Where Did You Come From?

If you read comic books or have seen a superhero movie in the last few years, you’re most likely familiar with origin stories--those tales of how a well-known character came to be. Some of the characters we feel attachment to rely heavily on their beginning as part of their narrative. For instance, we know in great detail what happened in the infancy of Harry Potter and his story depends on it. On the other hand, some characters spring to life fully formed and defined without much in the way of backstory. And sometimes that works just fine. We don’t need to know what Rocky did in second grade to understand his present-day egg-drinking, stair-running self. But, occasionally, we want to know more about what forces and events shaped a certain character, what brought them to now. The success of “Origins: Wolverine” and “The Dark Knight” would seem to support that idea. I would think creating an origin story would be tricky business--you have to be true to what has already existed while providing new detail that could be rejected. Especially if the character is a firmly established part of popular culture. Even more so if it is part of kid culture. It is the rare American child who is not familiar with Emily Elizabeth’s giant canine pal, Clifford, but one day Norman Bridwell decided to write Clifford The Small Red Puppy to let us in on what it was like when he first got here. Everybody has to start somewhere.

http://www.amazon.com/Clifford-Small-Puppy-Norman-Bridwell/dp/0590442945

http://www.readingrockets.org/books/interviews/bridwell