Back in my day, Scholastic Book Sales were all about Calvin and Hobbes, The Berenstein Bears, Garfield and Clifford the Big Red Dog. I used to save my allowance for months in anticipation for the Scholastic reps to visit my school, and open the flood gates of literary genius to those of us who loved to read. Today, it's been announced that Walt Becker, who directed ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: ROAD CHIP, will helm the upcoming live-action hybrid adaptation of Norman Bridewell's CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG for Paramount Pictures.
With Scholastic Media's Deborah Forte producing, Becker will present a larger-than-life adventure featuring the 25-foot-tall red Labrador Retriever/Vizsla mix and his owner, a child named Elizabeth. Originally adopted as the runt of the litter, Emily's love for Clifford grew to such magnanimous proportions that it somehow helped Clifford to achieve a size equal to that in Emily's still-beating heart. However, seeing as Clifford is far too large to live comfortably in a busy metropolis, Emily and her family were forced to move to a New England-esque island town instead. There, Clifford and Emily share in a series of adventures while still finding new and creative ways for Clifford to get himself into a series up uproarious situations.
As it stands, CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG has been a popular program on PBS since the year 2000. Time and again Hollywood has tried and failed to adapt the property for the big screen, and now, Ellen Rapoport will rewrite a script that had been previously penned by Justin Malen for Illumination Entertainment. While some may scoff at the mention of ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: ROAD CHIP, let's not forget that the singing rodent sequel grossed over $234 million in worldwide box office receipts. Parents, I suggest that you simply lay back, open your wallets, and prepare for when Clifford comes to take a big, wet bite our of your hard-earned cash. Hey, it's better than him taking a big, red dump in your favorite pair of shoes, right?