Star*Lite Theater

If you were a teenager in Fargo, you made it to the Star*Lite, Fargo's one drive-in theater. It was located at 1900 North University Drive, northwest of town on Highway 81, at the corner of the Airport.

The drive-in was never as ribald as one hoped or imagined but it was fun to go, especially in the days when automobiles were roomy inside. Of course Moorhead had it's Moon*Lite Drive-in on Highway 75.

The Star*Lite opened June 8, 1949 and closed on July 17, 1981. The advertisement to the right is from the Fargo Forum on opening night of the Star*Lite.

Rick Solarski, who now manages Century 10 in Fargo, managed both the Star*Lite and Moon*Lite drive-ins from 1974 until they closed.

The theater, which accommodated 650 cars, was owned by Cinema Entertainment Corp. of St. Cloud, Minnesota. The corporation was leasing the land for the drive-in. Fred Hector decided to pull the lease from the theater and give it to a developer planning to build a strip mall.

I don't have a picture of the Star*Lite so a matchbook (below) must suffice.