The Northfield Star Drive-In opened on July 4, 1950, screening the 1949 adventure/war drama “The Fighting Kentuckian” with John Wayne & Vera Ralston. In addition to the film, a color cartoon and short subjects were also viewed. It was opened by Ed Buczynski & Eugene Marunski, dba Northfield Star Theatre Inc. It had a capacity of 400 cars with in-a-car speakers. Co-Operative Theatres of Ohio Inc were the buying & booking agency. The drive-in property was sold in 1969 to Mid-America Management Corporation (MIDAMCO) which is a property holding company. In 1970, Associated Theatres/Cinemette Inc. from Pittsburgh, OH. took over the operation of the Northfield Star Drive-In. In April of 1983, Northfield Village officials ordered the drive-in could not open for the 1983 season.
The drive-in could not open until they fixed safety problems and could pass Summit County Health Department inspections. The also found the screen tower is “rusted and in a collapsible state”, electric wires and fixtures need replacement and the fence around the property needs repair. They were required to update their venue’s licence and pass a fire safety inspection. They also owed the village $2,000 in back admission taxes. All these factors led to the end of the Northfield Star Drive-In. Since Cinemette Inc. did not own the property the drive-in was sitting on, it was closed for good. The drive-in was then demolished and became a vacant lot for years. The back part of the property was recently (c.2000) redeveloped as a retirement village known as Northfield Village Retirement Community.
Source http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/6860
And http://www.northfieldvillage-oh.gov/history.htm
