Sacramento, CA is home to the 49'er Drive-in Theater. This open air theater was originally called the Bell Drive-in when it opened in 1950 as a single-screener. Eleven years later the drive-in took on the name 49'er Drive-in and added more screens in the late 60's and 70's. The Drive-in was located on 4450 Marysville Boulevard in Sacramento.
49'er Drive-in Theater marquee
Sacramento, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Unfortunately, the 49'er Drive-in met the demise around the same time as many other drive-in theaters across the county. Met with increasing land values making the huge drive-in footprint extremely valuable, companies like Walmart began purchasing and shutting down old drive-in theaters to build new superstores.
Graffiti marquee prior to demolition Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The fact that folks could watch movies from the comfort of their homes with big screen TVs didn't help the longevity of these drive-in theaters either.
After closing in 2000, the lot existed as a flea market. Eventually the 49'er drive-in lot was razed over with the exception of the marquee earlier this decade. The 49er marquee was removed possibly some time in 2007. The lot remains empty as of 2019.