LA Times article about Magic Castle

[Robert77]

https://www.latimes.com/travel/story/2023-06-06/how-to-get-into-magic-castle-hollywood-hotel

[Richard Kaufman]

Behind a paywall.

[Robert77]

Sorry about that. Most sites give one a couple of free articles. If they don't you can go into your browser and delete any cookies related to the site and usually get to see one article.

[Richard Kaufman]

The LA Times has some type of vendetta against The Castle. Not sure why, but they've printed several heavily biased and untrue things in prior articles.

[Bill Mullins]

For paywalled articles, you can also try:
a different device (your phone, or tablet, or a different computer)
a different browser (I have Chrome, Edge, and Firefox on each of my machines for this reason, and have had Brave and other browsers on machines in the past)
opening the article in an incognito/private tab (right-click on the link, and use what is appropriate for your browser)
as soon as the article opens up, but before the paywall screen appears, do a CTRL-A and CTRL-C quickly, and paste what you get (CTRL-V) into a word processor
find a reasonably unique sequence of 4-5 words from any part of the article you can see, and then Google for that phrase (in quotes) -- sometimes articles appear reprinted in other newspapers that are not paywalled. When you do that Google search, look specifically under the "News" tab of search results.
if you have a library card for your local library, see if it carries the newspaper in question electronically. Proquest is a common database, and most versions carry NY Times, LA Times, and a few other big municipal papers.

There may be other strategies as well, but all of these have worked for me at one time or another.

[Herb]

The L. A. Times is part of the Apple News service, which has a one-month free trial. So if you're interested you can sign up and read the piece. The article is available in the "Travel" section of the Times. Although it acknowledges the problems of the past, it's basically an upbeat profile of the Castle, describing the experience of visiting and the various options for gaining entrance for people who are not members.

[Leo Garet]

I'm puzzled by the paywall stuff.

I clicked on the link when it first appeared----prior to all subsequent comments. I got what I presume is the article in question.

I've tried it on two computers, again before subsequent comments. Not to test it; I just happened to be using different machines.

It kicks off with:
"A trick for getting into the Magic Castle — and how to avoid the bracelet of shame".

I presume this is the piece in question.

https://www.latimes.com/travel/story/20 ... wood-hotel

[Richard Kaufman]

Leo: dead link.

[Leo Garet]

Leo: dead link.

I'm more bewildered than ever.

The link I posted is a cut and paste from the OP. It worked for me immediately after I'd posted it. Now it doesn't, but the original link does still work for me.

I'm not hallucinating and I'm not being facetious. The link here is a cut and paste from the OP.
It works for me at the moment!!


https://www.latimes.com/travel/story/20 ... wood-hotel

I give up!

[Robert77]

Leo: dead link.

I'm more bewildered than ever.

The link I posted is a cut and paste from the OP. It worked for me immediately after I'd posted it. Now it doesn't, but the original link does still work for me.

If you look at your original post you'll see that the URL is broken into two parts. It won't work, but your most recent post has it all as one piece so it works.

[erdnasephile]

My understanding is the LA Times keeps track of how many free articles you have viewed in a specified period (regardless of cookie storage) and limits access. That's probably why some of us hit the paywall.

[Ted M]

The FAQ page indicates that registering for an account allows one to read a small (unspecified) number of free articles every rolling 7 days.

https://membership.latimes.com/faq

...although I just made an account and I can't read this article. Harrumph.

[MagicbyAlfred]

The overhead to run and produce a newspaper, especially one of that magnitude, is tremendous. And the L.A. times has struggled, teetering on the brink of bankruptcy several times in the recent past, barely able to survive. In view of this (or even aside from it, considering it is, after all, a business), one cannot expect too many free rides. Quid pro quo.

[AJM]

I’ve been able to read it.

Not a ‘must read’ by any stretch of the imagination however I found the article to be complimentary overall.

Andrew

[Leo Garet]

I’ve been able to read it.

Not a ‘must read’ by any stretch of the imagination however I found the article to be complimentary overall.

Andrew

Which was the intended thrust of my original post. i didn't encounter a paywall and so read the article. In my usual hamfisted way, I managed to bog myself down in links and screw up said link. Oh well.

Whatever, I'm glad I've been able to read it.

[GJohnson]

It’s an article supportive of the Castle, written by someone who went with his wife. It provides his tips for getting in for those who aren’t members. It’s overall positive.

[erdnasephile]

Since the subheadline mentioned it--what is the bracelet of shame?

[AJM]

Oooh, Erdnasephile, you don’t want to know about the ‘bracelet of shame’.

[Leo Garet]

Since the subheadline mentioned it--what is the bracelet of shame?

The article actually gives a good idea. It's to do with dress code.