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The iconic Jim Henson Company Lot, a historic Hollywood location that formerly operated as A&M Studios and Charlie Chaplin Studios, will be going up for sale. The Jim Henson Co., run by the beloved Muppets and Sesame Street creator’s descendants, say the sale was spurred as part of a plan to unite the JHC and its Creature Shop in one location, which is not possible at the lot. JHC will continue on as a tenant at the La Brea studio.
The Hensons first acquired the former Chaplin lot, built in 1919, in 1999, with Chairman Brian Henson describing it as the “perfect home for the Muppets and our Particular brand of classy but eccentric entertainment.” The 80,000 sq. ft. facility (including Chaplin’s 10,000 sq. ft. sound stage and a woodworking shop) reopened with a 12-foot statue of Kermit dressed as Chaplin’s “The Tramp” character. The company sold later that year to EM.TV Merchandising, but was repurchased by the family in 2003 due to mismanagement. The next year, the Muppet characters were sold to Disney for $89 million.
In the years since, JHC has continued to use the studio to develop projects like the Oscar-winning feature Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance and Earth to Ned series. It was also used in a meta context as the Muppet Studios for the 2011 film The Muppets.
[Source: The Wrap]
