in Detroit, which faces in just about that position. When the moon is in its full period, conditions are worst. On a clear night it will hit the side of the screen structure as it rises, throwing deep shadows and then as it moves around to a more direct view of the screen, the light may become intense enough to cut down visibility and clarity of the picture on the screen.”
A note in the July 17, 1959 issue of Motion Picture Daily mentioned that Donald Monson owned the Ute and Chief theaters in Rifle. Don Munson was Fred Lind’s son-in-law, according to a note in the Feb. 5, 1949 Boxoffice.