St Louis City South
Prints Available
http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/8628
Located in the Sappington/Afton district to the southwest of St. Louis. Opened on July 15, 1948 with June Allyson in “Good News”. It was operated by Wehrenberg Theatres and this was most certainly their flagship drive-in theatre. It was named after their grandson Ron Krueger. The Ronnie’s Drive-In had the largest playground of any of the St. Louis area drive-ins. This was also where the Wehrenberg train was located that took patrons for rides around the drive-in before the start of the show and during intermissions.
The main entrance with the back of the screen facing S. Lindbergh Boulevard was lit up with neon spelling in huge letters Ronnie’s Drive-In. The box offices were all dressed in neon also. The front was landscaped with trees and shrubs. This was always a favorite for the people of South St. Louis.
The Ronnie’s Drive-In came to a sad ending on August 3, 1983 when it closed and the screen was pulled over. It got a lot of local news coverage when the demolition started. It was considered a south side landmark. There is a shopping center where the theatre once stood and Wehrenberg built their largest multiplex on part of where the entrance to the drive-in once stood, naming it Ronnie’s 8 Cine which lasted a short time and was demolished to make way for the much larger Ronnie’s 20 Cine. In keeping with the fame of the Ronnie’s Drive-In, the Ronnie’s 20 Cine has a motif in the lobby of a drive-in theatre.