Lakeside Drive-In
State Highway 18,
Pawnee,
OK
74058
State Highway 18,
Pawnee,
OK
74058
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This information comes courtesy of roadsideoklahoma, Notes:
"This theater is not only still standing, but is in remarkably good condition. The field is quite overgrown and an encounter with a spider or snake is highly likely."
The Lakeside Drive-In was opened on May 19, 1953 and closed in 1982.
Contributed by
Dice McAlester
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Recent comments (view all 7 comments)
The comments above are actually about the Cleveland Lakeside Drive-In. Here is a current link to the Pawnee drive-in page, though little information is on it to this point.
http://www.roadsideoklahoma.com/node/161
Approx. location for this drive-in was E0450 Rd & N3480 Rd.
The 1955-56 Theatre Catalog listed the Lakeside with a capacity of 200, owner Milan G. Steele. He was still listed as owner when the Lakeside finally debuted in the Motion Picture Almanac’s 1966 edition.
Steele wrote a scathing review of Hansel & Gretel (1954) on behalf of the Lakeside in the July 16, 1955 Motion Picture Herald. He wrote, “You would be better off not to play it, since a picture like this stops them from coming for a long time, and some may never come back after seeing such a thing.”
When the MPA resumed including owner info in 1977, it listed P. McCray. That continued through 1982. In 1983, the Lakeside fell off the MPA list.
A closer address is E0450 Rd & N3480 Rd, Pawnee, OK as indicated by jwmovies.
The drive-in was located on the NE corner of the intersection. Today, it is an empty field and you can barely see the outline and hints of the ramps.
https://tinyurl.com/y3k2zngn
The Nov. 6, 1954 issue of Boxoffice ran a lengthy article, with photos, about Lakeside owner Milan G. Steele’s do-it-yourself approach to drive-in construction. “Incidentally, the new wide screen, 60x30 feet, replaced the one destroyed in a tornado last May 1.”
Boxoffice, May 23, 1953: “Mr. and Mrs. Milan G. Steele, owners, set May 19 as opening date for their new Lakeside Drive-In Theatre at Pawnee.”
Boxoffice, March 12, 1973: “The Lakeside Drive-In, Pawnee, has been sold to Pat McCray and his wife Sandra by Mr. and Mrs. Milan G. Steele, who built the airer in 1953 and operated it continuously as a family theatre. The family policy will be carried on by the McCrays, who also own the Pawnee Western Auto Store.”