Here’s the real true story on how Britain attempted to build its first drive-in theater:
Throughout much of January and February 1964, plans were announced by Mr. Billy Butlin, Mr. Cecil King, and ABC Cinemas for a family entertainment center on an 800-acre site in the east part of Stanley Park located in Blackpool, claiming that the joint project will be the most comprehensive of its kind in Europe at the time. The plan was later purposed, and more drive-ins including ones in Gloucester and Tollerton were also planned both by ABC themselves.
This includes the first drive-in theater in the United Kingdom with room for a capacity of 1,000 cars and a holiday camp nearby for 8,000 people. Some other addictions to the project include a zoo, a golf course, an exhibition hall, and parking spaces for 12,000 vehicles as well as a horse racing track. Special additions to the planned theater include a bandstand, restaurants, several snack bars, beer gardens, and an arts and crafts studio. The screen will be a vast CinemaScope screen measuring 120ft long that will be functioned with most climatic difficulties except both heavy snow or fog.
Unfortunately all of those plans ABC mentioned were immediately halted and were completely dropped a few years later.
The Imperial Theatre opened as early as 1925 and was renamed the Star Theatre on October 5, 1934. At the time, Imperial had two movie houses, with the other being the Kiva Theatre. The Kiva Theatre nearby closed on November 1, 1936 following an auction and all of its equipment there were shipped to the Star Theatre.
NOTE: It was still named the Star Theatre into as late as 1965.
The Summit Mall Theatre was first operated by Stanley-Warner (and later RKO Stanley-Warner) until April 16, 1976 when National Theatre Corporation took over the theater and was twinned that same day.
NTC closed the Summit Mall Theatre on July 16, 1989 with “Road House” and “See No Evil, Hear No Evil” in Screen 1 and “Major League” in Screen 2.
The West Drive-In opened its gates on July 14, 1950 with Alan Ladd in “Whispering Smith” along with an unnamed comedy, unnamed cartoon, and a newsreel, featuring a 65ft screen tower with a 50x36ft screen and a capacity of 300 cars. It was first managed by Ed Davison of Survant Theaters.
Glasgow had a second drive-in theater on then-known as Air Base Road called the Glasgow Drive-In, which opened around Easter 1960. Unfortunately I cannot find any information about it though.
This started life as the Gibson Opera House, and was renamed the Orpheum Theatre on December 2, 1911. Survant Theatres was its last operator before the Orpheum Theatre closed in either late-February or early-March 1961.
The Survant Theatre, named after both a local theater chain and Montanan pioneer John Survant, opened its doors on December 26, 1953 with Gary Cooper in “Return To Paradise” with no extras. The Survant also opened with 6875-square-inch Silver Surface CinemaScope featuring “Super High” arc lamps and a large DC generator which came from the B.C. Shearer Company of Seattle, and stereophonic sound. The original auditorium was also equipped with 16-spring cushions with full padded upholstered backs.
Some of the original installations include a overhead 30-foot lighting fixture with floral design covering the lobby as well as unique laminated wooden arch supports, which were 30ft high at their peak coming all the way from Wisconsin. The stone built of the theater had a touch of rose, tan, and brown colors, and the exterior walls of the theater are built for four-hour fire resistance. What’s unique about the front is that its design and materials are faced with Arizona flagstone that was shipped from the Kaibab Forest.
The Roxy Theatre opened its doors on October 12, 1934 with Joe E. Brown in “6 Day Bike Rider” along with the Morton Downey short “Off The Beat”, the Buddy Looney Tunes cartoon “Buddy Of The Apes”, and the novelty reel “The Superstition Of The Black Cat”.
According to its original manager Art Abelson, he said a statement that the decorations alongside its black vitrolite front weren’t complete at the time of its grand opening. In connection of that for a short time, the theater ended up operating at a temporarily box office before its shipping and completion.
The November 26, 1951 fire was caused by an overheated heating pipe and destroyed six businesses including the Roxy Theatre at approximately 10:15 AM that morning. The Roxy, alongside two lounges, a bar, two cafes, and a drug store were all impacted by the fire, centering around one of the two cafes (Shipp’s Cafe). The fire caused an estimate $500,000 in damage, with half going towards the theater and the another half towards the cafe and the lounges.
The Roxy was never rebuilt nor reopened, and a J.C. Penney was built on the former theater site in early-1953. A newer theater, called the Survant Theatre, was then built a few buildings away from the Roxy.
This actually started life as the State Theatre, opening with 350 seats on May 6, 1931 with Charlie Chaplin in “City Lights” (unknown if extras added). It was renamed the Kiva Theatre on July 2, 1934 after a management change by the Cornhusker Theaters Company. The Kiva Theatre closed in 1941 and the building was rebuilt.
The theater also received a massive remodel in 1941 featuring an updated marquee, seating expansion, and latest equipment. The theater name was reverted back to its original State Theatre name, and reopened with an expanded capacity of 713 seats on October 31, 1941 with James Ellison in “Ice-Capades” and Bob Crosby in “Rookies On Parade” (unknown if extras added).
Its seating capacity was later reduced to 700 following a 1979 remodel. Commonwealth Theatres later operated the State Theatre in the 1980s, and the State Theatre once had a few months of closure in 1986. It was last operated by United Artists before closing as a first-run movie theater on August 2, 1992 with “Basic Instinct”.
The 650-seat Martin Theatre opened its doors as a single-screener on March 16, 1967 with Walt Disney’s “Follow Me Boys”. On its grand opening day, a local rock group called “The Rogues” performed next to the box office. The original auditorium features a Vista-Vue screen, pushback seats, and tangerine and gold decorations.
It was twinned on September 27, 1974 after diving its original auditorium, splitting into two with 322 seats each.
In color, the Princess Theatre’s 87ft marquee contained the variety of colors of black, orange, yellow, green, red, and aluminum. The squares above the marquee are dipped in black, white, and orange.
Here’s the real true story on how Britain attempted to build its first drive-in theater:
Throughout much of January and February 1964, plans were announced by Mr. Billy Butlin, Mr. Cecil King, and ABC Cinemas for a family entertainment center on an 800-acre site in the east part of Stanley Park located in Blackpool, claiming that the joint project will be the most comprehensive of its kind in Europe at the time. The plan was later purposed, and more drive-ins including ones in Gloucester and Tollerton were also planned both by ABC themselves.
This includes the first drive-in theater in the United Kingdom with room for a capacity of 1,000 cars and a holiday camp nearby for 8,000 people. Some other addictions to the project include a zoo, a golf course, an exhibition hall, and parking spaces for 12,000 vehicles as well as a horse racing track. Special additions to the planned theater include a bandstand, restaurants, several snack bars, beer gardens, and an arts and crafts studio. The screen will be a vast CinemaScope screen measuring 120ft long that will be functioned with most climatic difficulties except both heavy snow or fog.
Unfortunately all of those plans ABC mentioned were immediately halted and were completely dropped a few years later.
Actual opening date is September 12, 1968.
The Breezway Drive-In was very short-lived. It may’ve closed probably around five seasons after it opened.
Its very unique to see the screen being built EXTREMELY low-mounted and connecting that one building.
Last operated by Loews Cineplex.
Opened on September 6, 1947 with Elyne Knox in “Sweetheart Of Sigma Chi” (unknown if extras added).
The Imperial Theatre opened as early as 1925 and was renamed the Star Theatre on October 5, 1934. At the time, Imperial had two movie houses, with the other being the Kiva Theatre. The Kiva Theatre nearby closed on November 1, 1936 following an auction and all of its equipment there were shipped to the Star Theatre.
Opened on March 26, 1969 with Clint Eastwood in “Where Eagles Dare”.
The Summit Mall Theatre was first operated by Stanley-Warner (and later RKO Stanley-Warner) until April 16, 1976 when National Theatre Corporation took over the theater and was twinned that same day.
NTC closed the Summit Mall Theatre on July 16, 1989 with “Road House” and “See No Evil, Hear No Evil” in Screen 1 and “Major League” in Screen 2.
It appears that the concession/projection building is the only one standing in the 1985 aerial view.
The West Drive-In opened its gates on July 14, 1950 with Alan Ladd in “Whispering Smith” along with an unnamed comedy, unnamed cartoon, and a newsreel, featuring a 65ft screen tower with a 50x36ft screen and a capacity of 300 cars. It was first managed by Ed Davison of Survant Theaters.
Glasgow had a second drive-in theater on then-known as Air Base Road called the Glasgow Drive-In, which opened around Easter 1960. Unfortunately I cannot find any information about it though.
This started life as the Gibson Opera House, and was renamed the Orpheum Theatre on December 2, 1911. Survant Theatres was its last operator before the Orpheum Theatre closed in either late-February or early-March 1961.
The Survant Theatre, named after both a local theater chain and Montanan pioneer John Survant, opened its doors on December 26, 1953 with Gary Cooper in “Return To Paradise” with no extras. The Survant also opened with 6875-square-inch Silver Surface CinemaScope featuring “Super High” arc lamps and a large DC generator which came from the B.C. Shearer Company of Seattle, and stereophonic sound. The original auditorium was also equipped with 16-spring cushions with full padded upholstered backs.
Some of the original installations include a overhead 30-foot lighting fixture with floral design covering the lobby as well as unique laminated wooden arch supports, which were 30ft high at their peak coming all the way from Wisconsin. The stone built of the theater had a touch of rose, tan, and brown colors, and the exterior walls of the theater are built for four-hour fire resistance. What’s unique about the front is that its design and materials are faced with Arizona flagstone that was shipped from the Kaibab Forest.
The Roxy Theatre opened its doors on October 12, 1934 with Joe E. Brown in “6 Day Bike Rider” along with the Morton Downey short “Off The Beat”, the Buddy Looney Tunes cartoon “Buddy Of The Apes”, and the novelty reel “The Superstition Of The Black Cat”.
According to its original manager Art Abelson, he said a statement that the decorations alongside its black vitrolite front weren’t complete at the time of its grand opening. In connection of that for a short time, the theater ended up operating at a temporarily box office before its shipping and completion.
The November 26, 1951 fire was caused by an overheated heating pipe and destroyed six businesses including the Roxy Theatre at approximately 10:15 AM that morning. The Roxy, alongside two lounges, a bar, two cafes, and a drug store were all impacted by the fire, centering around one of the two cafes (Shipp’s Cafe). The fire caused an estimate $500,000 in damage, with half going towards the theater and the another half towards the cafe and the lounges.
The Roxy was never rebuilt nor reopened, and a J.C. Penney was built on the former theater site in early-1953. A newer theater, called the Survant Theatre, was then built a few buildings away from the Roxy.
Last operated by Douglas Theatre Company, closed on September 3, 1989 with “Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade” and “Star Trek V”.
Once operated by Commonwealth Theatres.
This actually started life as the State Theatre, opening with 350 seats on May 6, 1931 with Charlie Chaplin in “City Lights” (unknown if extras added). It was renamed the Kiva Theatre on July 2, 1934 after a management change by the Cornhusker Theaters Company. The Kiva Theatre closed in 1941 and the building was rebuilt.
The theater also received a massive remodel in 1941 featuring an updated marquee, seating expansion, and latest equipment. The theater name was reverted back to its original State Theatre name, and reopened with an expanded capacity of 713 seats on October 31, 1941 with James Ellison in “Ice-Capades” and Bob Crosby in “Rookies On Parade” (unknown if extras added).
Its seating capacity was later reduced to 700 following a 1979 remodel. Commonwealth Theatres later operated the State Theatre in the 1980s, and the State Theatre once had a few months of closure in 1986. It was last operated by United Artists before closing as a first-run movie theater on August 2, 1992 with “Basic Instinct”.
The theater reopened as the Victory Theatre on December 21, 1941 with Jack Oakie in “Rise And Shine” (unknown if extras added).
Opened on December 12, 2003 with 7 screens. Two more screens were added around a few months later.
The 650-seat Martin Theatre opened its doors as a single-screener on March 16, 1967 with Walt Disney’s “Follow Me Boys”. On its grand opening day, a local rock group called “The Rogues” performed next to the box office. The original auditorium features a Vista-Vue screen, pushback seats, and tangerine and gold decorations.
It was twinned on September 27, 1974 after diving its original auditorium, splitting into two with 322 seats each.
Closed on December 2, 1999.
In color, the Princess Theatre’s 87ft marquee contained the variety of colors of black, orange, yellow, green, red, and aluminum. The squares above the marquee are dipped in black, white, and orange.
First managed by Joe Wiley of Hickman, Kentucky, and closed in December 1953.
Opened with William Holden in “Blaze Of Noon” (unknown if extras added).
It was first managed by Dan Murray, who also managed the Hartford Theatre. The original screen tower measures 60ft with a 50x40ft screen.