The Missoula Businesses That Helped Shape My Life Are All Gone

The other day I drove past the old KFC/A&W on Brooks Street. The fencing is up now, and before long that building will be torn down and replaced with a brand-new restaurant. 

It hit me that that location is where I got my start working. 

My First Job: Pizza Paradise

Long before radio, before the early mornings and alarm clocks, before I spent decades behind a microphone, I was bussing tables at Little Big Men Pizza, before it became KFC/A&W.

Actually, I wasn't even officially employed at first. 

My friends and I practically lived in there playing the arcade games. We'd scrape together enough quarters to play the video games after school, and one day someone asked, "Since you're here all the time, want to help clear tables?" 

I said yes. 

My paycheck? 

Pizza. 

I worked enough hours, they kept track of them, and I got paid in pizza. At that age, I thought I had landed the greatest job in the world. 

From Dishwashing to Radio Waves

Eventually, I got my first "real" paycheck at the King's Table Buffet in Southgate Mall. I was a dishwasher, which meant plenty of hot water, stacks of dishes, and filling out tax paperwork for the first time. 

King's Table is gone now. 

Nostalgia for Gone Restaurants

After that, I spent some time washing dishes at Casa Pablo's downtown. One of the perks was getting to eat before our shift. The restaurant may be long gone, but I still buy Casa Pablo salsa whenever I can find it in Missoula. Every jar brings back memories. 

READ MORE: Missoula Taco Bell and KFC Locations Temporarily Close

Wanting to try something different, I left restaurants behind and took a job at the Carmike Cinema 6 on Brooks Street, where McKenzie River Pizza is today. 

That was a fun place to work. 

Back then, ushers wore white gloves, greeted moviegoers, and actually tore paper tickets in half. Different movies had different colored tickets, and by the end of the night those gloves were stained with whatever colors we'd been ripping all evening. 

And, of course, everyone went home smelling like popcorn. 

I eventually became a projectionist, back when showing a movie involved much more than pushing a button. 

READ MORE: Missoula Restaurants That Are Missed The Most

Then came radio. 

My first station was XT93 in Missoula. Like many stations over the years, it eventually disappeared as formats changed and ownership evolved. 

Fortunately, radio didn't disappear for me. 

I've now spent almost 20 years doing mornings at Z100, and after more than three decades in broadcasting, I still love getting up every day to do what I do. 

A Changing Landscape of Local Businesses

As I thought about it, I realized something surprising. 

Almost every business where I worked before radio no longer exists. 

• Little Big Men Pizza. 
• King's Table. 
• Casa Pablo's. 
• Carmike Cinema 6. 
• XT93. 

They're all memories now. 

It made me realize just how much Missoula has changed over the years. Buildings get remodeled. Businesses close. New ones open. Neighborhoods evolve. 

The city keeps moving forward. 

A Personal Journey in a Evolving City

Maybe that's why seeing the old KFC/A&W fenced off hit me a little harder than I expected. It wasn't really about the building. 

It was about remembering where my own story began.