Shankweiler's Drive-In Theatre
Shankweiler's Drive-In Theatre is a single-screen drive-in movie theater located off of Route 309 in Orefield, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the oldest operational drive-in theater in the United States.[1] It generally operates during weekends only in the months of April, May, and September, while playing films seven days per week in June, July, and August through Labor Day.[2] Admission gives patrons access to both nightly movie showings.[2]
| Location | Orefield, Pennsylvania, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°38′42.11″N 75°35′40.32″W / 40.6450306°N 75.5945333°WCoordinates: 40°38′42.11″N 75°35′40.32″W / 40.6450306°N 75.5945333°W |
| Capacity | 300 cars |
| Opened | April 15, 1934 |
| Website | |
| www | |
History
Shankweiler's was opened by Wilson Shankweiler on April 15, 1934, making it the first drive-in theater to open in the state of Pennsylvania and the second drive-in theater to open in the entire United States.[1][3] It opened less than one year after the first ever American drive-in theater opened in Camden, New Jersey.[3][4]
In 1948, Shankweiler's installed speaker poles and car speakers.[3] Hurricane Diane in 1955 caused severe damage to the screen and projection booth at Shankweiler's, prompting the construction of a new snack bar / projection booth and installation of a new CinemaScope movie screen.[3]
Shankweiler sold his drive-in in 1965 to Robert Malkames.[5] Under Malkames' ownership, the theater in 1982 adopted micro-vicinity AM radio broadcasting to deliver movie soundtracks to patrons, though the car speakers remained in place.[3]
Malkames sold Shankweiler's to Paul and Susan Geissinger in 1984.[5] Under the ownership of the Geissingers in 1986, Shankweiler's became the first drive-in theater to deliver movie audio via FM broadcast stereo.[3] Later, Shankweiler's sound system got an upgrade in 2002, followed by another upgrade that brought fully digital video projection and sound equipment in 2013.[3][5]
In 2015, the Geissingers listed Shankweiler's Drive-In for sale, and then re-listed it for sale in 2018, with an asking price of $1.2 million.[5]
In November 2022, the theater was sold to The Moving Picture Cinema, a mobile movie theater.[6] The theater has resumed operations and remain open year-round.[7]
References
- ^ a b Potter, Christy (2015-06-06). "Lehigh Valley's historic drive-ins and movie theaters". The Morning Call. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
- ^ a b "Shankweiler's Drive-In Theatre > Schedule". www.shankweilers.com. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Shankweiler's Drive-In Theatre > History". www.shankweilers.com. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
- ^ "The History of Drive-In Movie Theaters (and Where They Are Now)". New York Film Academy. 2017-06-07. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
- ^ a b c d Wagaman, Andrew (2018-01-18). "Shankweiler's Drive-in, oldest drive-in theater in the country, is for sale". The Morning Call. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
- ^ https://www.wfmz.com/news/area/lehighvalley/shankweilers-drive-in-sold-to-new-owners/article_84310cbc-5cfe-11ed-a085-7b9ee13aa088.html
- ^ https://www.wfmz.com/news/area/lehighvalley/opening-night-at-shankweilers-drive-in-makes-splash-as-folks-watch-movies-under-the-stars/article_880f1fd8-622e-11ed-851a-93d00c42540c.html