The Southwest Twin Drive-In, originally the 61 Drive-In, opened on June 26, 1956, along Highway 61 (South 3rd Street) in southwest Memphis, Tennessee, as the city’s second drive-in theater. Designed for the car-centric 1950s, it welcomed up to 600 cars, offering families and couples a nostalgic outdoor movie experience under the stars. Acquired by Malco Theatres in 1965, it expanded to a twin-screen setup by 1968, renaming it the Southwest Twin. The theater thrived during the drive-in boom, showing everything from B-movies to mainstream hits, but faced decline as multiplexes and home video rose in the 1970s and 1980s.

By 2001, the Southwest Twin closed, its screens left standing but its buildings falling into disrepair, a blighted relic of Memphis’s past. Community efforts to revitalize the 30-acre site began in 2023, with plans announced in 2025 to transform it into a public library, police precinct, and private businesses, breathing new life into this once-vibrant landmark.