John Mayer is set to purchase the storied Hollywood lot established by Charlie Chaplin and later owned by A&M Records and the Jim Henson Company, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
A rep for Mayer — who has an office on the lot — confirmed that the musician, along with director and producer McG, is “under contract to buy Henson Studios.” An exact price tag was not divulged, but the deal is believed to be worth around $60 million.
The sale of the property had been garnering some attention, not just because of its historic significance but also because of reports that the Church of Scientology was a prospective buyer. But according to THR, the interested party was actually Fab Factory Studios, a music production firm run by father-son duo Steven and Shaun Fabos, who purportedly have ties to the Church.
(Shaun Fabos notably testified at Danny Masterson’s rape trial. On the stand, he said one of Masterson’s Jane Doe accusers had told him that Masterson had allegedly raped her in 2003. But he then cast doubt on her claims after recalling a trip to Florida with Jane Doe and her family not long after the alleged rape. During the trip, Fabos said he never saw any bruises on Jane’s body, the bruises being a key part of Jane’s case. Fabos had not shared this detail with prosecutors in any previous interviews and claimed to have only recalled it after being questioned by a private investigator for Masterson’s defense team during the trial.)
Fab Factory Studios was reportedly set to go through with the property purchase, but after a deadline to finalize the deal passed, Mayer and McG jumped in. Fab Factory Studios did not immediately return Rolling Stone‘s request for comment.
As for the lot, it served as the home base for Charlie Chaplin Studios from its inception in 1917 up until 1953. During that time, Chaplin shot many of his classic films there, including The Kid, The Great Dictator, and Modern Times. Throughout the Fifties and Sixties, the property changed owners several times and was used for various TV projects like Adventures of Superman, Perry Mason, and The Red Skelton Show.
A&M Records, led by founders Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, bought the lot in 1966 and turned it into a recording studio. Then in 1999, Jim Henson’s children purchased the property and turned it into the home base for the Muppets. During the Henson era, the recording studios established by A&M remained in use as Henson Recording Studios; that’s where Mayer made his most recent solo album, 2021’s Sob Rock.
