Studio Drive-In
Culver City, California1948-1993
Order Studio Drive-In tees, long sleeve tees and hoodies. The Studio called itself the Heart of Screenland, with MGM's lot nearby, and its tower carried STUDIO in yellow neon over DRIVE-IN in huge red letters. In 1985 it hosted the finale of Pee-wee's Big Adventure, and a photo shows the marquee reading World Premiere Tonight. Pick a style below, then read the full Studio history further down. Down Home Apparel is an American small business remembering the best places and teams of yesteryear, and every shirt is printed to order in the USA.
4 products
Studio Drive-In History
The Studio Drive-In in Culver City, California, opened on August 26 or 27, 1948, at 5250 Sepulveda Boulevard, with Romance on the High Seas and Up in Central Park. The name was a plain statement of the neighborhood: MGM's lot was close by, and the theater called itself the Heart of Screenland. An opening ad claimed it was the largest drive-in in the West. It parked about 1,000 cars, and Pacific Theatres took it over in April 1952.
The back of the tower faced the traffic, with STUDIO in yellow neon over DRIVE-IN in huge red neon letters. Out front, a pink neon curl swept up over a marquee with the word Theatre in gold script. The tower could be seen from the San Diego Freeway.
In a town built on the movies, it was often used as a set. In 1985 it hosted the finale of Pee-wee's Big Adventure, in which Pee-wee watches his own life story at a drive-in, and a 1985 photo shows the marquee reading World Premiere Tonight. It also turns up in a 7-Eleven commercial from 1990, and commenters place it in La Bamba and an episode of Hart to Hart.
It closed in August 1993. The neon stayed lit for a long time after, and a marquee is remembered reading Closed Forever. A former projectionist tried running old films there, and that didn't last, and neither did a swap meet. Scenes for Jawbreaker were shot there shortly before it was demolished on September 21, 1998. Housing stands there now.