First Basin drive-in theater opened in July of 1952
E-mail from Cheryl
Facts from the past gleaned from the Moses Lake Herald, Columbia Basin Herald and The Neppel Record by Cheryl (Driggs) Elkins:
From the Columbia Basin Herald on July 10, 1952:
Drive-In theater open this week
The Columbia Basin's first drive-in theater will open this weekend just off U.S. 10 near Moses Lake's east city limits, according to William Daugaard, who will manage it.
The theater is set up on an eight-acre tract cleared to accommodate 300 cars now and 600 when business warrants it, Daugaard said. The screen is 40 by 60 feet. The location is about three miles from the center of town.
A double feature is booked for Friday and Saturday nights, but the theater may not be opened until Sunday, when the show will feature Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in "The Invisible Man" and a Roy Rogers western, the manager said. The theater will operate seven nights a week. The drive-in is owned by Columbia Basin Theaters, operated by John Lee of Ephrata, who also has the two regular movie houses in Moses Lake.
The chain also operates theaters in Ephrata, Soap Lake, Coulee City, Quincy and Warden. A second drive-in is being built between Ephrata and Soap Lake.
Dale Hazen, former manager of the Lake Theater in Soap Lake, will manage the Ritz and Lake theaters here. Daugaard had run the Moses Lake houses until he took over the drive-in assignment this week.
Burress stuck for new barn
Marshall Burress was elected a committee of one to erect a new cattle barn at the Grant County Fairgrounds recently. The only dissenting vote was his own. A motion by Burress to strike his name from the record died for lack of a second, so fair board members expect to see construction begin at the site almost any Sunday, they report.
Burress is a long-time director and former president of the associatin and promised his work to keep the association's motto, "A new building every year," intact.
Million dollar area payroll from Larson AFB
Civilian employment at Larson Air Force Base means a $1,000,000 annual payroll to the towns of Moses Lake, Ephrata and Soap Lake.
In the last two years the number of civilians employed on the base has risen steadily. The number now stands at 296, according to Lt. Col Roland K. McCoskrie, base personnel director.
The monthly payroll at present averages $95,000 or $1,140,000 annually. Most of the civilians employed at the base commute to work from Moses Lake, Ephrata and Soap Lake.
Air Installations uses the largest percentage of any section, with base supply second. Others are employed in all base offices.