Bridge Drive-In
700 Hibernia Road,
Jefferson City,
MO
65101
700 Hibernia Road,
Jefferson City,
MO
65101
1 person
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: AMC Theatres, Crown Cinema Corporation, Durwood Theatres Inc.
Previous Names: Skylark Drive-In, New Bridge Drive-In
Nearby Theaters
Opened as the Skylark Drive-In on September 20, 1949 with a 395 car capacity. It was operated by the Durwood Theatres chain. It was renamed New Bridge Drive-In in September 1955. In 1957 it became the Bridge Drive-In. Later operated by AMC and finally by Crown Cinemas.
The Bridge Drive-In closed in 1982 and has since been demolished.
Contributed by
Chuck
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Recent comments (view all 9 comments)
Thanks Chuck1231.Great ads you do not see anymore.
1965 aerial uploaded here.
Fun Fact: This Bridge Drive-in opened as Skylark Drive-in the same year the Skylark Drive-in in St. Joseph opened(1949) by the same owners, closed the same year(1982), and both had their gently used SPECO 35mm platter trees transferred to the brand new Plaza 4 in St. Joseph upon opening. Both platters were on location, the St. Joseph Skylark platter even used, up until Plaza 8’s closing in March 2014.
Durwood Theatres had a movie lock in Jeff-City at the end of the 1940s with the established four-wall Capital and State. But an independent decided to build an ozoner ultimately named the Hiwa 50 Drive-In Theatre in 1949. Durwood decided to build an even larger drive-in to undercut the newly-created indy. And on September 22, 1949, the Skylark Drive-In Theatre launched for the Durwood Circuit.
Late in the 1955 season, a new bridge for Jeff-City opened giving an improved traffic flow for the drive-in. Ads said “ride the bridge to the Skylark.” But a light bulb went on, and for the 1956 season, the Skylark was renamed for the structure it was just past and was called the New Bridge Drive-In Theatre for the entire ‘56 season. In 1957, “new” was gone and it became the Drive-In Theatre which would receive significant upgrades for the 1959 season.
American Mutlicinema (AMC) took on the Durwood portfolio in 1961 including the Bridge.The Bridge would fall into controversy in 1971 while showing the X-rated “Myra Breckenridge.”
The address for this Drive-in is 700 Hibernia Rd, Jefferson City, MO 65101.
Part of the property is now Capital Steel Welders. Part of the property is the parking lot for MFA Propane across the road from the main building.
Please update.
Boxoffice, Sept. 24, 1955: “Durwood Theatres is changing the name of the Skylark Drive-In at Jefferson City to the New Bridge and has ordered an impressive new marquee sign for it with the new name.”
The actual opening date is September 20, 1949, featuring an original 50x60ft screen.
The entrance is where Hibernia Road Parking is located. The on-ramp for HWY-63 heading north cuts right through the middle of where the drive-in once stood. As of now, there is no address on Google Maps for the parking area.
Cecil Hoffman was the first manager of the Skylark.