Here's a guide to drive-in movie theaters in Wisconsin, and a look at the history of outdoor theaters here
Wisconsin was a little late to the drive-in movie theater party. But we've never completely left.
In fact, half of the drive-ins that are still in operation in the state opened in the 21st century.
Below is a guide to the 10 drive-in movie theaters still operating in Wisconsin. Most are open from around Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.
But first, a little history of drive-in movie theaters in Wisconsin, spurred by a reader's question to What the Wisconsin — the place where we take on questions large and small about our state, our communities and the people in them.
The history of Wisconsin's drive-in theaters, from boom to bust to brief COVID-era resurgence
That story starts in Brookfield.
The state's first drive-in theater, called simply the Drive-In, opened on the site of a former dog track on the south side of Blue Mound Road, west of Moorland Road in what was then the Town of Brookfield, on June 18, 1940. Its debut was more than seven years after the opening of the nation's first drive-in, in Camden, New Jersey.
Later renamed the Bluemound Drive-In, the Brookfield outdoor theater was the Milwaukee area's only drive-in until 1948, when the 41 Twin Outdoor opened in Franklin.
As it did in the rest of the country, the drive-in really took off in Wisconsin in the 1950s. By 1954, according to reports in the Journal Sentinel archives, the Milwaukee area had as many as 20 outdoor theaters. Across Wisconsin, by 1955, there were 54 drive-ins.
By the 1960s, some of them were busy enough to be open year-round — quite a feat, considering Wisconsin weather. (In their newspaper listings, drive-ins like the Bluemound or the 59 Outdoor in Waukesha promised "in-car heaters.")
But by the 1970s, the rise of the multiplex and expanding commercial development helped make drive-in properties more valuable as real estate sites than movie theater locations.
The Bluemound Drive-In, the state's first, closed in 1981 and was developed as office and commercial space a couple of years later. The 41 Twin, the Milwaukee area's last traditional drive-in, closed after the 2001 season.
By March 2020, the number of drive-in movie theaters nationwide had sunk from around 4,000 in 1958 to 321, according to the National Association of Theater Owners.
A handful of drive-in theaters around Wisconsin hung on. And, in the past couple of decades, a few new ones, including the Chilton Twilight Drive-In Theater and the Highway 18 Outdoor Theatre in Jefferson, started up or revived older drive-in properties.
During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic — with social distancing a key safety consideration — a few pop-up drive-ins turned up around the state.
Some of these pop-ups were set up in parking lots outside existing theaters, like at Marcus Theatres' Majestic Cinema in Brookfield; others were in lots outside other attractions, like the Duck Pond Drive-In set up outside the home stadium for the the Madison Mallards, the collegiate summer baseball league team, and the Milky Way Drive-In, built in the parking lot outside the Milwaukee Milkmen's home ballpark in Franklin. Most of them shut down after 2020; the Milky Way continues with a schedule that runs into October.
Drive-in movie theaters in southeastern Wisconsin
Milky Way Drive-In
Where: 7035 S. Ballpark Drive, Franklin (in Ballpark Commons)
Opened: 2020
What does it show?: Mostly second-run and older movies; double-features on Thursdays
How many screens?: 1
When is it open?: When the Milwaukee Milkmen baseball team isn’t playing in adjacent Franklin Field (the drive-in is set up in the ballpark’s parking lot), starting in mid-May with movies showing into October
Info: milkywaydrivein.com
Highway 18 Outdoor Theatre
Where: W6423 Highway 18, Jefferson (at Highways 18 and 89)
Opened: 1953; reopened in 2000
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 1
When is it open?: Weekends, starting in mid-May
Info: highway18.com
Drive-in movie theaters in northwestern Wisconsin
Stardust Twin Drive-In Theater
Where: 995 22nd St., Chetek (about two hours east of Minneapolis)
Opened: 2008
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 2
When is it open?: Weekends, starting in late May
Info: stardustdriveinmovie.com
Drive-in movie theaters in northeastern Wisconsin (including Fox Valley and Door County)
Chilton Twilight Drive-In Theater
Where: 1255 E. Chestnut St. (Highway 57), Chilton
Opened: 2011
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 1
When is it open?: Weekends starting in early May; Wednesday-Sunday after Memorial Day
Info: getreelcinemas.com/chilton-drive-in
Field of Scenes Outdoor Theater
Where: N3712 Highway 55, Freedom
Opened: 2003
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 2
When is it open?: Fridays and Saturdays, starting in late May
Info: fieldofscenes.biz
Skyway Drive-In
Where: 3475 Highway 42, Fish Creek
Opened: 1950
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 1
When is it open?: Weekends, starting in early May
Info: doorcountydrivein.com
Moonlight Drive-In
Where: 1494 E. Green Bay St., Shawano
Opened: 2000
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 1
When is it open?: Open daily, usually from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend
Info: shawanocinema.com/#outdoortheater
Drive-in movie theaters in southwestern Wisconsin (including Wisconsin Dells)
Big Sky Drive-In Theatre
Where: N9199 Winnebago Road, Wisconsin Dells
Opened: 1950
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 2
When is it open?: Weekends, starting in early May
Info: bigskydrivein.com
Sky-Vu Drive-In
Where: N1936 Highway 69, Monroe
Opened: 1954
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 1
When is it open?: No word on 2024 reopening
Info: goetzskyvu.com/SKY-VU/SKY-VU_HOME.html
Starlite 14 Drive-In
Where: U.S. Highway 14 East, Richland Center
Opened: 1952
What does it show?: New releases
How many screens?: 1
When is it open?: Saturdays, starting early May; expanding to Fridays and Sundays as well later in May
Info: richlandmovies.com
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Guide to Wisconsin drive-in movie theaters and their history
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