A 1981 aerial shows the drive-in intact and looking operational.
The 1985 aerial as I mentioned before has at least one trail cutting across the drive-in from the projection booth due north to the road.
Trails like that are a good indication that a drive-in has closed. So, it very well could’ve been open in 1981, but it appears to have closed by 1984, which would give enough time for such a trail to be made.
Far be it from me to dispute Joe Bob Briggs, but the aerial photos at the time differ from the story he told on July 31st 1987.
A 1991 aerial shows the drive-in closed with the screen gone, but also quite empty with no evidence of any large number of wrecked vehicles having been parked on it. Which certainly would be the case if that had happened.
By 2002, the property had become part of the truck driving school.
What I believe happened is that across the road from the drive-in was a large auto salvage yard which appears in the 1981 and 1985 aerials. I think whoever provided Joe Bob with his information mistook the location of the drive-in for the auto salvage yard across the road.
However, by 1991, the auto salvage yard was totally empty.
Today, it is a recycling center, but the property outside the buildings is relatively empty.
The 1957 aerial shows no evidence of a screen, projection booth, or ramps that I can see. This may have been a temporary set-up which was dismantled before 1957.
The screen appears to be a widescreen that has been built onto the older “square” screen which is made of concrete. So, that appears to be readily fixable as long as the older concrete screen holds up. The rest is just cutting down the trees and fixing up the projection booth/concession stand.
If the highways does widen closer to the screen, the main entrance can be easily shifted to Martin Street if someone wanted to re-open it.
But I’m not seeing anyone wanting to re-open it anytime soon.
The 1955 aerial shows a drive-in that appears never to have been completed.
While that may be the projection booth sitting in the back, there is no screen or any indication there ever was one. And while there is the outline and ramps, there is no entrance road, fence, or indication of a ticket booth.
Seems the intention was to complete and open it, but something stopped that from happening.
Regardless, the potential projection booth was still around in 1966, but was gone alone with all traces of the drive-in by 1981.
The drive-in sat just to the east of this address.
Interesting setup as the screen faced west, which is unusual for a drive-in. Plus, the ticket booth was in front of the screen, although it appears it was hidden from view due a rise in the ground while the screen itself was perched even higher.
Today, only part of the projection booth/concession stand foundation remains along with remnants of the entrance road.
A slightly closer address is 15735 Old U.S. Hwy 50, Carlyle, IL.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right on the property along where the entrance road use to be.
A 1955 aerial shows the entrance and exit roads connecting to County Road 1600 E.
However, a 1966 aerial shows the entrance road diverted to Old US-50. By 1981, the screen was torn down. But the projection booth/concession stand made it until at least 2005 before it was gone by 2007.
The parch marks of the ramps and general outline are still there along with traces of the redirected entrance road right next to Old US-50.
A 1957 aerial shows the drive-in intact and appearing operational with no go-kart track in front of the screen.
By 1966, it had been demolished.
Today, there is some debris where it once stood, but whether that has anything to with the drive-in I cannot determine. What I can say is that the land was never developed and you would never know a drive-in was once present.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right beside the property.
Although almost all of the property is open field, there are no traces of the drive-in remaining apart from its general shape which sits behind the car lot.
This puts it within a few feet of where the entrance to the drive-in was located.
A 1958 aerial shows the drive-in operational. But by 1978 it had been totally demolished.
Today, the Village Green Apartments sit on most of the property with a gas station and tire shop where the screen was located. There is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
The supports of the north screen is still present, although it is down to four poles.
My guess would be the south screen was destroyed by high winds as the north screen’s supports are still standing. But that is just a guess.
A 1981 aerial shows the drive-in intact and looking operational.
The 1985 aerial as I mentioned before has at least one trail cutting across the drive-in from the projection booth due north to the road.
Trails like that are a good indication that a drive-in has closed. So, it very well could’ve been open in 1981, but it appears to have closed by 1984, which would give enough time for such a trail to be made.
Far be it from me to dispute Joe Bob Briggs, but the aerial photos at the time differ from the story he told on July 31st 1987.
A 1991 aerial shows the drive-in closed with the screen gone, but also quite empty with no evidence of any large number of wrecked vehicles having been parked on it. Which certainly would be the case if that had happened.
By 2002, the property had become part of the truck driving school.
What I believe happened is that across the road from the drive-in was a large auto salvage yard which appears in the 1981 and 1985 aerials. I think whoever provided Joe Bob with his information mistook the location of the drive-in for the auto salvage yard across the road.
However, by 1991, the auto salvage yard was totally empty. Today, it is a recycling center, but the property outside the buildings is relatively empty.
A closer address is 102 Loveland, Seymour, MO.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right on the projection booth which is still standing, although in not ideal condition.
https://tinyurl.com/59p4fyak
A better address is 1403 E 11th St, Siler City, NC (as previously mentioned by jwmovies).
This puts it right where the screen once stood. The drive-in was on the east side next to what is now a distribution center.
https://tinyurl.com/mr3kaajw
The land has never been developed. You can easily see the outline, ramps, and foundation of the projector booth.
Most of the drive-in is an open field with parch marks of the ramps still present.
A closer address is 2201 140th Ave, Algona, IA.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right on the property.
Apart from the exit road which is now the driveway to the home, there is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/y2x2sbxx
A closer address is 11863 Rd W1, Norton, KS.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right on the property. It is now home to Sports Center Storage.
Apart from its general shape and entrance, there is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/5dxt4f5s
A closer address is 445 E Absecon Blvd, Absecon, NJ.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right on the property.
An August 2025 Google Street View shows what is left of the screen still standing.
https://tinyurl.com/2ttczd9a
A closer address is 4005 Main St, Keokuk, IA.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right where the screen used to be.
https://tinyurl.com/2stjm8jt
A slightly closer address is 506 Union Rd, Herington, KS.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right on the property.
https://tinyurl.com/5n6z76wd
The screen is coming down.
https://tinyurl.com/4yypfstw
A slightly closer address is 1839 AL-87, Samson, AL.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it on a house on the southside of the drive-in.
Today, what’s left of the marquee along with bits of the entrance and exit roads are all that can be seen.
https://tinyurl.com/4b8wjbde
A closer address is 1613 S Dallas Ave, Lamesa, TX.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it where the projection booth/concession stand use to be.
As reported by others, the October 2025 Google Street View shows the screen and marquee gone.
https://tinyurl.com/yc2u2tcr
The 1957 aerial shows no evidence of a screen, projection booth, or ramps that I can see. This may have been a temporary set-up which was dismantled before 1957.
Today, it is all an empty field.
The screen appears to be a widescreen that has been built onto the older “square” screen which is made of concrete. So, that appears to be readily fixable as long as the older concrete screen holds up. The rest is just cutting down the trees and fixing up the projection booth/concession stand.
If the highways does widen closer to the screen, the main entrance can be easily shifted to Martin Street if someone wanted to re-open it.
But I’m not seeing anyone wanting to re-open it anytime soon.
The 1955 aerial shows a drive-in that appears never to have been completed.
While that may be the projection booth sitting in the back, there is no screen or any indication there ever was one. And while there is the outline and ramps, there is no entrance road, fence, or indication of a ticket booth.
Seems the intention was to complete and open it, but something stopped that from happening.
Regardless, the potential projection booth was still around in 1966, but was gone alone with all traces of the drive-in by 1981.
A closer address is 446 Lamar St, Pittsburgh, PA.
The drive-in sat just to the east of this address.
Interesting setup as the screen faced west, which is unusual for a drive-in. Plus, the ticket booth was in front of the screen, although it appears it was hidden from view due a rise in the ground while the screen itself was perched even higher.
Today, only part of the projection booth/concession stand foundation remains along with remnants of the entrance road.
https://tinyurl.com/mpn9pyjb
A slightly closer address is 15735 Old U.S. Hwy 50, Carlyle, IL.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right on the property along where the entrance road use to be.
A 1955 aerial shows the entrance and exit roads connecting to County Road 1600 E.
However, a 1966 aerial shows the entrance road diverted to Old US-50. By 1981, the screen was torn down. But the projection booth/concession stand made it until at least 2005 before it was gone by 2007.
The parch marks of the ramps and general outline are still there along with traces of the redirected entrance road right next to Old US-50.
https://tinyurl.com/2s3utwva
A 1957 aerial shows the drive-in intact and appearing operational with no go-kart track in front of the screen.
By 1966, it had been demolished.
Today, there is some debris where it once stood, but whether that has anything to with the drive-in I cannot determine. What I can say is that the land was never developed and you would never know a drive-in was once present.
A closer address is 801 N Wall St, Benson, NC.
Google Maps has updated their addresses and this puts it right beside the property.
Although almost all of the property is open field, there are no traces of the drive-in remaining apart from its general shape which sits behind the car lot.
https://tinyurl.com/f4yauwp9
The screen was gone by 1983. And what appears from the overhead to be the foundation of the screen is really just a row of shrubs.
The remnants of the projector booth/concession stand are still there, although in terrible condition surrounded by trees.
However, apart from the entrance/exit roads, the ticket booth is still there and reasonably intact.
A closer address is 923 N Cedar St, Cameron, MO.
This puts it within a few feet of where the entrance to the drive-in was located.
A 1958 aerial shows the drive-in operational. But by 1978 it had been totally demolished.
Today, the Village Green Apartments sit on most of the property with a gas station and tire shop where the screen was located. There is no trace of the drive-in remaining.
https://tinyurl.com/5ahvhhcp
The drive-in is no longer there.
While a July 2021 Google Street View shows the screen still being there. It was gone by October 2024.
From the overhead, it appears that a couple of buildings are being constructed. There is no trace of the drive-in remaining.