Demolition of the Northside Drive-In, 1988: Lansing, Michigan
Most of us in the Lansing area and Ingham County went to the Northside Drive-In Theatre at least once in our lives.
The Northside opened on August 29, 1952 showing the Randolph Scott film Santa Fe. It started out as a one-screener with a capacity of 800 cars and was so until June 1984 when it became a triplex.
Part of the Northside's legacy came from a rock concert held on May 18, 1974 when a new band called RUSH performed with a bevy of other bands. A stage was built in front of the screen and from Noon to Midnight, the bands played on. Attendance was less than spectacular, but many of the attendees were partaking in drugs and there were a number of overdoses.
Not long afterward during the 1980s, the screen burned down. A few years after the replacement, two more screens were added to accommodate the crowd, making the theater a three-screener.
According to Water Winter Wonderland, as the 80s trudged along, the theater became more of a place to party, get drunk, and high, rather than go for the movie. After enough of this, and numerous visits by the police, the Northside closed down in 1988.
The gallery below shows some old fuzzy footage of the Northside before and during its demolition courtesy of michigandriveinscom.
Demolition of the Northside Drive-In, 1988: Lansing, Michigan
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