In 1948, while the State Theater was being built in Baxter, Benton Young was opening the Young’s Drive-In Theater on the northeast corner of Highway 70, and Peach Orchard Road.
Four years later, Stacy Wilhite, president of Mid-South Theaters, approached Benton Young with plans to build a bigger and better drive-in theater, with or without Young’s support.
They decided to work together and built a new drive-in theater, the Putnam Drive-In Theater, which opened in 1952, across the street from where Young’s original drive-in theater was. This new theater, the Putnam Drive-In Theater, thrived for almost 40 years.
The 16 acres that it stood on was sold in 1993 to make way for the Mid-South Machine and Supply Co. The owners of Mid-South wanted to save the marquee, because they knew of the historical significance it had to the community, but it was accidentally torn down.
An August 2015 article in Willmar’s West Central Tribune said Tim Eiler was the guy who bought the Starlite in 1997. He was up to five screens in 2015 when he sold the place to David Quincer, who owns the Cozy Theater, a vintage indoor cinema in Wadena.
As of June 2017, the Starlite has only two active screens and is open Friday-Sunday.
Google Books has that issue of Life, Dec. 22 1958, available for viewing. https://books.google.com/books?id=Yj8EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA4&dq=Eyerman&pg=PA17#v=onepage&q=Eyerman&f=true
The caption reads “At Oak Hills near Salt Lake City, as jets etch the evening sky, Moses in The Ten Commandments casts his biblical wrath down at the parked cars.” Yes, jets. As originally printed in that two page spread, jet trails were clearly visible above the left mountain peaks.
Trick question: What movie was playing when the photo was taken? As I guessed in 2013, it was not The Ten Commandments. Think about it – it’s barely dark enough to see a movie, but we’re already at the Red Sea scene?
In a sidebar from the Salt Lake Tribune, it revealed that the photographer “lured dozens of local college students to the showing of the 1956 film ‘… And God Created Woman’ featuring Brigitte Bardot, said his daughter Kathryn Marshall.” Then he swapped in that Heston frame.
So if you want to prove where it was taken, find the newspaper ad for that movie, not The Ten Commandments.
A great 2014 Pioneer Public Broadcasting video fills in a few more gaps. (And has some lovely old photos, you should go watch it.)
Ken Sargent built the Verne. Walter Deutsch bought the place in 1966 and built a house next to the ticket booth. Deutsch sold the Verne in 1983, but he still sells tickets on movie nights “when they need help” since he lives next door.
(Maybe I didn’t hear that sale date right, since the City of Luverne site claims Deutsch operated the Verne until 1988.)
Glenn Burmeister bought the Verne in 2000. (Luverne said the drive-in “reopened” that date.) He built new ticket and concession buildings and probably was the one to remove the old speaker poles.
Not sure about Mike Rogers' source, but the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog shows the Verne, capacity 300, under K. C. Sargent.
1963 IMPA showed “Owner or Booker” as K. C. Sargent, who wasn’t listed anywhere else in MN.
Gotta love the IMPA typos. The 1959-76 editions called it “Vern”, (no E) capacity 300. 1982 IMPA called it the “Berne”, capacity 265. Finally got it right by 1984. The 1982-88 versions showed Circuit/Owner: W. Deutsch
The 1988 IMPA, the last with a drive-in list, still included the Verne.
From a photo of an inscribed, uh, something on its Facebook page:
Originally owned and operated by Ernest Schweigerdt and John Kirschenman, Midway Drive-In Theatre was built in 1953, and is located midway between the towns of Miller and St. Lawrence, which led to its name. A comedy, “Take Me to Town” with Ann Sheridan, Sterling Hayden, and Philip Reed, was the very first movie shown June 18 that year.
In the early years of business, movies were shown every night of the summer season with two shows on Saturday and Sunday. The latest newsreels were shown on the weekends and a cartoon was featured with every change of movie title.
Schweigerdt’s daughter, Alyce, and her husband, Marvin Oligmueller, purchased the drive-in in 1963. On an August evening in 1968, a violent storm moved through the Miller area as the movie played. Although the wind was strong enough to blow the wooden screen down, within a week and a half, a new metal screen was erected and movies were shown throughout the rest of the summer.
In 2004, Midway Drive-In came under the new ownership of Sally and Duane Resel, Stephan and Lori Resel, Sarah Resel, Mike and Nan Donlin and Stephanie and the late Jim Bonebright. Midway Drive-In is one of only five (sic) remaining drive-in theatres in South Dakota in 2016, and the first to convert to digital projection. It continues to offer movie-goers great family movies and that nostalgic “drive-in” experience.
Midway Drive-In is the place to See the Stars from your Cars.
Pheasant City Drive In Theatre was built in 1953 by the State Theatre Company of Brookings S.D. Dan Peterson (owner of the State Theatre Co.) opened it on August 13, 1953 as the Sioux Drive In. It was the 4th Drive In of the State Theatre Company. Other Sioux Drive Ins were at Brookings, Pierre and Rapid City. Opening Movie was “Sioux Uprising” 1953 was the shortest season – closing September 15.
Kurt Wilske was the Manager of the Drive In from the opening until April 30th 1962. Don and Rita Nenaber were the managers from May 1, 1962 until March 1963, when the Drive In was sold to Don and Kay Archer. Kay’s parents had operated the theatre and (edit: presumably the Rainbow) Drive In in Gettysburg, S.D. for many years. This gave Kay several years of Drive In experience. Don was teaching in Tulare, S.D. and the Drive In was a good summer job.
About 1970 after changing jobs the Archers moved to Chamberlain and in March of 1972 sold the Drive In to Tom and Letha Gallup. Toms theatre career started in 1958 at the Old State Theatre (where Dick’s Barber Shop is now) and at the Sioux Drive In in May 1959.
January 2014 The Pheasant City Drive In Theatre was purchased by Dave and Stacey Marlow and her parents Clark and Rosa Davis. It was then converted to digital and opened May 30, 2014 showing “The Amazing Spiderman 2” as the first digital movie.
It was still listed as the Rainbow (Circuit: S. Bowden) in the 1982 IMPA. It was listed as the Country Cinema Drive In (200 South Platte, S. Bowden) in the 1984-1988 IMPAs.
Although the Hilltop was reportedly built in ‘46 or ‘47, it didn’t appear in the 1952 Theatre Catalog or earlier editions. The 1955-56 Catalog lists it, capacity 240, Exec: Roy Metzger. (The 1959 IMPA lists it incorrectly as “Gregory Drive-In” but with R. Metzger.)
Aha! A May 2017 article in The Daily Republic (Mitchell SD) said owner Cecil Harsin had enough for a down payment on a digital projector, although fundraising would continue this summer to pay it off.
Also:
Harsin bought the Hilltop in 1989 “when the previous owners threatened to close it.”
“Harsin said the theater only shows movies that are less than two weeks old.” So maybe it’s usually first-run after all.
The Daily Republic called the Hilltop SD’s oldest drive-in but said it was built in 1947.
The Hilltop’s Facebook page doesn’t show any listings yet for 2017. Its top post is a GoFundMe campaign for a digital projector. “Without a new projector they are unable to get current movie titles!”
The 1952 Theatre Catalog listed the capacity as the oddly specific 208. That may have been a typo; the 1955 edition had it at 200. Then again, the 1959 IMPA also had it at 208.
The 1955 Theatre Catalog and the 1959 IMPA both show the Lakeview but nothing else in Mobridge. Maybe it changed its name after the dam?
Then again, the 1963 IMPA lists both the Pheasant and Lakevu. By 1969 there was only the Pheasant.
Also, Wikipedia says construction on the Oahe Dam began in 1948. Why would anyone build a drive-in on a piece of land that they know is going in the lake?
From the web site: The Pheasant Drive-In was built at its current location in 1960. Ron Maier, the current owner, has been running the Drive-In since 1976.
June of 2012 the screen was blown down during a micro burst and the Drive-In was closed for six weeks until it was repaired.
In June of 2014 the Drive-In made the conversion to a digital projector.
The Sky-Vu web site says Leonard Novak bought the place in 1971 from Bixby Knight. He’s owned it ever since. “Nothing much has changed at the SkyVu since the 1950s except that the movies have more special effects and the sound comes over your car’s FM stereo.”
Add me as another voter for “2nd run” films. This Memorial Day weekend, they’ve got a triple feature of movies that came out on April 7, January 6, and November 4.
The Town of Wolseley web site says: “Wolseley is home to Saskatchewan’s first drive-in theatre. Stan Zaba, with the help of a few local people, built the drive-in which opened in June of 1954 accommodating 225 cars. 50 years later, the Twilite Drive-in is still going, operated by Stan’s son, Don.”
Looking at the aerial view, I’m more inclined to believe a capacity of 225 rather than 436.
Also, a 2016 CBC article quotes owner Don Zaba about the need for a digital projector in 2013. “We did a fundraiser in the town of Wolseley which was a success. We ended up buying the projector and a sound system and we’re operating today,” he said.
Aha! Found the Big Island web site, complete with movie listings. Its About section says “The Big Island Drive In was created in 1957 by the Ernest family and operated into the 80’s before it changed hands into the Leefe and Eastman families and operated until 2015.”
Then the next section says “Realizing how important this venue is for the community and surrounding area, Dawn and Dan Hlady purchased the drive in and went forward with the digital conversion so that it can be enjoyed by everyone for years to come. After more than 60 years in operation, this landmark is an asset to the community and the Hlady’s look forward to keeping history alive!”
In a June 2015 article in The Reminder of Flin Flon, owner Bill Leefe was just installing a digital projection system. It also mentioned that the Big Island opened in 1957.
Great photo of the screen ruins + rainbow in this article:
https://www.discoverwestman.com/local/34744-brighter-times-ahead-for-killarney-s-shamrock-drive-in
On a metaphysical note, how long should a theater stay inactive before marking it Closed? I know I always drag my feet before inactivating a drive-in at Carload, but you can always reinstate it if it bounces back.
A June 2016 article by the CBC said the Shamrock “was preparing for their first season with a digital projector” when a storm knocked down its screen. They had replaced the screen in 2015 after it was hit by lightning.
The article said “they are determined to open up next year.” Meaning 2017. But their New Screen Drive FundRazr campaign is but 17% toward its goal after running for 100 weeks.
From an article in the Cookville Herald-Citizen:
In 1948, while the State Theater was being built in Baxter, Benton Young was opening the Young’s Drive-In Theater on the northeast corner of Highway 70, and Peach Orchard Road.
Four years later, Stacy Wilhite, president of Mid-South Theaters, approached Benton Young with plans to build a bigger and better drive-in theater, with or without Young’s support.
They decided to work together and built a new drive-in theater, the Putnam Drive-In Theater, which opened in 1952, across the street from where Young’s original drive-in theater was. This new theater, the Putnam Drive-In Theater, thrived for almost 40 years.
The 16 acres that it stood on was sold in 1993 to make way for the Mid-South Machine and Supply Co. The owners of Mid-South wanted to save the marquee, because they knew of the historical significance it had to the community, but it was accidentally torn down.
An August 2015 article in Willmar’s West Central Tribune said Tim Eiler was the guy who bought the Starlite in 1997. He was up to five screens in 2015 when he sold the place to David Quincer, who owns the Cozy Theater, a vintage indoor cinema in Wadena.
As of June 2017, the Starlite has only two active screens and is open Friday-Sunday.
Google Books has that issue of Life, Dec. 22 1958, available for viewing. https://books.google.com/books?id=Yj8EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA4&dq=Eyerman&pg=PA17#v=onepage&q=Eyerman&f=true
The caption reads “At Oak Hills near Salt Lake City, as jets etch the evening sky, Moses in The Ten Commandments casts his biblical wrath down at the parked cars.” Yes, jets. As originally printed in that two page spread, jet trails were clearly visible above the left mountain peaks.
Trick question: What movie was playing when the photo was taken? As I guessed in 2013, it was not The Ten Commandments. Think about it – it’s barely dark enough to see a movie, but we’re already at the Red Sea scene?
In a sidebar from the Salt Lake Tribune, it revealed that the photographer “lured dozens of local college students to the showing of the 1956 film ‘… And God Created Woman’ featuring Brigitte Bardot, said his daughter Kathryn Marshall.” Then he swapped in that Heston frame.
So if you want to prove where it was taken, find the newspaper ad for that movie, not The Ten Commandments.
A great 2014 Pioneer Public Broadcasting video fills in a few more gaps. (And has some lovely old photos, you should go watch it.)
Ken Sargent built the Verne. Walter Deutsch bought the place in 1966 and built a house next to the ticket booth. Deutsch sold the Verne in 1983, but he still sells tickets on movie nights “when they need help” since he lives next door.
(Maybe I didn’t hear that sale date right, since the City of Luverne site claims Deutsch operated the Verne until 1988.)
Glenn Burmeister bought the Verne in 2000. (Luverne said the drive-in “reopened” that date.) He built new ticket and concession buildings and probably was the one to remove the old speaker poles.
Not sure about Mike Rogers' source, but the 1955-56 Theatre Catalog shows the Verne, capacity 300, under K. C. Sargent.
1963 IMPA showed “Owner or Booker” as K. C. Sargent, who wasn’t listed anywhere else in MN.
Gotta love the IMPA typos. The 1959-76 editions called it “Vern”, (no E) capacity 300. 1982 IMPA called it the “Berne”, capacity 265. Finally got it right by 1984. The 1982-88 versions showed Circuit/Owner: W. Deutsch
The 1988 IMPA, the last with a drive-in list, still included the Verne.
From a photo of an inscribed, uh, something on its Facebook page:
Originally owned and operated by Ernest Schweigerdt and John Kirschenman, Midway Drive-In Theatre was built in 1953, and is located midway between the towns of Miller and St. Lawrence, which led to its name. A comedy, “Take Me to Town” with Ann Sheridan, Sterling Hayden, and Philip Reed, was the very first movie shown June 18 that year.
In the early years of business, movies were shown every night of the summer season with two shows on Saturday and Sunday. The latest newsreels were shown on the weekends and a cartoon was featured with every change of movie title.
Schweigerdt’s daughter, Alyce, and her husband, Marvin Oligmueller, purchased the drive-in in 1963. On an August evening in 1968, a violent storm moved through the Miller area as the movie played. Although the wind was strong enough to blow the wooden screen down, within a week and a half, a new metal screen was erected and movies were shown throughout the rest of the summer.
In 2004, Midway Drive-In came under the new ownership of Sally and Duane Resel, Stephan and Lori Resel, Sarah Resel, Mike and Nan Donlin and Stephanie and the late Jim Bonebright. Midway Drive-In is one of only five (sic) remaining drive-in theatres in South Dakota in 2016, and the first to convert to digital projection. It continues to offer movie-goers great family movies and that nostalgic “drive-in” experience.
Midway Drive-In is the place to See the Stars from your Cars.
From the theater’s history page:
Pheasant City Drive In Theatre was built in 1953 by the State Theatre Company of Brookings S.D. Dan Peterson (owner of the State Theatre Co.) opened it on August 13, 1953 as the Sioux Drive In. It was the 4th Drive In of the State Theatre Company. Other Sioux Drive Ins were at Brookings, Pierre and Rapid City. Opening Movie was “Sioux Uprising” 1953 was the shortest season – closing September 15.
Kurt Wilske was the Manager of the Drive In from the opening until April 30th 1962. Don and Rita Nenaber were the managers from May 1, 1962 until March 1963, when the Drive In was sold to Don and Kay Archer. Kay’s parents had operated the theatre and (edit: presumably the Rainbow) Drive In in Gettysburg, S.D. for many years. This gave Kay several years of Drive In experience. Don was teaching in Tulare, S.D. and the Drive In was a good summer job.
About 1970 after changing jobs the Archers moved to Chamberlain and in March of 1972 sold the Drive In to Tom and Letha Gallup. Toms theatre career started in 1958 at the Old State Theatre (where Dick’s Barber Shop is now) and at the Sioux Drive In in May 1959.
January 2014 The Pheasant City Drive In Theatre was purchased by Dave and Stacey Marlow and her parents Clark and Rosa Davis. It was then converted to digital and opened May 30, 2014 showing “The Amazing Spiderman 2” as the first digital movie.
It was still listed as the Rainbow (Circuit: S. Bowden) in the 1982 IMPA. It was listed as the Country Cinema Drive In (200 South Platte, S. Bowden) in the 1984-1988 IMPAs.
Although the Hilltop was reportedly built in ‘46 or ‘47, it didn’t appear in the 1952 Theatre Catalog or earlier editions. The 1955-56 Catalog lists it, capacity 240, Exec: Roy Metzger. (The 1959 IMPA lists it incorrectly as “Gregory Drive-In” but with R. Metzger.)
Aha! A May 2017 article in The Daily Republic (Mitchell SD) said owner Cecil Harsin had enough for a down payment on a digital projector, although fundraising would continue this summer to pay it off.
Also: Harsin bought the Hilltop in 1989 “when the previous owners threatened to close it.”
“Harsin said the theater only shows movies that are less than two weeks old.” So maybe it’s usually first-run after all.
The Daily Republic called the Hilltop SD’s oldest drive-in but said it was built in 1947.
Then I called the Hilltop’s information line, which talked about the “brighter” picture available now and said the movie for “this weekend” is The Boss Baby. Which suggests that (a) the Hilltop is alive for the 2017 season, (b) they somehow found a digital projector, and © they’re not first-run.
The Hilltop’s Facebook page doesn’t show any listings yet for 2017. Its top post is a GoFundMe campaign for a digital projector. “Without a new projector they are unable to get current movie titles!”
The 1952 Theatre Catalog listed the capacity as the oddly specific 208. That may have been a typo; the 1955 edition had it at 200. Then again, the 1959 IMPA also had it at 208.
Also in Winner, there was a Shoo-Fly Drive-In in the 1949-50 Theatre Catalog. Exec: Don King (UNC).
The 1955 Theatre Catalog and the 1959 IMPA both show the Lakeview but nothing else in Mobridge. Maybe it changed its name after the dam?
Then again, the 1963 IMPA lists both the Pheasant and Lakevu. By 1969 there was only the Pheasant.
Also, Wikipedia says construction on the Oahe Dam began in 1948. Why would anyone build a drive-in on a piece of land that they know is going in the lake?
From the web site:
The Pheasant Drive-In was built at its current location in 1960. Ron Maier, the current owner, has been running the Drive-In since 1976.
June of 2012 the screen was blown down during a micro burst and the Drive-In was closed for six weeks until it was repaired.
In June of 2014 the Drive-In made the conversion to a digital projector.
The Sky-Vu web site says Leonard Novak bought the place in 1971 from Bixby Knight. He’s owned it ever since. “Nothing much has changed at the SkyVu since the 1950s except that the movies have more special effects and the sound comes over your car’s FM stereo.”
Add me as another voter for “2nd run” films. This Memorial Day weekend, they’ve got a triple feature of movies that came out on April 7, January 6, and November 4.
The Town of Wolseley web site says: “Wolseley is home to Saskatchewan’s first drive-in theatre. Stan Zaba, with the help of a few local people, built the drive-in which opened in June of 1954 accommodating 225 cars. 50 years later, the Twilite Drive-in is still going, operated by Stan’s son, Don.”
http://www.wolseley.ca/business-directory/view/listing/Twilite-Drive-In/
Looking at the aerial view, I’m more inclined to believe a capacity of 225 rather than 436.
Also, a 2016 CBC article quotes owner Don Zaba about the need for a digital projector in 2013. “We did a fundraiser in the town of Wolseley which was a success. We ended up buying the projector and a sound system and we’re operating today,” he said.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatoon/twilite-drive-in-movies-1.3546164
The Prairie Dog has converted to digital. And for some reason it has moved its web site.
http://www.mysundial.ca/pddit/movies.htm
Aha! Found the Big Island web site, complete with movie listings. Its About section says “The Big Island Drive In was created in 1957 by the Ernest family and operated into the 80’s before it changed hands into the Leefe and Eastman families and operated until 2015.”
Then the next section says “Realizing how important this venue is for the community and surrounding area, Dawn and Dan Hlady purchased the drive in and went forward with the digital conversion so that it can be enjoyed by everyone for years to come. After more than 60 years in operation, this landmark is an asset to the community and the Hlady’s look forward to keeping history alive!”
https://www.bigislanddrivein.com/about
In a June 2015 article in The Reminder of Flin Flon, owner Bill Leefe was just installing a digital projection system. It also mentioned that the Big Island opened in 1957.
http://www.thereminder.ca/news/local-news/flin-flon-s-drive-in-theatre-will-reopen-but-date-unknown-1.1959099
Great photo of the screen ruins + rainbow in this article: https://www.discoverwestman.com/local/34744-brighter-times-ahead-for-killarney-s-shamrock-drive-in
On a metaphysical note, how long should a theater stay inactive before marking it Closed? I know I always drag my feet before inactivating a drive-in at Carload, but you can always reinstate it if it bounces back.
A June 2016 article by the CBC said the Shamrock “was preparing for their first season with a digital projector” when a storm knocked down its screen. They had replaced the screen in 2015 after it was hit by lightning.
The article said “they are determined to open up next year.” Meaning 2017. But their New Screen Drive FundRazr campaign is but 17% toward its goal after running for 100 weeks.
There’s a gorgeous aerial shot, circa 2000, of the forest reclaiming the old Thunderbird site.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/48793782@N08/5353603424/
The poster wrote that it was on Konnoak Drive right before it meets South Main Street.
The folks who ran the Jubilee moved in February 2017 after they couldn’t renew the lease with the landowner. They’re now showing movies in Lumsden SK.
See this story in Global News: http://globalnews.ca/news/3246859/drive-in-movie-theatre-coming-to-lumsden-sask/
The old location and screen still exist, but it’s currently closed.