The Foster Road Drive-In Theatre

The Foster Rd Drive-In was built in 1968 as a tri-screen multi-plex outdoor theatre. It was located at 11501 SE Foster Road, Portland OR 97236. It had a car capacity of 1800. The main screen was located in the center with the snack bar in the rear. The 2 smaller screens were to each side. In 1998, it closed after 30 years of service. It was purchased by a development company and torn down in 1999. An industrial park with large warehouses was built in it's place. The drive in originally had the speakers that hung from the car windows, but was upgraded to am radio sound in the mid 1980's. The Foster Road Drive-In was owned by Regal Cinemas.

In 1994, the 3 featured movies were: Wolf, Speed and The Flintstones.

The 2 photos above are from 1974. The top shows the large steel truss screen. The bottom shows the concession stand. Note the speaker poles, wires and speaker units that would hang form the car window. Ever drive off with one of those still hanging from the window?

The aerial photo taken above is from 1994 and shows the lay out of the drive in. All three screens are present. The snack bar is the large building at the bottom of the photo. Note the parking rows for the cars and the projection booths for the smaller screens on each side.

The theater had the drawing power to back up traffic on Southeast Foster Road for a mile on warm summer nights, and to bring hundreds of people together for early sunset picnics and games as they waited for the movies.

Neighbors hated the honking.
And it could aggravate nearby residents who heard the horns honk for 10 minutes each dusk as patrons demanded that the movies start.


The theater that entertained families and fostered low-budget romances for three decades was torn down in 1998.


On Sept 1, 1980, the night manager of the Foster Rd Drive-In was robbed by 2 people and shot in the leg at 3am.



Top Reasons Drive-In Movie Theatres Became Obsolete:

1. The land became too valuable and was sold.
2. Seasonal (summer only) and weekly dead spots.
3. Color TV, VCR's with video rentals and cable TV movies at home.
4. Widespread adoption of daylight savings time reduced movie time.

 The Foster Road opened in 1968 with a capacity of 1,800 cars. It expanded to 3 screens for the beginning of the 1974 season, set to open March 15th of that year. The main screen tower measured 50' by 100' while the two smaller screens were 40' by 80'. With the new field layout, the main field held 800 cars and the other 2 had 400 each. There were 2 new projection booths built as well, since they placed those screens on opposite sides of the property. The snack bar was a large cinder block building, 80' by 50'. A cafeteria style set-up with many cashier stations to choose from.

The Foster Road Drive-In was a Tom Moyer Luxury Theater and the first multi screen drive-in in the state. It closed in 1998 and was demolished to make room for an industrial park the next year.