Forest Drive-In
3901 Capital Boulevard,
Raleigh,
NC
27604
3901 Capital Boulevard,
Raleigh,
NC
27604
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Consolidated Theatres
Previous Names: Capitol Drive-In
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One of several drive-in theatres located in the greater Raleigh area. This drive-in theatre was located on Capital Boulevard in the Brentwood section of North Raleigh(which was also known as North Boulevard). It was the second drive-in to have the Forest name, the first being located just to the south on Capitol Boulevard (which has its own page on Cinema Treasures). This second Forest Drive-In was opened on August 1, 1963 with Sandra Dee in “Tammy and the Doctor” & Jeff Morrow in “Harbor Lights”.
This was in its day a good sized drive-in theatre with a car capacity of 500. It closed on August 29, 1985 with Richard Pryor in “Brewster’s Millions” & Steve Martin in “All of Me”. It was demolished in 1987. A storage facility has been erected where the drive-in theatre once stood on Capital Boulevard.
Contributed by
raymond
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Recent comments (view all 9 comments)
Approx. address for this drive-in was 3901 Capital Blvd.
Was called the Forest Drive In. Became a flee market during the weekend days in the 80s. I saw The Towering Inferno here as a small child in the early 70s.
This is the second location. The name changed to Forest Drive-in when it was moved north from its original location which is under the Cliff Benson Beltline, just north of Yonkers Rd.
It probably was moved to make way for the Beltline construction.
The Forest Drive-In opened on April 13th, 1949.
Forest Drive-In opening Wed, Apr 13, 1949 – 17 · The News and Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina) · Newspapers.com
Opened on 13/4/1949 with 4 colour cartoons(not named) and “In the navy”.
From article linked below, credit Philip Gerard.
“The Forest Drive-In hosted bingo and pig races and even had a merry-go-round, but it was best known for showing feature films suitable for the whole family. At intermission, moviegoers could get popcorn and a Pepsi to enjoy on the hood of their cars.”
https://www.ourstate.com/1950s-at-the-drive-in/
Pig races?
The New Forest Road Drive-In Theatre launched just north of its predecessor on August 1, 1963 with Sandra Dee and Peter Fonda in “Tammy and the Doctor” and Jeff Morrow in “Harbor Lights” supported by two cartoon shorts. The original Forest Drive-In Theatre closed on June 4, 1963 with Elvis in “It Happened at the World’s Fair” and “Up Front” as construction on the bypass ate into the property. The 950-car lot was almost double the size of the previous location.
The New Forest Drive-In Theatre was opened by Consolidated Thetres on a 20-acre tract of land and had a spectacular 122' by 72' steel widescreen reportedly three times brighter than the old Forest screen and largest in the Carolinas. Prizes on opening night included a color television and an air conditioner. The pre-show featured WRAL’s Jimmy Simpson and Tom Tucker as emcees and Miss Wake County, herself, Carolyn Byrd. The double-line cafeteria style concession area claimed that 2,000 customers could be handled briskly. Architect Robert Hall of Leif Valand & Associates firm was responsible for the striking o-zoner.
The family friendly spot was renamed, simply, the Forest Drive-In Theatre. In its final years, it turned to R-Rated and adult films in 1982 until 1984. It returned to more family-friendly fare in 1985 – its final season. The Forest Drive-In closed on 29, 1985 with a double feature of “Brewster’s Millions” and “All of Me.” However, until 1986, it remained home of the Forest Drive-In Flea Market. The theatre was demolished in August of 1987 for a proposed Bradlee’s Department store as part of the Tarrymore Square Shopping Center. The flea market found a new home and Tarrymore Square opened in 1988 without the Bradlees store.
July 28, 1963 photo in Facebook link below.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=429612802503025&set=pb.100063629260284.-2207520000.&type=3