The Admiral Twin Drive-In, a landmark theater in Tulsa that’s still being rebuilt after a devastating fire in September 2010, suffered vandalism to its ticket booth and new concession stand on Saturday, reported KOTV in Tulsa.
Almost every ceiling light in the new concession stand was smashed. Shattered glass covers the floor with broken bulbs hanging down from the fluorescent fixtures. Vandals also apparently climbed on cabinets in the bathrooms, pulling them loose from the walls.
A construction supervisor tells News On 6 that they were hoping to open next weekend, but that looks unlikely due to the damage.
Owner Blake Smith says the theater probably will hold a soft reopening in a few weeks, with a larger grand reopening later this summer.
The drive-in opened in 1951, and its second screen was built a year later. The Admiral Twin sits just off the older Admiral Place alignment of Route 66.
The Admiral Twin also served as an inspiration during a scene in Tulsa native S.E. Hinton’s famous novel, “The Outsiders,” and the film version by Francis Ford Coppola.
What kind of morons do such things? I’d suggest a proper punishment if and when they’re caught but I’m sure it wold be declared cruel and unusual.
That is just terrible. What on earth is WRONG with people? *sigh*
The kind of morons do this type of thing that weren’t disciplined and taught to respect others while growing up. Unfortunately, in this day and time, if you discipline your children, someone cries “child abuse”, so this is what is being raised today. Deliquents that know whatever they do, no big deal. Spare the rod, spoil the child. Here’s hoping things can be repaired quickly and those that cherish and respect other people’s property, in this case on Route 66 and what these folks are bringing back to Tulsa, will be appreciated.
I’m not inclined to be clairvoyant into the minds of vandals. In my journalism career, I’ve seen vandals come from all sort of families, including parents that no one would call lenient. To say these vandals came from parents that are permissive is highly presumptuous.
Nor do I Ron, know the minds of vandals. I agree that vandals can come from all sorts of families, but there is no punishment for wrong doing this day and time, a slap on the wrist and that’s it. I still say respect comes from early learning in the home. “Train up a child in the way he should go and he will not depart from it.” That’s my story and I’m sticking to it! Love your website by the way. 🙂
Alas, the “train the child in the way he should go and he will not depart from it” adage simply is not 100% true. Lord knows I’ve seen plenty of preacher’s and deacon’s sons (and daughters) who’ve turned into hellions.
Thanks for the compliment, D. 🙂
Amen to that!