Van Buren Cinema 3 Drive-In
Riverside, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Check out the multicolored marquee at the Van Buren Cinema 3 Drive-In in Riverside. The sign gives motorists a cheerful invitation to pull in, whether the destination is a daytime bargain hunt or an evening picture show. Quite a bit of activity for a place where the main attraction involves parking the car.

Opened in 1964 on a former orange ranch, the theatre began with one screen. It expanded to four in 1975 before settling into its three-screen arrangement. Its resemblance to nearby Rubidoux extends from the colorful roadside introduction to the busy combination of movies and swap-meet shopping.

Photo of the multi-colored snack bar/projection booth
Riverside, CA
New photo courtesy Ralph Ishmael

The citrus connection also carried into the décor, with a landscape mural and vintage California citrus labels adding character around the snack bar. The former ranch found a new crop of customers, although popcorn became a more convenient accompaniment to the evening’s entertainment.

During the day, shoppers browse merchandise across grounds that fill with moviegoers after sunset. The same entrance can lead to two different outings, with the marquee helping draw attention to both.

Van Buren Screen Tower
Riverside, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Updated projection and FM sound have kept the pictures moving with the times. Customers tune the car radio, settle into a preferred spot, and watch the screen beneath the open sky. The equipment has changed considerably since opening night, but the basic attraction remains familiar.

Fortunately, this is one drive-in where admiring the old roadside appearance can still be followed by an actual movie. A double feature gives visitors a reason to linger well after the sign has made its introduction.

UPDATE: Van Buren Drive-In remains open at 3035 Van Buren Boulevard, operating three movie screens and a daytime swap meet. Its roadside marquee survives. 10-26

Mission Tiki Drive-In Theatre (Demolished)
Montclair, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Along Mission Boulevard in Montclair, the Mission Tiki Drive-In Theatre offered an evening at the movies with a little tropical scenery thrown in. The later tiki huts, masks, and themed concession stand gave customers something to admire before the screens took over after dark.

Opened in 1956 as the Mission Drive-In, the theatre started with a single screen and expanded to four by 1975. A daytime swap meet added another reason to visit, keeping the sprawling grounds busy beyond the evening programs.

The 2006 tiki makeover brought a distinctive new personality to the old movie house. Ticket booths looked like island huts, and the concession area carried the theme farther inside. Apparently a trip to the South Seas could begin with a turn off Mission Boulevard.

Mission Tiki Drive-In Theatre
Montclair, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

The theatre enjoyed renewed popularity during the pandemic, when outdoor entertainment offered a welcome outing. But the property had already been sold for industrial redevelopment, and the busy final years couldn’t secure its future.

UPDATE: The Mission Drive-in Theatre is now called the Mission Tiki Drive-in. De Anza purchased it and is now installed tiki artwork at the site. 05-06

UPDATE: Mission Tiki closed in January 2023, followed by the swap meet. Its screens and themed buildings were subsequently demolished for industrial redevelopment. 10-26

Lake Drive-in Theatre (Demolished)
Big Bear, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Look closely at the faded lettering on the Lake Drive-In Theatre marquee in Big Bear. The faint outline of “The Lake” still showed when photographed, although the mountain weather was steadily making the old name harder to read. The sign had outlasted the nightly movie schedule by quite a few years. 07-06

Opened in 1957, this small outdoor theatre accommodated about 219 cars. Its mountain setting offered a different atmosphere from the sprawling valley drive-ins, with the lake nearby and an evening chill that probably made a blanket worthwhile.

The theatre closed after the 1974 season, but remnants remained for decades. The abandoned screen framework, projection building, and fading sign gave passing motorists a glimpse of Big Bear’s earlier moviegoing days.

UPDATE: The remaining Lake Drive-In structures were cleared in summer 2007. The theatre and its roadside marquee are gone. 10-26