I found this interesting since my grandparents on my Dad's side lived in Anniston, Alabama where Ft. McClellan was located and we spent a lot of time there over the years.
Katt Williams buys former Alabama military base to launch movie studio
- Updated: Nov. 22, 2024, 6:02 a.m.
- |Published: Nov. 21, 2024, 5:38 p.m.
Katt Williams performs during the Great America Tour at Philips Arena on Friday, February 3, 2017, in Atlanta. (Photo by Robb Cohen/Invision/AP)Robb Cohen/Invision/AP
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Katt Williams’ dreams of being a movie mogul have taken him to Alabama, where the comedian purchased a former military base with the intention to launch a movie studio.
“I can’t disclose the amount or exact location just yet, but I can confirm that he has purchased a former military base in Alabama,” Williams’ publicist, Amy Sisoyev, said in an email Thursday to AL.com.
While the comedian is mum on the property he purchased,
Fort McClellan’s Cold War-era barracks in Anniston had been up for sale at a $1.5 million asking price.
An old Cold War barracks, known locally as Starships, is on the market in Anniston, Ala. (Alabama Film Office)
Known locally as “Starships,” the barracks and surrounding property consists of 30 concrete buildings with three million square feet of indoor space. There are 10 barracks with 20 rooms each, two large gymnasiums, and more than 90 acres of usable flat land on the old Ft. McClellan site.
Connie Alexander, designated broker at the Luxe Group, which represented the seller of the Fort McClellan barracks, said the property “was purchased through an LLC but Katt Williams did visit the property frequently during the purchase phase.”
“It’s a visionary endeavor, and we’re excited to see how this historic site evolves under his leadership,” Alexander said.
Efforts to reach the McClellan Development Authority -- a non-profit public corporation made to speed economic development of the former fort -- was unsuccessful.
In an
interview published by GQ on Wednesday, Williams said he purchased a former Alabama military base sometime this year.
The comedian’s January
appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s podcast “Club Shay Shay” holds the YouTube interview record with more than 83 million views. Williams put several entertainers, including Kevin Hart,
Rickey Smiley and Tyler Perry, on blast.
In the GQ interview, Williams told GQ he has ambitions of becoming a movie mogul à la Perry.
“It’s just not fair to put all that pressure on Tyler Perry,” he said. “He can only do so much.”
Williams was in
Alabama earlier this year for stops on his ‘Dark Matter’ tour, where he performed sets in Huntsville, Birmingham and Mobile.
Updated at 8:33 p.m. to include comment from the Luxe Group.
“It’s just not fair to put all that pressure on Tyler Perry,” the comedian said. “He can only do so much.”
www.al.com