Tanner Drive-In
1300 E. 3rd Street,
Pana,
IL
62557
1300 E. 3rd Street,
Pana,
IL
62557
1 person
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Part of the Tanner family’s chain of drive-ins and indoor theaters (including the Roseland Theatre in Pana and the Liberty Theatre and Tanner Drive-In in Vandalia), this drive-in opened on August 15, 1950 with William Holden in “Street. of Laredo”. It could accomodate about 400 cars. It was located not far from the fairgrounds. Closed on September 8, 1991 with Keanu Reeves in “Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey” & Bryan Brown in “F/X2”. The drive-in was razed in 1999, replaced by a sports complex.
Contributed by
Bryan Krefft
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
1956 USGS photo uploaded here.
There was a lengthy article about “Tanner’s Drive-In Theater” in the July 16, 1989 edition of Springfield IL’s State Journal-Register. It said the drive-in opened in 1950.
At the time of the article, Tanner’s operated Fridays through Sundays. The manager was Rose Tanner, whose father Harry and uncle Herman built the drive-in.
The screen support foundation may still exist in the corner of one of the fields.
Lewis Tanner opened the Tanner Drive-In on August 15, 1950 with “The Streets of Laredo.” The venue’s last ad was the September 8, 1991 double feature of “Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey” and “FX2”.
I think it’s really nice that the entirety of the old drive-in site is now Tanner Park, with a softball diamond, a baseball diamond, and a soccer field.