Seattle Times, July 1, 1960. Copyright 1960 Seattle Times Co.
An aerial view of South Seattle captured the Duwamish in the mid-60's, just as they were constructing the freeway behind it. From Building Washington by Paul Dorpat and Genevieve McCoy
A newspaper article (Seattle Times, August 22, 1982) quotes the owner as saying they had a successful final year in 1981, but were closed by their landlord just in time for an economic slump that kept the lot undeveloped for years. Unsympathetic land owners were reportedly behind the early '80s drive-in blood bath that also claimed Aurora, Kenmore, and El-Rancho. I visited the lot after it had been turned into a truck storage yard with the screen and some equipment still standing. The ghost-theater got a few seconds on the news when the yellowing screen was finally knocked down, and now the lot holds Boeing offices. The trees backing the river are still standing.
Seattle Times, July 1, 1960. Copyright 1960 Seattle Times Co.
An aerial view of South Seattle captured the Duwamish in the mid-60's, just as they were constructing the freeway behind it. From Building Washington by Paul Dorpat and Genevieve McCoy
View of the theater in 1965/66 from the north from this page of the Washington State Department of Transportation Biennial Reports. The ticket booth is off the right side of the photo, but you can get a feel for what it must have been like to see the movie with trees and the river behind and around you.
Aerial photo showing a more detailed layout of the theater. Washington State Department of Transportation. September 11, 1970
USGS Seattle South, 1949, 1968 and 1973
Microsoft Terraserver satellite image of site.
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