The Tahlequah Drive-In opened its gates on July 12, 1956 with Glenn Ford in “The Violent Men” along with a few short subjects, and was owned by Mr. and Mrs. W.J. Pierces.
Opened by Posel Theatres as the Colonial Theatre on December 27, 1967 with Frank Sinatra in “Tony Rome”. It started life as a single-screener, and was renamed the Colonial Twin when it was twinned on June 16, 1976. It was renamed the AMC Bucks Mall Colonial 2 when AMC took it over in January 1980.
The AMC Bucks Mall Colonial 2 closed on January 21, 1988 with “Throw Mamma From The Train” in Screen 1 and “Three Men And A Baby” in Screen 2.
The Longhorn Drive-In opened its gates on May 16, 1952 with Bob Crosby in “When You’re Smiling” (Unknown if extras added).
On December 12, 1953, the Grady County Sheriff’s Office received a call from manager O.L. Smith stating that every single theater item inside the Longhorn Drive-In was stolen. The case lasted for several months until all of its equipment were recovered in June 1954. Unfortunately all the equipment were badly damaged and was no longer in used. Police identified the person who stole everything at the Longhorn Drive-In as Dr. William T. Gyles of Rush Springs, Oklahoma. At that same time, Horace Clark, the owner of the Chief Drive-In in Chickasha, has filed a replevin action against Gyles for the $765 of equipment he stole from the theater. Despite no criminal charges were filed, he pleaded guilty on what he just did.
The Nusho Theatre opened its doors on September 23, 1938 with Mickey Rooney in “Hoosier School Boy” (unknown if extras added).
The whole interior was destroyed by an overnight fire on September 24, 1941 exactly two hours after an unknown show ended. According to residents, they say that the fire was discovered by high schoolers who are returning from a football game alongside its players and band members. The theater was quickly rebuilt, and reopened a few months later.
It was closed on November 8, 1953 with Gregory Peck in “Yellow Sky” (unknown if extras added).
The Lariat Drive-In opened its gates on June 20, 1950 with Rod Cameron in “The Plunderers” with no extras. It was originally scheduled to open on June 14, 1950, but was postponed to June 20 due to rain.
On July 9, 1950, one of the original employees of the drive-in, 15-year-old Allen Patrick of Estella, suffered minor injuries after he fell from an unknown-modeled truck that was driven at 10 MPH by another theater employee, Sam Brittain.
The actual opening date is September 2, 1949 with Yvonne DeCarlo in “Black Bart” along with two unnamed cartoons and the half-hour intermission track “The Twilight Serenade”.
The Rialto Theatre opened on November 11, 1925 with Noah Berry in “The Coming Of Amos” and Gunnar Kaasen in “Balto’s Race to Nome”. It was renamed the Kiowa Theatre in September 1933.
After a major remodel, the theater reopened as the Esquire Theatre on July 23, 1954 with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis in “Living It Up” along with the Pepe LePew Looney Tune “The Cats Bah” and a newsreel.
The Shattuck Theatre opened its doors on September 15, 1946 with Linda Darnell in “Centennial Summer” along with an unnamed comedy and a newsreel, featuring a 14x18ft screen, two 20,000ft coolers, and RCA sound with an estimate $60,000 in construction. The 50x100ft building was built by brothers Lee and Garland Wilson. It was still open in 1967.
There are two Washita Theatres in its history. Originally built as the First National building in 1913, the original Washita Theatre opened its doors on June 21, 1935 with Edmond Lowe in “The Black Sheep” along with the musical short “Star Night At The Coconut Grove” and the Terrytoon “Jack’s Shack”. It was first managed by George Limerick, and features sound installations by Western Electric.
Unfortunately on December 27, 1939, the Washita Theatre was destroyed by a fire with an estimate $50,000 in damages. Its programming immediately shifted over to the nearby Rialto.
The Washita Theatre was then rebuilt, and reopened on August 1, 1941 with Ginger Rogers in “Tom, Dick and Harry” and Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in “Hold That Ghost” along with an unknown cartoon and a newsreel plus organ music played by WKY-AM’s Ken Wright before each showing. It has an original capacity of 1,200 seats and was managed by Carl Barber.
The Rivoli Theatre opened its doors on March 6, 1929 with May McAvoy in “Stolen Kiss” along with various Vitaphone acts including “Misinformation” and “Morrissey And The Miller Night Club”, with installations of both Vitaphone and Movietone. The Rivoli originally housed 888 nine-spring leather-built seats when it opened, and featured then-Mayor M.M. Lively addressing a five-minute speech in the opening ceremony.
The Bays Theater opened its doors on March 25, 1920 with a live presentation of “The Chocolate Soldier”. Its first film attractions were screened the following day with Beatriz Michelena in “The Flames Of Hellgate” and Mr. and Mrs. Carter DeHaven in “Their Day Of Rest”.
It was remodeled with a massive downgrade on its seating capacity, and reopened on February 19, 1937 with Edmund Love in “Seven Sinners” along with the short “The Fish From Hell”, an unnamed Oswald The Lucky Rabbit cartoon, and a Universal Newsreel. This didn’t last long, and the Bays Theater closed in 1939.
The actual closing date is September 5, 1985 with “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “The Big Chill” in Screen 1, and “The Return Of The Living Dead” and “The Heavenly Kid” in Screen 2.
The Tahlequah Drive-In opened its gates on July 12, 1956 with Glenn Ford in “The Violent Men” along with a few short subjects, and was owned by Mr. and Mrs. W.J. Pierces.
Also opened with two unnamed cartoons and the half-hour intermission track “The Twilight Serenade".
Opened on April 20, 1928.
Opened by Posel Theatres as the Colonial Theatre on December 27, 1967 with Frank Sinatra in “Tony Rome”. It started life as a single-screener, and was renamed the Colonial Twin when it was twinned on June 16, 1976. It was renamed the AMC Bucks Mall Colonial 2 when AMC took it over in January 1980.
The AMC Bucks Mall Colonial 2 closed on January 21, 1988 with “Throw Mamma From The Train” in Screen 1 and “Three Men And A Baby” in Screen 2.
Opened with Woody Allen in “Everything You Always Wanted To Know About S*x But Were Afraid To Ask.”
The actual closing date is June 23, 1996 and was last operated by United Artists.
The Longhorn Drive-In opened its gates on May 16, 1952 with Bob Crosby in “When You’re Smiling” (Unknown if extras added).
On December 12, 1953, the Grady County Sheriff’s Office received a call from manager O.L. Smith stating that every single theater item inside the Longhorn Drive-In was stolen. The case lasted for several months until all of its equipment were recovered in June 1954. Unfortunately all the equipment were badly damaged and was no longer in used. Police identified the person who stole everything at the Longhorn Drive-In as Dr. William T. Gyles of Rush Springs, Oklahoma. At that same time, Horace Clark, the owner of the Chief Drive-In in Chickasha, has filed a replevin action against Gyles for the $765 of equipment he stole from the theater. Despite no criminal charges were filed, he pleaded guilty on what he just did.
It was closed in the late-1960s.
The Olympic Theatre opened around 1915, and was renamed the Melba Theatre on November 11, 1926. It was still open in the 1960s.
The Nusho Theatre opened its doors on September 23, 1938 with Mickey Rooney in “Hoosier School Boy” (unknown if extras added).
The whole interior was destroyed by an overnight fire on September 24, 1941 exactly two hours after an unknown show ended. According to residents, they say that the fire was discovered by high schoolers who are returning from a football game alongside its players and band members. The theater was quickly rebuilt, and reopened a few months later.
It was closed on November 8, 1953 with Gregory Peck in “Yellow Sky” (unknown if extras added).
The Cleveland Drive-In opened in late-June or early-July 1953.
Actually, the Palace Theatre was built in 1921, and opened on October 10 of that same year.
Opened with Humphrey Bogart in “It All Came True” (unknown if extras added).
The North 5th Street Drive-In opened its gates on July 7, 1950 with “Blue Grass Of Kentucky” along with two unnamed cartoons.
The Lariat Drive-In opened its gates on June 20, 1950 with Rod Cameron in “The Plunderers” with no extras. It was originally scheduled to open on June 14, 1950, but was postponed to June 20 due to rain.
Opened on May 8, 1942 with Albert Dekker in “Yokel Boy” along with an unnamed comedy and newsreel.
The Joyce Drive-In opened during the first week of April 1954, although its official opening date remains unknown.
The actual opening date is September 2, 1949 with Yvonne DeCarlo in “Black Bart” along with two unnamed cartoons and the half-hour intermission track “The Twilight Serenade”.
The Yale Theatre opened in 1914, and was renamed the Rex Theatre on August 11, 1920.
The Rialto Theatre opened on November 11, 1925 with Noah Berry in “The Coming Of Amos” and Gunnar Kaasen in “Balto’s Race to Nome”. It was renamed the Kiowa Theatre in September 1933.
After a major remodel, the theater reopened as the Esquire Theatre on July 23, 1954 with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis in “Living It Up” along with the Pepe LePew Looney Tune “The Cats Bah” and a newsreel.
The Oklahoman Theatre opened its doors on September 24, 1928 with Charles Murray in “The Head Man” along with live performances by Herb Cook.
The Shattuck Theatre opened its doors on September 15, 1946 with Linda Darnell in “Centennial Summer” along with an unnamed comedy and a newsreel, featuring a 14x18ft screen, two 20,000ft coolers, and RCA sound with an estimate $60,000 in construction. The 50x100ft building was built by brothers Lee and Garland Wilson. It was still open in 1967.
There are two Washita Theatres in its history. Originally built as the First National building in 1913, the original Washita Theatre opened its doors on June 21, 1935 with Edmond Lowe in “The Black Sheep” along with the musical short “Star Night At The Coconut Grove” and the Terrytoon “Jack’s Shack”. It was first managed by George Limerick, and features sound installations by Western Electric.
Unfortunately on December 27, 1939, the Washita Theatre was destroyed by a fire with an estimate $50,000 in damages. Its programming immediately shifted over to the nearby Rialto.
The Washita Theatre was then rebuilt, and reopened on August 1, 1941 with Ginger Rogers in “Tom, Dick and Harry” and Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in “Hold That Ghost” along with an unknown cartoon and a newsreel plus organ music played by WKY-AM’s Ken Wright before each showing. It has an original capacity of 1,200 seats and was managed by Carl Barber.
The Midwest Theatre opened its doors on May 24, 1936 with Alice Brady in “The Harvester” (unknown if extras added).
The Rivoli Theatre opened its doors on March 6, 1929 with May McAvoy in “Stolen Kiss” along with various Vitaphone acts including “Misinformation” and “Morrissey And The Miller Night Club”, with installations of both Vitaphone and Movietone. The Rivoli originally housed 888 nine-spring leather-built seats when it opened, and featured then-Mayor M.M. Lively addressing a five-minute speech in the opening ceremony.
The Bays Theater opened its doors on March 25, 1920 with a live presentation of “The Chocolate Soldier”. Its first film attractions were screened the following day with Beatriz Michelena in “The Flames Of Hellgate” and Mr. and Mrs. Carter DeHaven in “Their Day Of Rest”.
It was remodeled with a massive downgrade on its seating capacity, and reopened on February 19, 1937 with Edmund Love in “Seven Sinners” along with the short “The Fish From Hell”, an unnamed Oswald The Lucky Rabbit cartoon, and a Universal Newsreel. This didn’t last long, and the Bays Theater closed in 1939.
The actual closing date is September 5, 1985 with “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “The Big Chill” in Screen 1, and “The Return Of The Living Dead” and “The Heavenly Kid” in Screen 2.