Bronfman to unload former Muppets manse

The Upper East Side townhouse that once served as the creative headquarters of Muppets creator Jim Henson is about to hit the market for around $28 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. The 12,000-square-foot, neo-Georgian home, at 117 East 69th Street, is perhaps best known as the former Muppet Workshop, where designers from Henson Associates created stories for the likes of Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Big Bird. Jim Henson had purchased it in 1977 for $600,000 from the New York State Pharmaceutical Association and converted it for personal use and the workshop. Now, the mansion is gutted and belongs to Warner Music Group head Edgar Bronfman, who paid $28.5 million for it in 2008 with plans to renovate. Having since moved to London, Bronfman never carried out those plans and is instead said to be preparing a joint listing with brokers from Brown Harris Stevens and the Corcoran Group. [WSJ]