The only drive-in listed for Butte in the 1982 IMPA was the single-screen Motor Vu, capacity 500. (Ditto through 1988.) But the 1972 & 1976 IMPAs listed the Motor Vu with two other Butte-based drive-ins, so I’m guessing that they just overlooked the Silver Bow.
According to Wikipedia (yeah, I know), Silver Bow is just a neighborhood in Butte. Considering that the theater lists its address as Butte, IMHO this listing needs to be moved under Butte.
The official web site says “The Silver Bow Drive-In has been family owned and operated by the Hansen Family since 1977 when it was first built with a single screen tower. A second screen was added in 1980 creating the first twin drive-in theater in Montana. Later in 2004 the second screen was rebuilt and expanded. Allowing for a total capacity of close to 500 cars.
“The concession stand and projection booth, built by Jens Hansen I, was originally part of a drive-in located near Deer Lodge, MT from 1949-1973. The building was moved to its present location in 1977 by the current owners.”
And we need to change that comment to almost no R-rated films. This weekend, they’re showing Snatched, an R-rated Mothers Day movie.
This YouTube video relates how in the early 2000s, projectionist Paul Lindquist “noticed a run-down, abandoned movie theater,” found a couple of partners and “re-opened” the place in 2002.
“When we first came to the property, there was a 1963 Century projector, one of those workhorses of the film industry,” Lindquist said.
So there was some sort of dead drive-in here before Lindquist and friends revived it. My 1976 IMPA doesn’t list anything for Enderby and no “Starlight” (but several “Starlite"s) for British Columbia. After that, the "International” MPAs stopped including Canadian drive-ins in its lists.
I’ve never understood how restricting photography benefits any drive-in. Does it have something to hide? Does it want to avoid patrons sharing their photos of having fun?
I can better understand trying to prevent outside food, (seeing a Pizza Hut box must be annoying), but I think that policy’s short-sighted as well. Is a drive-in really going to check cars and throw out violators? Anyone caught like that isn’t going to play by the rules next time – they just won’t come back. A much better idea is to encourage patrons to buy from the concession stand, then sell high-quality food that makes them glad they did.
In general, any business that treats its customers like criminals has the wrong attitude about building long-term loyalty. A smart business swallows its minor annoyances, staying friendly and confident about its ability to keep profitable patrons coming back.
On a surely unrelated note, WNDU just ran a story on the Tri-Way. It bought those four digital projectors, now it needs more cash to pay off the loan. So the theater is asking for folks to please come by and buy some popcorn and a drink. Video here.
An old obituary in the Whidbey News-Times says the Blue Fox was built and owned by Woodrow “Woody” Cecil and his wife Charlotte. Another article said Woody “partnered with George Dickson” to build it.
A 2006 article there said Darrell and Lori Bratt purchased the theater in 1988. In 1990, it switched to FM sound. The screen went down in a 1998 windstorm, but obviously they fixed that.
There’s a superb drone video of the place on YouTube.
The 1955-56 Theatre Catalog listed it with a capacity of 320, which can’t have been accurate. Could it be that it was including the seats in the Wheel-In’s indoor viewing area?
From its first listing in the IMPAs into the 1970s, the Wheel-In was given a capacity of 200. By 1982, it was down to 190.
Here’s the link to its National Register of Historic Places entry: https://www.nps.gov/nr/feature/places/14000401.htm
The Newberg Graphic said in a 2016 article that there had been a twin-screen indoor theater on the drive-in property. It showed hand-me-down prints from the downtown Cameo and the 99W. When both went digital, they “opted to close the twin theaters and utilize some of the freed-up space for additional parking for the drive-in screen.” But even with that, the Graphic said that only “(b)etween 250 and 300 cars can fit in the drive-in space”.
Here’s a March 2016 interview with owner Ron Herold. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESBnM1njplc
In the video, Herold says:
The Terrace opened in 1954.
In 1984, they revamped the Terrace and added two more screens. (Indeed, the 1984 IMPA still lists it as the single-screen Terrace, but in 1986 it’s the three-screen “Terrace Tri”.)
“The Terrace, since 1984, has only been operating as a single screen.” (That date’s wrong of course, but it’s had only one active screen for quite a while.)
He plans to reopen the other two screens. (His current Terrace web page lists how much that’s going to cost.)
It’s the first week of May 2017, and the Motor Vu web site still shows Closed for the Season. No updates on Facebook or Twitter since August 2016. The GoFundMe campaign is still getting small donations, but it’s currently less than 1% funded.
One more note. The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal wrote in April 2011 that “The very first drive-in to go digital was the Spud Drive-In in Driggs, Idaho — opening Despicable Me and Robin Hood as its first digital features in July 2010.” It quoted interviews with “Keith Zednick, Spud chief operating officer” in BoxOffice and at DriveInFilmFestival.com.
That lines up with the year that Wydaho Group ran the Spud, but came before 2013’s Save The Spud fundraisers to get a digital projector. If the Spud currently has the projector that was on its way in March 2015, that would mean it has used three different digital projectors in the past seven years. Pretty wild for a tiny little drive-in!
Uh oh! The Spud has been for sale since late 2016. Great photo though. Got a spare $675k?
Also, a March 2015 article in the Teton Valley News said that when the folks who raised money for a digital projector left the Spud, they took the projector with them. A new one was on its way, but that speaks to unsettled management.
“Ace Wood” built the Spud and ran it from 1953 to 1967.
Gladys and Leo Davis ran the business from 1967 to 1987. (That’s when it had the “Gladys burger”.)
Wydaho Group LLC ran the Spud for a single season in 2010 and announced in May 2011 that the business would close.
“Dawnelle Mangum, who with former husband Richard Wood ran the drive-in from 1987 to 2009, negotiated to lease the theater from Wydaho Group and operate it with partner Tyler Hammond, co-owner of a towing company and auto body shop in Driggs.”
Also, the Spud is listed on the National Register of Historic Sites and the Idaho State Historic Registry.
My guess was just verified by a note from the current Idan-Ha crew. “I am uncertain when the name changed but I thought that it happened when Owen owned it in the 80’s.” Since it’s in the 1982 IMPA, the name change probably happened around 1980, give or take a year.
The Idan-Ha was open for the 2014-2016 seasons, about mid-May through August. See its week-by-week notes on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IdanHaDriveinTheatre/
When did it open? The Dawn-A-Vu was listed through the 1976 IMPAs, and my next copy, 1982, shows the Idan-Ha. A 2013 article in the Idaho State Business Journal claimed “The Idan-Ha Drive-In has been a part of Soda Springs for nearly 60 years,” so I’m guessing that the Dawn-A-Vu changed its name in the late 1970s.
And by the way, the IMPAs list the Motor Vu in Ogden and only one screen all the way to 1988, the last IMPA drive-in list. Sometimes I wonder whether the details on the IMPA lists are ever accurate.
There’s a good article from 2016 in the Ogden Standard-Examiner. “The original theater had only one screen. Two more were added in the 1980s, and a fourth was added in 1996.” It said that current manager “Brent Coleman’s family has worked at the cinemas since his dad (Howard Coleman?) started as a Motor-Vu lot boy in 1952. He bought the drive(sic) in 1979.” Regarding current ownership, “(Brent) Coleman now co-owns the Motor-Vu with his two brothers, who also operate theater chains on opposite coasts of the country.”
Much more here: http://www.standard.net/Entertainment/2016/06/26/Riverdale-Colemans-Motor-Vu-drive-in-brings-movies-for-decades
Okay, one more note. A Deseret News article from 1990(!) that is somehow still online provides a possible explanation for the sporadic screen addition. “The (DeAnza) company formerly owned as many as four drive-ins throughout the valley. As they were forced to close those locations due to economic concerns, they recycled the equipment and expanded the Redwood location.”
The screen count was already up to six in 1990. The article separately laments, “Some estimate there are only 1,500 outdoor movie screens left in the country.” Those were the days!
The 1976 IMPA still listed the Crest Motor Vu, capacity 470.
The 1976 IMPA still listed the Bridgeway, capacity 520.
The 1988 IMPA, the last edition to list drive-ins, still showed the Motor Vu.
The only drive-in listed for Butte in the 1982 IMPA was the single-screen Motor Vu, capacity 500. (Ditto through 1988.) But the 1972 & 1976 IMPAs listed the Motor Vu with two other Butte-based drive-ins, so I’m guessing that they just overlooked the Silver Bow.
According to Wikipedia (yeah, I know), Silver Bow is just a neighborhood in Butte. Considering that the theater lists its address as Butte, IMHO this listing needs to be moved under Butte.
The official web site says “The Silver Bow Drive-In has been family owned and operated by the Hansen Family since 1977 when it was first built with a single screen tower. A second screen was added in 1980 creating the first twin drive-in theater in Montana. Later in 2004 the second screen was rebuilt and expanded. Allowing for a total capacity of close to 500 cars.
“The concession stand and projection booth, built by Jens Hansen I, was originally part of a drive-in located near Deer Lodge, MT from 1949-1973. The building was moved to its present location in 1977 by the current owners.”
And we need to change that comment to almost no R-rated films. This weekend, they’re showing Snatched, an R-rated Mothers Day movie.
Based on its Facebook timeline, the Auto Vue finished rebuilding its screen in June 2015 and opened soon after.
They switched to digital projection just before opening for the 2016 season. As of May 2017, it’s still going strong.
This YouTube video relates how in the early 2000s, projectionist Paul Lindquist “noticed a run-down, abandoned movie theater,” found a couple of partners and “re-opened” the place in 2002.
“When we first came to the property, there was a 1963 Century projector, one of those workhorses of the film industry,” Lindquist said.
So there was some sort of dead drive-in here before Lindquist and friends revived it. My 1976 IMPA doesn’t list anything for Enderby and no “Starlight” (but several “Starlite"s) for British Columbia. After that, the "International” MPAs stopped including Canadian drive-ins in its lists.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIWm3OxHTGM
I’ve never understood how restricting photography benefits any drive-in. Does it have something to hide? Does it want to avoid patrons sharing their photos of having fun?
I can better understand trying to prevent outside food, (seeing a Pizza Hut box must be annoying), but I think that policy’s short-sighted as well. Is a drive-in really going to check cars and throw out violators? Anyone caught like that isn’t going to play by the rules next time – they just won’t come back. A much better idea is to encourage patrons to buy from the concession stand, then sell high-quality food that makes them glad they did.
In general, any business that treats its customers like criminals has the wrong attitude about building long-term loyalty. A smart business swallows its minor annoyances, staying friendly and confident about its ability to keep profitable patrons coming back.
On a surely unrelated note, WNDU just ran a story on the Tri-Way. It bought those four digital projectors, now it needs more cash to pay off the loan. So the theater is asking for folks to please come by and buy some popcorn and a drink. Video here.
An old obituary in the Whidbey News-Times says the Blue Fox was built and owned by Woodrow “Woody” Cecil and his wife Charlotte. Another article said Woody “partnered with George Dickson” to build it.
A 2006 article there said Darrell and Lori Bratt purchased the theater in 1988. In 1990, it switched to FM sound. The screen went down in a 1998 windstorm, but obviously they fixed that.
There’s a superb drone video of the place on YouTube.
The 1955-56 Theatre Catalog listed it with a capacity of 320, which can’t have been accurate. Could it be that it was including the seats in the Wheel-In’s indoor viewing area?
From its first listing in the IMPAs into the 1970s, the Wheel-In was given a capacity of 200. By 1982, it was down to 190.
Here’s the link to its National Register of Historic Places entry: https://www.nps.gov/nr/feature/places/14000401.htm
The Newberg Graphic said in a 2016 article that there had been a twin-screen indoor theater on the drive-in property. It showed hand-me-down prints from the downtown Cameo and the 99W. When both went digital, they “opted to close the twin theaters and utilize some of the freed-up space for additional parking for the drive-in screen.” But even with that, the Graphic said that only “(b)etween 250 and 300 cars can fit in the drive-in space”.
Here’s a nice video profile of the M-F, done just after the digital conversion.
https://vimeo.com/69336228
The 1952 Theatre Catalog already listed the LaGrande, capacity 350, exec: W.J. Shell. (The 1949-50 edition doesn’t list it.)
The drive-in’s web site said it was purchased by its current owners in 1953, suggesting it was built earlier.
Here’s a March 2016 interview with owner Ron Herold. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESBnM1njplc
In the video, Herold says:
The Terrace opened in 1954.
In 1984, they revamped the Terrace and added two more screens. (Indeed, the 1984 IMPA still lists it as the single-screen Terrace, but in 1986 it’s the three-screen “Terrace Tri”.)
“The Terrace, since 1984, has only been operating as a single screen.” (That date’s wrong of course, but it’s had only one active screen for quite a while.)
He plans to reopen the other two screens. (His current Terrace web page lists how much that’s going to cost.)
The 1952 Theatre Catalog lists the Teton Vu with Exec: Clyde Blasius of Salt Lake City. So we know it was built by then.
It’s still listed in the 1988 IMPA, suggesting that it was running into the late 1980s.
The UDITOA 2007 page of reopened drive-ins said that the Motor Vu was reopened in 1999 and closed in 2007.
Obviously the Paramount folks reopened it in 2009, and it’s been running fine (knock on wood) every since.
It’s the first week of May 2017, and the Motor Vu web site still shows Closed for the Season. No updates on Facebook or Twitter since August 2016. The GoFundMe campaign is still getting small donations, but it’s currently less than 1% funded.
One more note. The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal wrote in April 2011 that “The very first drive-in to go digital was the Spud Drive-In in Driggs, Idaho — opening Despicable Me and Robin Hood as its first digital features in July 2010.” It quoted interviews with “Keith Zednick, Spud chief operating officer” in BoxOffice and at DriveInFilmFestival.com.
That lines up with the year that Wydaho Group ran the Spud, but came before 2013’s Save The Spud fundraisers to get a digital projector. If the Spud currently has the projector that was on its way in March 2015, that would mean it has used three different digital projectors in the past seven years. Pretty wild for a tiny little drive-in!
Uh oh! The Spud has been for sale since late 2016. Great photo though. Got a spare $675k?
Also, a March 2015 article in the Teton Valley News said that when the folks who raised money for a digital projector left the Spud, they took the projector with them. A new one was on its way, but that speaks to unsettled management.
A 2013 article in the Jackson Hole (WY) News & Guide listed the ownership timeline as:
“Ace Wood” built the Spud and ran it from 1953 to 1967.
Gladys and Leo Davis ran the business from 1967 to 1987. (That’s when it had the “Gladys burger”.)
Wydaho Group LLC ran the Spud for a single season in 2010 and announced in May 2011 that the business would close.
“Dawnelle Mangum, who with former husband Richard Wood ran the drive-in from 1987 to 2009, negotiated to lease the theater from Wydaho Group and operate it with partner Tyler Hammond, co-owner of a towing company and auto body shop in Driggs.”
Also, the Spud is listed on the National Register of Historic Sites and the Idaho State Historic Registry.
My guess was just verified by a note from the current Idan-Ha crew. “I am uncertain when the name changed but I thought that it happened when Owen owned it in the 80’s.” Since it’s in the 1982 IMPA, the name change probably happened around 1980, give or take a year.
The Idan-Ha was open for the 2014-2016 seasons, about mid-May through August. See its week-by-week notes on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IdanHaDriveinTheatre/
When did it open? The Dawn-A-Vu was listed through the 1976 IMPAs, and my next copy, 1982, shows the Idan-Ha. A 2013 article in the Idaho State Business Journal claimed “The Idan-Ha Drive-In has been a part of Soda Springs for nearly 60 years,” so I’m guessing that the Dawn-A-Vu changed its name in the late 1970s.
And by the way, the IMPAs list the Motor Vu in Ogden and only one screen all the way to 1988, the last IMPA drive-in list. Sometimes I wonder whether the details on the IMPA lists are ever accurate.
There’s a good article from 2016 in the Ogden Standard-Examiner. “The original theater had only one screen. Two more were added in the 1980s, and a fourth was added in 1996.” It said that current manager “Brent Coleman’s family has worked at the cinemas since his dad (Howard Coleman?) started as a Motor-Vu lot boy in 1952. He bought the drive(sic) in 1979.” Regarding current ownership, “(Brent) Coleman now co-owns the Motor-Vu with his two brothers, who also operate theater chains on opposite coasts of the country.”
Much more here: http://www.standard.net/Entertainment/2016/06/26/Riverdale-Colemans-Motor-Vu-drive-in-brings-movies-for-decades
Okay, one more note. A Deseret News article from 1990(!) that is somehow still online provides a possible explanation for the sporadic screen addition. “The (DeAnza) company formerly owned as many as four drive-ins throughout the valley. As they were forced to close those locations due to economic concerns, they recycled the equipment and expanded the Redwood location.”
The screen count was already up to six in 1990. The article separately laments, “Some estimate there are only 1,500 outdoor movie screens left in the country.” Those were the days!
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/92035/DRIVE-IN-THEATER-STILL-FLOURISHES-ON-REDWOOD-ROAD—-ALL-YEAR-ROUND.html?pg=all
A blog post with photos purportedly from 1979 shows four screens, apparently proving the IMPAs were behind the times again.
https://slcoarchives.wordpress.com/2016/04/14/redwood-drive-in-theatre/