Spielberg turns 39

Despite having both LINCOLN and TINTIN on his “to do” list, Steven Spielberg has his peepers on another project to direct. DreamWorks has acquired the movie rights to the upcoming Scholastic multimedia adventure series “The 39 Clues” for Spielberg to direct. Says DreamWorks head Stacey Snider, “There is enough material here for three or four movies,” adding that Spielberg is “very involved” in the development of the movie. “39 Clues” is a planned series of 10 novels to be released over two years (each by a different author) that will be augmented by a series of collectible cards, each containing clues for kids to hit the web and try to decipher the mystery for themselves. For a little extra motivation, there’s over $100,000 in prize money. As for a story, it follows the most powerful family in the world, the Stallones the Cahills, who count Mozard, Napoleon and Benjamin Franklin among their relatives. As the matriarch dies she decides to leave behind clues to the family mystery. Two young Cahills, Amy, 14, and Dan, 11, must race against other branches of the family to be the first to find the 39 clues that will lead to ultimate power. Spielberg is currently tracking down a screenwriter who will work on the film while The Man begins work on his other projects.