Boulevard Drive-In Theater

Last updated
Boulevard Drive-In Theater
Boulevard Drive-In Theatre - airphoto.jpg
The Drive-In can still be seen in a pie-shaped lot, the gradient rows where cars would park clearly visible, 2006 USGS air photo.
Boulevard Drive-In Theater
Address556 Union Boulevard
Allentown, Pennsylvania, 18103
United States
Coordinates 40°37′13″N075°27′00″W / 40.62028°N 75.45000°W / 40.62028; -75.45000
TypeDrive-In
Current useAbandoned
Opened1949
Closed1985

The Boulevard Drive-In Theater is a closed drive-in theater, located in Allentown, Pennsylvania. It was one of two drive-in theaters in Allentown; the second one was Cinema Treasures.

Contents

History

Opened in 1949, the Boulevard was located on a 20-acre site in East Allentown, at 556 Union Boulevard, across the street from Western Electric. [1] Like many Drive-Ins, the Boulevard was open from about April through the end of October of each year, being closed during the winter months. The theater opened about an hour before sunset each night, and normally showed two films on an average evening, the first being a first-run film, the second being either a "B" movie or a second-run film.

The theater was located on a hill, with gravel over the natural turf for automobiles to park. Each of the 600 parking space had a monaural speaker which was attached to the vehicle's driver side window. The speaker had a volume control to adjust the sound volume inside the car or light truck. There were no heaters supplied for the vehicles, and it was common for car engines to be running during the films in the early spring and late fall with the heaters running.

In the front of the parking area, a children's play area was provided with various swings, sliding boards and other playground equipment for families to take children prior to dusk and the beginning of the film. A concession stand, underneath the projection room was open with a wide variety of refreshments as well as rest rooms.

Closure and subsequent use

The Boulevard Drive-In closed about 1985 and the property was abandoned for many years. The ticket booth, projection/refreshment building and the metal speaker posts were torn down and removed about 1990.

In 2013, plans were announced to redevelop the site into a "classic car" exercise site, in which a mile-long track would be constructed to drive museum-class vehicles. The track is not planned for racing, but instead, a network of roads designed to test and maintain cars from the America on Wheels Museum. [2] [3] Development, sponsored by Nicola Bulgari, was completed sometime in 2015 and included preservation and restoration of the movie screen. [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allentown, Pennsylvania</span> Home rule municipality in Pennsylvania, United States

Allentown is the county seat of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the third-most populous city in Pennsylvania with a population of 125,845 as of the 2020 census and the most populous city in the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 and was the 68th-most populous metropolitan area in the nation as of 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drive-in theater</span> Cinema format

A drive-in theater/theatre or drive-in cinema is a form of cinema structure consisting of a large outdoor movie screen, a projection booth, a concession stand, and a large parking area for automobiles. Within this enclosed area, customers can view movies from the privacy and comfort of their cars. Some drive-ins have small playgrounds for children and a few picnic tables or benches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eliica</span> Electric vehicle prototype

The Eliica is a supercar or an battery electric vehicle prototype or concept car first shown in 2004 and designed by a team at Keio University in Tokyo, led by Professor Hiroshi Shimizu. The 5.1 m (17 ft) car runs on a lithium-ion battery and can accelerate from 0–100 km/h (62 mph) in four seconds. In 2004, the Eliica reached a speed of 370 km/h (230 mph) on Italy's Nardò High Speed Track. The team's goal is to exceed 400 km/h (250 mph), breaking the record set by today's street-legal gasoline-powered vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Test Track</span> Ride at Epcot

Test Track is a high-speed slot car thrill ride manufactured by Dynamic Attractions located in World Discovery at Epcot, a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering in partnership with Chevrolet, the ride is a simulated excursion through the rigorous testing procedures that General Motors uses to evaluate its concept cars, culminating in a high-speed drive around the exterior of the attraction.

Arbogast & Bastian, also known as A&B Meats, was the name of a slaughterhouse and meat packing plant located in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Once a national leader in hog slaughtering, the company had the capacity to process most of the 850,000 hogs raised annually in Pennsylvania for slaughtering. In its heyday, Arbogast & Bastian slaughtered an average of 4,000 hogs daily.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">America on Wheels</span> Transportation museum in Allentown, Pennsylvania

America on Wheels is an over-the-road transportation museum in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Citicar</span> 1974 electric car

The CitiCar is a car produced from 1974 to 1977 by Sebring, Florida–based Sebring-Vanguard, Inc. After being bought out by Commuter Vehicles, Inc, Sebring-Vanguard produced the similar Comuta-Car and Comuta-Van from 1979 to 1982. Similarities to its exterior design can be spotted in the Danish Kewet and the later Norwegian Buddy electric car. Accounting for all CitiCar variants, a total of 4,444 units were produced up to 1979, the most since 1945 for an electric car assembled in North America until surpassed in 2011 by the Nissan Leaf.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cruising (driving)</span> Traveling by car for pleasure

Cruising is a social activity that primarily consists of driving a car. Cruising is distinguished from regular driving by the social and recreational nature of the activity, which is characterized by an impulsively random, often aimless course. A popular route is often the focus of cruising. Cruising can be an expression of the freedom of possessing a driver's license. "Cruise nights" are evenings during which cars drive slowly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hess's</span> Defunct American department store chain

Hess's, originally known as Hess Brothers, was a department store chain based in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The company was founded a single store in 1897, and grew to nearly 80 stores by its commercial peak in the late 1980s. The chains stores were closed or sold off in a series of deals in the early to mid-1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miller Symphony Hall</span> Performing arts facility

Miller Symphony Hall is a 1,100-seat performing arts facility in Allentown, Pennsylvania that hosts the Allentown Symphony Orchestra. The hall was previously known as Central Market (1896), Lyric Theater (1899), and Allentown Symphony Hall (1959). In 2012, it was renamed for the Miller family, longtime owners of the hall and of The Morning Call newspaper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Civic Theatre of Allentown</span> Cinema in Allentown, Pennsylvania, US

The Civic Theatre of Allentown, also known as the Nineteenth Street Theatre, is the oldest cinema in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The theater opened on September 17, 1928. It hosts live theater, educational programs, and screens art house films. In July 1957, the property was purchased by Allentown's Civic Little Theatre. Since then, stage productions have been performed at the theater. In 1994 the company officially changed its name to the Civic Theatre of Allentown. Its building on 19th Street was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PPL Center</span> Indoor sports arena in Allentown, Pennsylvania

The PPL Center is an 8,500 seat capacity indoor sports arena in Allentown, Pennsylvania. It opened on September 10, 2014. It is the home arena for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the American Hockey League, the primary development hockey team for the Philadelphia Flyers. The arena also hosts major concerts, sports, and entertainment events throughout the year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colonial Theater (Allentown, Pennsylvania)</span>

The Colonial Theater was a former cinema and stage theater in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Opened in 1920, for over 50 years it was considered the glamour cinema in the central business district. It closed in 1982, and was torn down in 2005 after years of being vacant and deteriorated. The site has been redeveloped as Three City Center, part of the Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Zone (NIZ).

The Allen Theater is a former cinema in Allentown, Pennsylvania. It opened in 1915 and closed in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strand Theater (Allentown, Pennsylvania)</span>

The Strand Theater is a former cinema in Allentown, Pennsylvania. It closed in 1953. Today, part of the building is used for retail and office space.

Nicola Bulgari is an Italian billionaire businessman and grandson of Sotirios Bulgari, founder of the luxury brand Bulgari.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shankweiler's Drive-In Theatre</span> Drive-in movie theater in Pennsylvania

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 world It generally operates during weekends in the colder months, while playing films seven days per week during the summer season. Admission gives patrons access to both nightly movie showings.

The Mahoning Drive-In Theater is a drive-in theater located in Lehighton, Pennsylvania, along Route 443. Opened in 1949, the Mahoning was one of many drive-in theaters that became popular in the United States following World War II. Attendance at the Mahoning waned by 2014, but the theater has since gained a resurgence in popularity due to the management's decision to screen primarily older cult films and B movies rather than newer releases. It is the last remaining drive-in theater in the US to screen films in 35 mm every weekend.

References

  1. Boulevard Drive-In Theatre
  2. "Allentown classic car owner proposes driving track at former drive-in theater". The Morning Call.
  3. Scott Kraus (May 23, 2016). "Italian car collector Nicola Bulgari rides to America on Wheels' rescue". The Morning Call.
  4. "Pictures: Allentown Classic Motor Car Inc". The Morning Call.

Further reading