Lee Highway Drive-In
8223 Lee Highway,
Fairfax,
VA
22031
8223 Lee Highway,
Fairfax,
VA
22031
2 people
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: Redstone Drive-In Theaters
Firms: William Riseman Associates
Previous Names: Arlington Boulevard Drive-In
Nearby Theaters
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Lee Highway Multiplex Cinemas
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Angelika Film Center & Cafe...
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Loew's Fairfax Circle
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Big Cinemas Loehmann's Twin
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Vienna Theatre
News About This Theater
The Arlington Boulevard Drive-In was opened August 26, 1954 with a capacity for 1,000 cars. By 1955 it had been renamed Lee Highway Drive-In and it was operated by M. Redstone. One entrance was on Lee Highway and the other on Gallows Road. This drive-in later had a capacity for 1,353 cars. The Lee Highway Drive-In closed on September 16, 1984 with Zach Galligan in “Gremlins”.
It was demolished and was replaced by the Lee Highway Multiplex Cinemas (it has its own page on Cinema Treasures) and was replaced by the Angelica Film Center & Cafe at Mosaic (it also has its own page on Cinema Treasures)
Contributed by
Lost Memory
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Recent comments (view all 11 comments)
From the Washington Post and Times Herald, 10/10/55:
A gunman wearing a paper sack over his head with holes cut in it for his eyes took $1100 in cash from the woman cashier of the Lee Highway Drive-In Theater last night while a theater audience sat unknowingly in about 500 darkened automobiles nearby.
This page has some cool Lee Highway stuff, including a great ‘50s-vintage photo of the marquee:
View link
It is listed in the 1956 Motion picture almanac,but tells nothing on how many cars could park or who owned it back in the 50’s.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CLINT EASTWOOD,I know you filled that lot quite a bit.
Cool a drive-in with real cineamscope.
Grand opening ad in photo section.
My bad.. the Lee Highway Drive In ran Brenkert (RCA) Projectors.. The Mount Vernon Drive In (the other Redstone Drive In) ran Simplex XLs..
The Tysons Reporter recently ran a brief story about the site, drawing on Fairfax County’s aerial photography. The Reporter said that it was “the Washington area’s largest drive-in theater”.
“The theater featured a 50×120′ CinemaScope screen and a rotunda-style dining area. At its capacity [sic] in 1983, the drive-in could fit 1,353 cars.”
The story continues that it was closed in 1984, replaced by a nearby indoor multiplex. That site was redeveloped into the Mosaic District, which includes the 8-screen Angelika Film Center.
Yet another indication of how slow the International Motion Picture Almanacs were at removing listings: We know exactly when it closed (in 1984), but the Lee Highway stayed on the IMPA drive-in list through the list’s final edition in 1988.
Boxoffice, Oct. 27, 1958: “Herv Keator, Lee Hiway Drive-In manager, reports Bernz-O-Matic in-car heaters have been installed.”
From the Washington Post the last showing was Gremlins on Sun 9/16/84. The following day the Lee Highway entry read “Closed for the winter - THANK YOU” and it came to an end paving the way for the awesome Multiplex.