Nite-Way Drive-In
6500 S. Transit Road,
Pendleton,
NY
14094
6500 S. Transit Road,
Pendleton,
NY
14094
1 person
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Nearby Theaters
The Nite-Way Drive-In may have been the shortest lived outdoor theatre in the country. Opening on August 3, 1948 by Fred Henn of Henn & Miller, the Nite-Way Drive-In was decades ahead of its time, offering an AM radio transmission for the movie audio many years before other drive-ins would switch over from in-car speakers to radio sound.
After operating through August, September, and October of 1948, the Nite-Way Drive-In was closed for the winter months, which was normal for a northeastern seasonal drive-in. There would be no second season for the Nite-Way Drive-In, as the screen tower "distintegrated into peices" during a heavy wind storm on January 18, 1949.
To the best of anyone’s knowledge, the screen was never rebuilt and the drive-in remained closed, since no ads appeared in the Lockport Union-Sun and Journal after their initial 1948 season to indicate they were back in business. Sadly, the only picture in existence for this drive-in comes from the newspaper story of its demise. - NewYorkDriveins.com
Contributed by
Rick Cohen
Want to be emailed when a new comment is posted about this theater?
Just login to your account and subscribe to this theater.
Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
On its page at Drive-ins.com, there is a copy of this theater’s opening night advertisement and a photo with a caption of some of the damage caused by the storm that wrecked the theater (probably the same one mentioned in the headnote): http://www.drive-ins.com/gallery/nytnite
Opened with a comedy(not named), a cartoon(not named) and “Body and soul”. 400 cars. The site is now an undeveloped empty lot.
The site, which sat on the SW corner of the intersection, is home to Heritage Structures. A number of sheds for purchase or “rent to own” are on the lot.
There is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
It should be noted that the area didn’t go without a drive-in for very long. The Transit Drive-In began in 1952 and is about a mile south of where the Nite-Way Drive-In was located. The Transit Drive-In is still open.
A 1963 aerial shows the property almost fully razed with only a hint of a few ramps remaining. The large concrete base for the screen that was present in a 1958 aerial was removed as well.
Normally, a property that is razed like that is being prepped for a large structure. And while a building was constructed on the south edge, most of the property remained vacant or just used for parking a few trailers until about a decade ago.