Skyview Drive-In
The Skyview Drive-In Theatre was a 600-car outdoor drive-in cinema located at 675 Decatur Highway (U.S. Highway 31) in Fultondale. It opened on June 1, 1956.
The cinema was the fifth drive-in to be developed and operated by the Waters Theatre Company in the Birmingham Metropolitan Area. It was constructed at a cost of $150,000, part of which was expended in blasting away 20,000 cubic yards of rock from the 8-acre site. H. M. Norwood Jr furnished the landscape design and fencing.
The steel paneled screen was 40 feet tall and 80 feet wide, designed by engineer James Goetz and fabricated by Truscon Steel, a division of Republic Steel. The projection booth and caretaker's apartment were built above an air-conditioned restroom and concession stand. Joe Lackey was the first manager of the drive-in.
The hazardous situation caused by drivers crossing northbound traffic to turn onto the southbound lanes after a show led to the installation of a flashing traffic signal which was operated by theater staffers.
The facility was taken over by Cobb Theatres in 1969. It closed in 1972.
References
- Badger, Eddie (December 8, 1956) "They Moved a Mountain to Build a Drive-In". Boxoffice
External links
- Skyview Drive-In on CinemaTreasures.org