The Recycler is a Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 based, classifieds only newspaper

Newspaper

A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...

, started by Gunter and Nancy Schaldach in 1973. The Recycler was based in Silverlake

Silver Lake, Los Angeles, California

Silver Lake is a hilly neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California east of Hollywood and northwest of Downtown Los Angeles. Silver Lake is inhabited by a wide variety of ethnic and socioeconomic groups, but it is best known as an eclectic gathering of hipsters and the creative class.The...

 (a district of Los Angeles) and was subsequently sold to the Times Mirror Company in 1998.

By the 1980's The Recycler Brand was well known regionally and at least three famous bands

Band (music)

In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...

 of the 1980's were formed by people who answered ads in The Recycler. Mick Mars

Mick Mars

Mick Mars is the lead guitarist for American heavy metal band Mötley Crüe.-Career:After his family relocated from Indiana, to California, Bob Deal dropped out of high school and began playing guitar in a series of unsuccessful blues based rock bands throughout the seventies, taking on menial day...

 joined Mötley Crüe

Mötley Crüe

Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...

 after placing an ad answered by drummer Tommy Lee

Tommy Lee

Thomas Lee Bass , best known as Tommy Lee, is an American musician and founding member of glam metal band Mötley Crüe. As well as being the band's long-term drummer, Lee founded rap-metal band Methods of Mayhem, and has pursued solo musical projects...

. James Hetfield

James Hetfield

James Alan Hetfield is the rhythm guitarist, co-founder, main songwriter, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Metallica. Hetfield co-founded Metallica in October 1981 after answering a classified advertisement by drummer Lars Ulrich in the Los Angeles newspaper The Recycler,...

 answered an ad placed by Lars Ulrich

Lars Ulrich

Lars Ulrich is a Danish drummer, and one of the founding members of the American thrash metal band Metallica. He was born in Gentofte, Denmark to an upper-middle class family. A tennis player in his youth, Ulrich moved to Los Angeles, California at age sixteen to pursue his training; though rather...

, ultimately leading to the birth of Metallica

Metallica

Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...

. Ulrich placed another ad shortly after while the band was in search of a lead guitarist. The ad was answered by temporary member/co-songwriter and future Megadeth

Megadeth

Megadeth is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California which was formed in 1983 by guitarist/vocalist Dave Mustaine, bassist Dave Ellefson and guitarist Greg Handevidt, following Mustaine's expulsion from Metallica. The band has since released 13 studio albums, three live albums, two...

 founder and frontman Dave Mustaine

Dave Mustaine

David Scott "Dave" Mustaine is the founder, main songwriter, guitarist, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Megadeth. Prior to Megadeth, Mustaine was the first lead guitarist and a co-songwriter of the heavy metal band Metallica until he was fired from the band in 1983. In 2009, he...

. Also Duff McKagan

Duff McKagan

Michael Andrew "Duff" McKagan is an American musician and writer. He is best known for his twelve-year tenure as the bassist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s...

 replied to an ad placed by Slash

Slash (musician)

Saul Hudson , known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. During his later years with Guns N'...

 and Steven Adler

Steven Adler

Steven Adler is an American musician. He is best known as the former drummer of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s...

 leading to an early incarnation of Guns N' Roses

Guns N' Roses

Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...

.

Recycler.com is Southern California’s vast online classified advertisements

Classified advertising

Classified advertising is a form of advertising which is particularly common in newspapers, online and other periodicals which may be sold or distributed free of charge...

 community of buyers and sellers, with thousands of local and niche, free and paid ads (used cars, trucks, SUVs, vans, and new vehicles, along with merchandise, pets, electronics and appliances, employment, real estate and anything else) – which operates with the Recycler classifieds print publication

Publication

To publish is to make content available to the public. While specific use of the term may vary among countries, it is usually applied to text, images, or other audio-visual content on any medium, including paper or electronic publishing forms such as websites, e-books, Compact Discs and MP3s...

 (4 editions covering all of Southern California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

) and partnered with many other publications across California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

and the country.

By 1998 the publication had grown to print ten regional editions including Los Angeles, Orange County, Ventura, Inland Empire, San Gabriel Valley, South Bay, Burbank/ Pasadena/ Glendale, San Diego, San Fernando Valley and Las Vegas. The Times purchased all but the San Diego and Las Vegas editions which were sold independently and phased out of print within a year after the acquisition.

The Times Mirror Company was purchased by the Chicago Tribune around the turn of the century and, as Tribune's vision for the Recycler (often referred to as "The Red Headed Step Child") was never made clear the Recycler was left to lay fallow and became a victim of neglect, wasting any potential to compete with prodigies like Craigslist. As the internet superhighway whizzed along, Recycler Classified pushed its moped along the shoulder -- on the highway but unable to keep up since the engine- Gunter and Nancy Schaldach- was no longer running.

The Target Media Company purchased Recycler in 2007 when the Tribune filed for Chapter 11 protection and was able to revive the publication and its online presence into what it is today.