The Loomis News

In December 1940, Thomas "Paul" Sagaser acquired a linotype machine and two presses from Fall River Mills and used them to publish the first edition of The Loomis News out of the office of the defunct Loomis Recorder.^[1][2] Three decades later Sagaser sold the paper to Raymond "Bud" Pisarek, owner of the Colfax Record, in 1972.^[3][4] At that time the News had a circulation of 500.^[5]

Pisarek previously operated the Brookings Harbor-Pilot and at one time worked at The Placer Herald.^[6] In 1974, newspaper's founder Sagaser died.^[7][8] That same year Pisarek sold the News to Charles "Chuck" Slater,^[9] who sold it in July 1975 to husband-and-wife Ben D. and Carmela Martin of Penryn, owners of the Lincoln News Messenger. Mrs. Martin was publisher of The Roseville Press Tribune, which the couple co-owned.^[10]

In 1975, Pisarek sold the Record,^[11] and in 1980 the Martins sold the News Messenger.^[12][13] Pisarek was elected to the Auburn city council and became mayor in 1983.^[14] He bought the News back from the Martins in May 1988. At that time the paper had a circulation around 1,100. Pisarek also published a newspaper for artists called WestArt.^[9] In August 1989, Pisarek sold the News to Carlon Perry, of Manteca, who previously owned the Colusa County Sun-Herald and Williams Farmer.^[15][16]

In 1994, Pisarek lost out to a fourth term on the Auburn city council by 180 votes. He then focused on drawing his daily newspaper cartoon strip and became a moderator on a weekly radio talk show.^[17] Around that time Pisarek bought back the Loomis News for a third time.^[18] In 2002, Pisarek got into a dispute with the Loomis Basin Chamber of Commerce. Pisarek demanded the chamber pull its advertising from The Placer Herald of Rocklin, a rival out-of-town paper. After the chamber refused, Pisarek published multiple columns in the News criticizing the chamber. In response, the chamber ended its decade-old office subleasing agreement with the News, forcing the paper to find a new home.^[19]

In 2004, Pisarek sold the News again, this time to Gold County Media, a subsidiary of Brehm Communications.^[18] In December 2022, the News was one of six newspapers Brehm sold to Gold Mountain Media, a subsidiary of Alta Newspaper Group.^[20]