New York’s First Drive-In Opened in Valley Stream and Helped Build CBS and Paramount’s Media Empire

The family business that eventually controlled CBS, Paramount Pictures and Viacom had an early connection to a drive-in movie theater in Valley Stream. The Sunrise Drive-In, which opened in 1938 as New York State’s first drive-in theater, became part of the movie exhibition business operated by Michael Redstone, whose son Sumner would later become one of the most influential media executives in American history.

Located at 750 West Sunrise Highway, the theater operated for more than four decades before being demolished in 1979. Its history connects an early form of automobile-oriented entertainment on Long Island with the development of a media company that would eventually own some of the country’s best-known television networks and movie studios.

Photo: The Sunrise Drive-In on West Sunrise Highway in Valley Stream in March 1979, the year the historic theater closed. Opened in 1938, it was New York State’s first drive-in movie theater. (Drive-In 54/Cinema Treasures, Creative Commons)

New York’s First Drive-In Movie Theater

The Sunrise Drive-In opened on Aug. 10, 1938, becoming the first drive-in movie theater in New York State and one of the earliest in the country. Its opening attraction was the 1938 musical comedy Start Cheering, starring Jimmy Durante.

The theater occupied approximately 12 acres and initially accommodated about 500 automobiles. Like other early drive-ins, it used specially designed parking ramps that raised the front ends of vehicles, improving motorists’ views of the screen. The theater also featured distinctive Art Deco architecture, including decorative elements surrounding its large outdoor screen.

The property had previously been part of Curtiss-Wright Airport, which closed in 1933 during the Great Depression. The Chanin family, prominent New York City real estate developers, acquired the former airport property during the 1930s and developed the drive-in as part of a larger project that included the Green Acres residential community and shopping center.

According to the Valley Stream Historical Society, the Chanins constructed the Sunrise Drive-In in 1938. Historical theater records also associate the property with Michael Redstone, whose theater operations would eventually become part of National Amusements.

Photo: An attendant serves refreshments to moviegoers at the Sunrise Drive-In in Valley Stream on Aug. 16, 1938, six days after New York State’s first drive-in movie theater opened. (DavidZornig/Cinema Treasures, CC BY)

The Redstone Family Connection

Michael Redstone, originally named Michael Rothstein, established Northeast Theater Corporation in 1936. His business developed into a regional chain of movie theaters and drive-ins, including the Sunrise Drive-In in Valley Stream.

The connection between the Valley Stream theater and the Redstone family is documented in historical theater records. Cinema Treasures identifies Michael Redstone as an operator of the Sunrise Drive-In by 1955, while other drive-in histories describe the theater as an early component of the business that eventually became National Amusements.

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Michael’s son, Sumner Redstone, was born in Boston in 1923. He graduated from Harvard, served in military intelligence during World War II and attended Harvard Law School. After establishing a legal career, he joined the family theater business in 1954.

At the time, the company was primarily involved in exhibiting movies rather than producing them. Sumner helped expand its theater operations, and Northeast Theater Corporation became National Amusements in 1959. He subsequently took over the company’s leadership and expanded its interests well beyond traditional movie theaters.

Photo: The illuminated neon sign at the Sunrise Drive-In Theatre in Valley Stream, which opened in 1938 as New York State’s first drive-in movie theater. (RobertR/Cinema Treasures, CC BY)

From Movie Theaters to Paramount and CBS

Under Sumner Redstone, National Amusements became the foundation of a much larger entertainment business. The decisive expansion came in 1987, when the company acquired a controlling interest in Viacom for approximately $3.4 billion.

Viacom already had substantial television interests, including cable programming businesses that would become central to Redstone’s media holdings. The acquisition moved the family company beyond operating theaters and into ownership of television networks and entertainment programming.

In 1994, Viacom completed its acquisition of Paramount Communications, bringing Paramount Pictures into the business. The company also acquired Blockbuster Video that year, extending its interests into home entertainment.

Another major acquisition followed in 2000, when Viacom completed its merger with CBS Corporation. The transaction brought the CBS television network under the same corporate ownership as Paramount and Viacom’s cable television operations.

Over the years, the family’s media holdings included MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, BET, Showtime and Paramount Pictures, along with CBS. Although the companies underwent several restructurings and changes in ownership, their development can be traced back to the movie theater business Michael Redstone established decades earlier.

Photo: A vintage newspaper advertisement for the Sunrise Drive-In in Valley Stream promotes a double feature of The Exorcist and The Gauntlet, starring Clint Eastwood. The ad also advertises electric in-car heaters and a weekend flea market at the theater. (Cinema Treasures, public domain)

The End of the Sunrise Drive-In

While the Redstone family’s business expanded nationally, the Sunrise Drive-In remained a fixture along Sunrise Highway. Its location near the Queens-Nassau border attracted moviegoers from both Long Island and New York City, and the theater eventually added amenities including a playground and concession facilities.

The drive-in also underwent changes as outdoor movie theaters became increasingly popular during the years following World War II. Its large screen, distinctive neon lighting and rows of parked automobiles became familiar features of the Valley Stream landscape.

The Sunrise Drive-In closed in 1979 after approximately 41 years of operation. The original theater was demolished, and an indoor multiplex subsequently operated at the location.

By the time the Valley Stream drive-in disappeared, National Amusements had already grown into a substantial theater chain. Within another decade, Sumner Redstone would acquire Viacom and begin the series of transactions that brought Paramount Pictures and CBS into the family’s holdings.

The Sunrise Drive-In’s significance therefore extends beyond its distinction as New York State’s first drive-in movie theater. It was also associated with the early development of a family entertainment business that eventually expanded from showing movies to owning the studios and television networks that produced them.