The 101 Drive-in Theatre was a Ventura County favorite open air theatre for decades. Located right off of the 101 Freeway, the appropriately named 101 Drive-in became Ventura County's last operating outdoor theatre when the Simi Valley Drive-in did not open in the Summer of 1997.
The 101 Drive-in marquee advertising the swap meet Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The 101 screen tower Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The 101 Drive-in was also run as a swap meet in its later years, much like most of the ozoners that remain today. The marquee at the left shows that the swap meet business was open every weekend.
A close-up of one of the ticket booths Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Unfortunately, like many of the drive-ins that eventually closed in the last couple of decades, the 101 Drive-in was unable to compete with the indoor theatre multiplexes with stadium seating and the convenience of home theater systems. It also didn't hurt that the drive-in was sitting on prime real estate near a major freeway.
The entrance to the ticket booths Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The 101 Drive-in made it to the millennium but not much past it. This drive-in movie theatre was demolished in early August, 2001. Ventura County drive-in theatres are all now just a memory.
101 Drive-in Screen Tower Photo by RoadsidePeek.com