Newport Drive-In

Mike Rogers on April 24, 2018 at 5:38 pm

I have pictures of the drive in after it closed..

mikerogers2009 on January 7, 2010 at 10:58 pm

From I-40 North you could see the screen of the Newport Drive-In. Beside it was the Woodzo Drive-In whose screen was opposite so you saw the back. It could have easily been a twin drive-in but both drive-ins were separate.

The Newport parked 200 cars and was owned by Newport Amusements. Surprizingly the last time I drove by, the box office was still standing as well as the marquee. The screen was also still standing but most of it was gone. The concessions and booth had stood for a long time but had been bulldozed down. I walked through the torn down concessions and could find nothing but a frame for a now showing slide-in insert. I tried to unscrew it but didn’t have a screwdriver so it was left behind. Maybe one day I’ll get it!

Newport had three drive-ins, The Newport, The Woodzo, and another that I can’t remember the name but it was clearly the newest. A shopping center that’s now closed is in that location. It faced a radio station on a East Tennessee ridge. I always thought the DJs could catch a nice movie. No sound but they could clearly see the screen.