Falls Cinema

50sSNIPES on October 7, 2026 at 10:43 am

You’re right Kenmore! The Bemidji Pioneer and the Thief River Falls Times both confirm that the Galaxy Twin opened its doors in early 1973 by Bemidji native Jerald Duane Hickerson.

Hickerson’s first theater experience began when Hickerson went to Fort Leonard Wood in 1954 where he was assigned by a Colonel as a special assignments theater projectionist and was Honorably Discharged in December of 1956. After moving back to Minnesota and married his wife in Battle Lake on May 3, 1958, he and his new wife helped construct their first drive-in theater, the Hi-2 Drive-In in Bemidji. He would later operate the Satellite Drive-In after taking over in 1967 and construct the Saturn Drive-In in Crookston.

Hickerson operated the Galaxy Twin for 30 years until 2003. During his very later years, Hickerson operated his own Galaxy Auto & Camper Sales named after his theater. Unfortunately, Hickerson passed away at the age of 73 on August 26, 2007 at the Oakland Park Nursing Home in Thief River Falls. Three years after Hickerson’s death, brothers Jeff and Blair Lund purchased the theater in June 2010, with Jeff’s son, Dan Lund, managing operations.

Kenmore on May 23, 2024 at 6:48 pm

A 1976 aerial shows the building that would become The Falls Cinema with parking lot.

Was it a theater back then?

It would make sense given the Satellite Drive-In was in operation at that time. Adding two indoor screens for all-year viewing.