You couldn’t blame Adrian Chamberlain if he was tempted to glance at his playful pooch Ollie and say, “That’ll do, pug” — a variation on James Cromwell’s classic line after his pig who thinks he’s a sheepdog wins a sheep-herding contest in Babe.
Chamberlain’s pug already has a book and movie deal, after all, while his owner toils in relative obscurity as a theatre critic.
Adventures With Ollie, the Times Colonist arts writer’s book based on his weekly column about his family’s exploits with their headstrong pug, now five years old, has just been published by Oolichan Books.
A sight gag in himself, the wacky dog that resembles a large butterball turkey with fur and a tongue hanging out isn’t just a local literary star. Now Ollie’s joining the ranks of Lassie and Marley after landing the role of canine companion to a retired RCMP officer in Hattie’s Heist, a short comedy being filmed here soon.
Although Tessie, a Yorkshire terrier, was cast as Hattie’s dog, Ollie — one of 65 dogs that auditioned — was runner-up.
“I actually wrote in a part for Ollie,” said writer-producer Prudence Emery. “There’s a budding romance, so who knows what will happen? I think Ollie and Tessie will make a visually interesting duo.”
Adventures with Ollie began as a blog before becoming a weekly column that ran in the Times Colonist for two years. After reading a newspaper article about the popularity of books about dogs, Chamberlain proposed the idea to various publishers.
His collection of light-hearted vignettes details the family’s experiences with Ollie. They include tales about the perils of house-training — a task that took more than a year, not three months as the breeder had indicated; smuggling Ollie into summer cabins; and his wife’s habit of dressing Ollie up in peculiar costumes, like the weird green hoodie he wore to the casting call.
One story Chamberlain relates was about how Ollie left his mark on a beautiful new Turkish rug he bought for the living room.
“One night, I was awakened well past midnight,” he recalled. “I think there was a storm and the front door had blown open. I walked into the living room, all groggy. And I stepped on what looked like a cigarello. Only it was no cigarillo.”
Another story related their pilgrimage in the rain for a close encounter with Cesar Millan, the celebrity dog whisperer.
“To be honest, I think the main appeal of these stories is the fact they’re about a dog,” says Chamberlain, a fan of humourists such as David Sedaris and Larry David who prefers “funny, weird stories” to sentimental animal yarns. “People are just crazy about dogs. They’re like little furry human beings.”
That certainly describes Ollie.
“He’s a bit dim, but very sociable,” he says. “I always think if a burglar came to our house, Ollie would try to make friends with him.”
Chamberlain still gets feedback from readers who share their own dog tales, even if some get a false impression.
“They think I’m a super nice ‘;dog guy,’ ” he deadpans. “Actually, I’m not that nice of a guy.”
Times Colonist editor-in-chief Dave Obee said it didn’t take long for Ollie to strike a chord.
“It was amazing how quickly our readers adopted Ollie as if he was their own,” he said. “It was amazing how Adrian made Ollie connect with all of Victoria.”
Adventures with Ollie is available at local bookstores, including Bolen Books and Munro’s.
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