It was a judgment based not on her phone-aided performance, nor a "moral" issue based on Perry's occasional "inappropriate" material, said Sister Rita. "She's a very nice person, but it's not the better deal. This is about money - control of money."
The nuns' rebuff to Perry, 30, is at the heart of an intriguing battle over real estate. An eclectic cast of characters is sparring over a coveted property which boasts a fish-shaped swimming pool and glorious vistas of the San Gabriel mountains.
Legal briefs and accusations of bullying and manipulation are flying in a duel pitting nuns against their archbishop and Perry against a developer who may turn the site into a hotel. A court hearing is due this month.
The feud may go all the way to the Vatican. "I hope Pope Francis has been seeing this, because if anybody can help us it's him," said Sister Rita, seated in the former chapel. "I think he'll stop this nonsense, I really do."
All sides agree that the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart should sell the property. It was once a thriving order, but the last five surviving sisters moved out in 2011 and have struggled to pay the running costs, which include fountains. Money from a sale is to go towards the nuns' upkeep.
Perry, whose hits include Ur So Gay and Roar, had eyed the place for years and made a US$14.5 million ($21.6 million) offer to the archdiocese. She could afford it: Forbes recently named her the highest-paid female celebrity of 2015, estimating her income at US$135 million.
LA's archbishop, Jose Gomez, accepted and told the nuns last September that a "rock star" and "singer" would move into their former home in Waverly Drive, a mix of Italianate and Mediterranean styles nestled behind sand-coloured walls in Los Feliz, a leafy neighbourhood.
It was built in 1927 for Earle Anthony, a broadcaster and entrepreneur, and designed by the architect Bernard Maybeck. Charles Manson's followers butchered a couple in an adjoining house in 1969.
Weeks after the archbishop's announcement, Dana Hollister, a local restaurateur and developer, made an offer of US$15.5 million to the nuns and nurtured a personal bond. Tipped off that Perry had visited the property, and must be the mystery rock star, Sister Rita and Sister Catherine Rose Holzman, 86, began researching her online. Sister Rita watched Perry's Super Bowl performance when, clad in an outfit of vinyl flame, she rode on the back of a giant puppet tiger, belting out Roar. She wrinkled her nose at the memory. Classical music, Perry Como and Frank Sinatra are more to her taste.
To sway the nuns, the archbishop arranged their meeting with Perry. The singer dressed conservatively, brought her mum, showed a Jesus tattoo, sang and expressed her desire to start each day by visiting the estate's meditation garden. "You know, to find herself," said Sister Rita.
The charm offensive flopped. At least two of the nuns, Rita and Catherine, accepted Hollister's offer. It was not about Perry, they insisted, but about Hollister making a higher bid, the nuns' ability to control the funds, and that the property was theirs, and only they could sell it.
It was also about grievance and mistrust. Sister Rita accused the archdiocese of "abusing" the nuns by dodging its financial obligations, forcing them to leave the convent.
The archdiocese, which is on the verge of a deal with Perry, said Hollister's offer was inferior at US$100,000 in cash and US$9.9 million under a non-recourse promissory note which left the fate of a priests' house on the site unclear and the deal hinging on turning the estate into a hotel, which neighbours will oppose.
- Observer
