"Blue Thunder"

We get a drug deal in front of the Fox Westwood Village Theatre spotted from a police helicopter by Daniel Stern and Roy Scheider in John Badham's "Blue Thunder" (Columbia, 1983). On the marquee it's "Mommie Dearest." The film also stars Malcolm McDowell, Warren Oates and Candy Clark in a tale of a new police helicopter being developed for sinister uses.

See the page about the Fox Westwood Village on the Los Angeles Theatres site for more about this historic venue.

Before Daniel Stern gets killed by guys working for the Feds he stashes an incriminating tape in a dumpster at the Pickwick Drive-In in Burbank. Scheider has sent his girl friend, Candy Clark, there to retrieve the tape. In this shot he's checking on her progress from the air.

A closer look at the screen tower. Note the side extensions for a CinemaScope expansion. 

Candy Clark rooting through the dumpster. The police will be arriving soon for a chase as she tries to get the tape to a TV station. Thanks to Ron Strong for noting the presence of the Pickwick in the film on his Bijou Memories page about the theatre.

Visit the page about the Pickwick Drive-In on the Los Angeles Theatres site for a history of the theatre.

On IMDb: "Blue Thunder"