Belt Line-67 Drive-In
2201 Guthrie Road,
Garland,
TX
75043
2201 Guthrie Road,
Garland,
TX
75043
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Located in the acute angle of property formed by the intersection of U.S Highway 67 (now Interstate 30) and Belt Line Road east of Dallas. The Belt Line-67 Drive-In was opened by Leon Theatres on March 11, 1965 with Spencer Tracey in “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World” & Kip Behar in “Beauty and the Body”. From April 1970 it was operated by McLendon Theatres and closed in October 1973.
Scar of the parking area is still easily visible on Google Maps.
Contributed by
Steve Schaffer (matt54)
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Recent comments (view all 8 comments)
Today, on the edge of the property that once was occupied by the marquee for the drive in, is now a Racetrac? Gas Station/Convenience store. Nothing remains of the Belt Line/67 drive in. It sat right behind where the KROGER Grocery store occupies the land today…….
Randy A Carlisle – Historical Photographer
Just added some aerials from 1972 and 2012.
C.D. Leon of Leon Theaters was back in business with the late 1964 opening of the Town & Country Drive-In and the March 1965 opening of the Belt Line – 67 Drive-In. The former operator of the Garland Road Drive-In, as well as the Hampton Road and Denton Road drive-ins, Leon co-owned the Belt Line – 67 with James McQuad. Leon billed it as the first drive-in in the Southwest equipped to run 70mm film. The theater opened with 1,000 spaces and 1,000 speakers. The theater was included in a $4 million spurt in Dallas area movie theaters. The first two features on March 11, 1965 were “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World” and “Beauty and the Body”. It appears to close for the season at the end of October 1973 and there are no more advertisements for the Belt Line 67.
Does anyone have any info on the Town & Country Drive-In? I believe it was located in the vicinity of the intersection of Plano Rd and Buckingham, and that this was the second location of that theatre (the first was on farmland nearby).
Boxoffice, April 27, 1970: “Acquisition of … the Beltline 67 Drive-In … was announced by B. R. McLendon and Robert Hartgrove, chairman of the board and president, respectively, of McLendon Theatres … The Beltline-67 was purchased from a syndicate of owners headed by Leon Theatres of Santa Fe, James McQuaid of Garland, Dollen Russell of Dallas, and G. S. Hill of Santa Fe. McLendon expressed pleasure at the acquisition of the 900-car Beltline, which has a distinctive frontier-style architecture”
Approximate address can be updated to 2201 Guthrie Rd, Garland.
It seems a little strange to me that the city would extend a road into the property which has yet to be developed. It’s been about 15 years since Guthrie road was created, so perhaps there were plans in place that have been delayed or cancelled.
It is possible that at some point Guthrie Road may be continued through the property until it connects with Interstate 30.
In any event, Guthrie Road takes the place of the original entrance which now has a Captain D’s sitting on it. Otherwise, the property remains untouched with the ramps still clearly in place. It seems an ideal setting for a drive-in as it is surrounded by trees and a couple of businesses. But I highly doubt it will ever open as a drive-in again even if the possibility remains.
The Belt-Line 67 Drive-In opened its gates by Leon Theaters on March 11, 1965 with “It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World” and “Beauty And The Body” along with an unnamed cartoon. It was first managed by Frank Tharp, who also previously worked at both Interstate and Stanley-Warner chains beforehand.