Grumman Studios making movie magic at Plant 5

The big blue ball that has stood atop Plant 5 at what was Grumman for decades has a different look these days -- it is now red.

The change in color is not just cosmetic. The ball no longer says Grumman or Northrop Grumman, the name of the Bethpage-based aerospace company since 1994. It now says Grumman Studios.

What gives? Plant 5, where Grumman workers built the lunar landing module that took astronauts to the moon in the late 1960s and early '70s, has been a movie studio for a few years now, and was where the Angelina Jolie film "Salt" was partly filmed.

The repainted ball signals that the Grumman Studios is a going concern. "The Avengers," to be released in 2012 and starring Robert Downey Jr. and Don Cheadle, is to begin filming in the fall, according to Parviz Farahzad, the East Setauket developer who owns Grumman Studios.

The 500,000-square-foot facility with seven sound stages is surrounded by 30 acres of outdoor space. Farahzad praised Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano and John Venditto, Oyster Bay Town supervisor, for helping make the studio a possibility. "Without these guys we wouldn't have been able to get this done," said Farahzad, chief executive of East Setauket-based Little Rock Construction. He said the officials cut red tape.

So why is the old blue ball now red? "It stands out," Farahzad said.