Sheridan Drive-In
7801 S. Harlem Avenue,
Bridgeview,
IL
60455
7801 S. Harlem Avenue,
Bridgeview,
IL
60455
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Mister_Comics is correct. A car pass with the correct address was uploaded to the Photo gallery in 2014. Image link below.
https://cinematreasures.org/theaters/5249/photos/113634
The correct address is 7801 S. Harlem Ave.
The Sheridan would have their exact address printed on car passes in the early days of operation. But the entrance to the Drive-in was closer to 77th.
“Pops” mentioned in chgojoearchitect’s comments was Bruno. He sold collectibles alongside his brother & sister in the middle of the market not far from the concession. Each had their own spot.
They had reserved spaces(at the 79th street market, you could pay $1.50 to reserve a specific spot for the following Sunday). They were always in those spots the few years I went.
I was there last in the summer of 1983; sounds like things may have changed after that. Nice family. The sister sold dolls; Bruno sold sports/music memorabilia, and the other brother sold everything else.
I use to spend hours every weekend(Sat/Sun) shooting the bull/picking his brain. I was 14 and just getting into collecting. At first, Bruno would shoo me away. But then I started buying the “occasional” card from his $1 box. He was a nice guy.
We’d park the station wagon. Throw down a blanket or two, and lay out our treasures.
During the late 70’s and early 1980’s, my folks and I would be at the “79th Street” market on most spring and summer weekends.
For me, it was the place to pick up albums. Back then, it was common to find milk crates of clean vinyl to flip through. Records were usually .50 cents each. I discovered the classics that way.
Fond memories.
My best finds: A 1960’s Gibson Discoverer tube amp $10,13 original Hartland Baseball statues for $3.25 (I still have the Mays) and of course the LPs(Beatles to Zappa).
The Swap-O-Rama in Alsip was another fun market as well.
Better address is:
7759 Harlem Avenue, Bridgeview, IL 60455.
7750 puts you on the wrong side of street.
Grand Opening Night was Nov 27,1959
My childhood memories of the Sheridan aren’t of the movies, as well, it was for the Sunday morning flea market that my dad and I sold junk at from 1983-1986. We used to take Harlem Avenue all the way here from the far NW side of Chicago. My dad let me set up a table of baseball cards and collectibles when I was 14 years old and one Sunday I made more money than him. I felt so bad at the time because he worked so hard picking junk out of the alleys to sell here and help out the family. I still have the wood and glass display case I used here and this led me to a career as an eBay reseller of now 19 years. I remember this old man everyone called “Pops” that sold baseball cards here, too, out of his van towards the back near the fence. Many a baseball card dealer at the time that sold here. I never had a chance to go to Haunted Trails, but I’ll never forget hearing the batting cage “pings” in the distance. One day after selling, my dad let me drive his 1978 Chevy Caprice Classic in the empty part of the drive-in. First time I ever drove a car. Great memories.
I believe the Sheridan opened in 1959. Since I have seen photo proof showing movies from 1959 on their marquee sign.
Nice color photo. I added it to the photo section.
Color shot of the marquee here: http://galleryplus.ebayimg.com/ws/web/111228155301_1_0_1.jpg
Yes. The entrance was north of 79th street on Harlem. Lots of fun between the Sheridan and the Starlight. I lived in Oak Lawn for 25 years and our little group mostly hung out at the White Castles at 95th & Cicero because we were part of the hot rodder scene (late 60’s thru mid 70’s). My most vivid memory about the Sheridan was the accident my friend had driving in. We were late and it was already dark and as you know once you entered the theatre parking lot you had to turn off your headlights and use the parking lights. He hit another car (lightly) which kinda spoiled the evening for him. As I remember it, Haunted Trails was at the corner of Cicero & SW Highway, where Hooters is now, before they moved to Burbank. Wish some of these things had never changed.
In the noval THE BOOK OF RALPH by John McNally, he tells a story about the Sheridan Drive-In. The book is about a kid growing up in the south suburban Burbank/Bridgeview/Chicago area in the 70’s.
I live just a few blocks behind from were the drive-in was. Saturday mornings they had fleamarkets. Sometimes at night while the movie was going you could hear some of the stuff from the movie. If you were driving east on 79th you could see the movie screen from the top of the bridge in Bridgeview. After the drive-in was taken down, Ventures and Awshawns was built there and a bank and pet shop. The pet shop is still there but one of the buildings was demolished. Haunted Trails is still in the area where it always was and running. Spent many a time at the drive-in and flea market. Good fun!
Above address is incorrect. Approx. address was further north @ 7750 S. Harlem Avenue.
I remember going to the Haunted Trails miniature golf course in the mid-70’s and looking over the fence at the movie being shown. It was perfect viewing, as the screen faced Southwest, directly facing the Northeastern section of the course. I also remember that huge sign quite well. You could see it from blocks away, that’s for sure.
The thing I remember most about the Sheridan wasn’t so much the movies I saw. It was my dad dragging me there every Sunday morning when I was a little kid for the flea market. At that age I could never understand why someone wanted to buy someone elses used crap. But as long as he let me play in the little playground behind the consession stand all was good. :)
So true. And there was a truly rotten element there. Lots of gang scum. I remember going there once and people had to be searched. Lots of punks yelling and acting out. I demanded a refund and never went back.
Harlem Corners is still standing but it is closed.
Harlem Corners was one of those theatres that you needed to ware you old shoes cuse the floor was stickey your shoes stuck to the floor.
Catherine, the Sheridan was located at 79th & Harlem. Harlem Corners was located at 87th & Harlem. So they weren’t in the same strip mall, but they were down the street from one another. I don’t think Harlem Corners existed while the Sheridan was in operation (or even still standing!) though.
Was the Harlem Corners Theatre located here (or at least in the same strip mall)?
I used to frequent all the Chicago area drive-ins in the 70’s and 80’s, and I know I was at the Sheridan a couple of times but I can’t recall what it looked like. Does anyone have any pictures of the place?
I recall the sign i mean you could see this thing for what was like miles to me of corse i was a little kid at the time, but for me at least it looked like something off of the Las Vegas strip that great big red ,yellow ,green and i think blue star just inviting you to come in! good times good times goodtimes. Ad fore the shopping center it is no longer their eather the stores that i recall being on the lot were a VENTURE, then came AMES but i think with the K-MART
right their on 79th thay took the shopers,their is a NORTHWESTERN BUSNESS SCHOOL whare the stores were and i think their used to be a CUB foods all so it to is gone. But thay now have a bank and some little stores in the plaza whare the drive-in was.One thing that i can recall is that the fearther you went in the world stop and you could not hear the traffic on Harlem Ave. all you heard were the cherp of crickets and the sound of the cars rolling over the gravel in the “seating area”. Good times i will miss them:)
Well thank You for your time and for your space. :)
I was also an usher at this drive-in and it was a local favorite: possibly the classiest of our area’s outdoor theatres. A favorite part of working there, was patrolling the field, after the movies were over and almost all the cars had pulled out… except for those very few that remained, because their occupants had fallen asleep during the movies. Shining our flashlights into those vehicles never failed to provide laughs and quite often, XXX-Rated entertainment for us ushers. You’d be surprised at how many people fall asleep, naked, at a drive-in!
Saw “Bronco Billy” there in 1980. Remembered a open Jeep full of guys that had to leave suddenly when it started to pour rain. I had a friend who used to put his hi beams on and watch all the “making out couples” jump in front of him when the lights shined.
Oooh—bad memories of this place! Caught my high-school boyfriend there, cheating! :(