Los Feliz Drive-In

3105 Riverside Dr. Los Angeles, CA 90039  | map | 

Opened: March 24, 1950. Michael Kilgore found this item in the March 11, 1950 issue of Boxoffice: 

"Booking and buying for the Los Feliz Drive-In, new 600-car ozoner owned by Marvin Chesebrough, will be handled by Jim Finkler’s booking service. The operation is set for a March 15 opening with Tom Osa as manager."

 

They didn't make that March 15 date.  

 

 

  

The L.A. Times listing for March 15 still said "Opening Soon." 

 

 

The March 24 opening day listing in the Times' Independent Theatre Guide for "The Nevadan" starring Randolph Scott and Dorothy Malone. The co-feature, "The Pirates of Capri," was with Louis Hayward and Binnie Barnes. 

Architect: unknown 

Capacity: 600 cars originally. It was later twinned and ended up with a capacity of 500. 

A story from the June 24, 1950 issue of Boxoffice. Thanks to Michael Kilgore for locating it:

"Los Angeles – Because flood lights used to illuminate a playing field in the municipally owned Griffith park are blinding patrons of the nearby Los Feliz Drive-In, the city’s park and recreation commission has been given a 'reasonable time' to erect an adequate shielding device. That order was contained in a ruling handed down in superior courts as part of a preliminary injunction granted in an action filed against the city by Marvin M. Chesebro and Frank and Ernest Sbicca, owners of the drive-in, which opened March 15.

"Chesebro, an attorney, held that the city should either stop using the flood lights or construct a baffle, which he estimates would cost approximately $3,500. The city’s plea that the cost would be closer to $7,500 and that the theatre should build the shield was denied in the court’s ruling. Chesebro charged that the drive-in is losing $300 worth of business every Friday night, when the Griffith park baseball field is open. Chesebro is the son of Ray L. Chesebro, city attorney, who disqualified himself from representing the municipality because his son is a stockholder in the drive-in enterprise."

It was twinned by 1952.  

 Thanks to Texas2Step for locating this post-twinning image for a post on Cinema Treasures. 

 

A 1952 image from Historic Aerials, Inc. Thanks to Michael Kilgore for sharing it as a post Cinema Treasures. At the bottom that's Hyperion Ave. crossing the Los Angeles River.  

By 1952 the operators were Los Feliz Drive-In Theatres Inc. and C.A. Ford, according to research by James Monroe. 

Closed: October 2, 1956. The last films to play were Stanley Kubrick's "The Killing" along with "Cockleshell Heroes"

 

The Times Independent Drive-In listings for October 2, 1956. Evidently the Los Feliz was only running one screen on their last day. There wasn't any listing in the Times on the 3rd.  

Status: It was demolished. It's under several lanes of the 5 with the Glendale Blvd. off ramp cutting through the site.

Years after it closed the Los Feliz Ledger ran "Remembering When: The Los Feliz Drive-In," an article by Tony Cella: 

"Los Feliz - Los Angeles Councilmember Tom LaBonge knows where to find an underground theatre in Los Feliz. 'It's right there in lanes 1,2,3, and 4' he said referring to the 5 Freeway, where the drive-in was toen down in order to build. Los Feliz was home to a drive-in theatre during the 1950s. Called simply the los Feliz Drive-In, the Dept. of Transportation bought the property as part of the Interstate 5 Highway expansion in 1957. The two-screen theatre's last ad ran in the Los Angeles Times on October 2, 1956. 

"According to records, the independently owned theatre was built in March of 1950 and opened with 'The Nevadan' and 'Pirates of Capri.' LaBonge said he remembered piling into the family station wagon to watch the Southern Pacific trains with his brothers, then heading to the Hyperion Bridge to peer over and sneak a showing of a Disney movie. 

"Resident of Kingsley Manor, a retirement home near Los Feliz, Suzanne Hollombe regrets not going to the theatre in her younger days. 'People liked to go there, put earphones on and listen to movies,' Hollombe said. She remembers it being a popular place for the younger crowd to go on weekends. 'Lovers went there in convertibles,' she said. 'It was nothing out of line.'  

"The Los Feliz Drive-In entered the courtroom at least once during its six-year life, winning a case against the city. According to an archived los Angeles Times article, a judge ruled a nearby baseball field (which also was eventually demolished for freeway construction had to turn off -- or shield its lights -- during night games to prevent interference with movie screenings. The baseball field, owned by the Dept. of Recreation and Parks, was built before the drive-in, but the judge decided in favor of the drive-in.

"Fate however, didn't favor the theatre for long. The theatre sold its property to the Dept. of Transportation in 1956 for the 5 Freeway. Hollombe remembers people were upset when the drive-in closed. 'It was a landmark in Los Feliz,' she said. 'I used to drive by there,' she said. 'I should have gone there in hindsight.'" 

Thanks to Matt Spero for locating the article.  

The site in 2025. The Friendship Auditorium, seen toward the upper left at 3201 Riverside, is the home of the L.A. Breakfast Club. That's the Los Angeles River in the upper right. Image: Google Maps 

More information: See the Cinema Treasures page about the Los Feliz Drive-In. 

Nearby: Elysian Theatre | Los Feliz Theatre | Studio Theatre | Village Theatre - 5500 Riverside | Vista Theatre |   

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