In less than 24, the Smurfs will make their big-screen debut, showing up in Neil Patrick Harris’s New York City apartment in The Smurfs.

Getting to this point was not easy, and almost everyone is thanking a trio of striped squirrels by the names of Alvin, Simon, and Theodore. The Daily Beast and The Wall Street Journal both have articles today detailing how The Smurfs’ jump to the big-screen was a direct consequence of Alvin & The Chipmunks’ $45 million opening in 2007.

The Daily Beast’s Ramin Setoodeh spoke with The Smurfs’ producer Jordan Kerner, who said that a stalled movie project with Paramount intended for the 50^th anniversary of the Smurfs’ first appearance in print was immediately revived by Alvin’s success. “On Monday morning after Chipmunks grossed $45 million,” Kerner told Setoodeh, “every studio chair called me and said ‘We want to do the Smurfs.’” Sony soon obtained the rights from Paramount, and the project was underway.

The Smurfs have been a licensing juggernaut, even as the property was dormant: $8 billion over 15 years, according to William Auriol, the head of IMPS, the Belgian company that owns the brand. (Auriol also spoke to The Daily Beast.) The Wall Street Journal’s Michelle Kung said that the licensing and promotional opportunities “played a significant part of Sony’s decision to pick up the film from Viacom’s Paramount Pictures,” because “the partnerships helped the studio limit its marketing costs.” Licensing!

The Journal notes that Sony is hoping for a $30 million opening weekend to satisfy its more than 200 business partners and the movie’s $110 million budget. Sony has marketing partnerships with Post Cereal, Kids Foot Locker, Renault, and others, Kung reports.

Meanwhile, Kung’s colleague at the WSJ, Marshall Heyman, reports on how the Smurfs are taking over New York City as promotion for the movie. The Empire State Building is bathed in blue (for UNICEF, but the Smurfs ran with it), the Smurfs have hung out in Columbus Circle, and FAO Schwarz opened a “blue-tique” to honor the little guys (and gal). Just as long as they don’t start riding the subway. We have enough trouble getting seats as it is.

—Bryan Joiner

Apparel and T-shirt company C-Life Group announced the launch of their juniors division with a Smurfs’ partnership. The announcement comes in advance of Columbia Pictures’/Sony Pictures Animation’s The Smurfs, set for release August 3. Apparel will be available at Walmart May 1.

The Story

When the evil wizard Gargamel chases the Smurfs out of their village, through a magical portal, and into our world, they land in the middle of New York’s Central Park. Just three apples high and stuck in the Big Apple, the Smurfs must find a way to get back to their village before Gargamel tracks them down.

We are very excited about the Smurfs movie!

We don’t know much about it yet–only enough to know it’s going to be Snurftastic!

This Sony film is set to hit theaters July 29 of next year, and somehow brings the little blue guys into our world.

The newest and most exciting Smurf news is the newly release teaser trailer. Watch it here.

It’ll be a blue Christmas this year as the Smurfs usher in the season at Macy’s. Ahead of the feature film next year, Macy’s Parade & Entertainment Group and Sony Pictures Entertainment have announced that the Smurfs will serve as Macy’s 2010 Holiday Ambassador as an exclusive plush available only at Macy’s.

As the featured character for Macy’s holiday initiatives, the collectible Smurfs plush will be available at more than 800 stores nationwide and online at macys.com. The plush will be touted by a robust marketing campaign that will showcase the Smurfs in a variety of outlets, from dedicated advertising and collateral to special events including the Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Marketing support for the plush includes up to half-a-million custom-designed Macy’s shopping bags that will be distributed throughout the holiday season at Macy’s flagship location at Herald Square in New York. In addition to the 47-foot tall giant helium Smurfs balloon and Smurfs float that will return to the line-up of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade this year, the Smurfs will also become a coldair inflatable that will adorn a marquee entrance at Macy’s Herald Square on 34^th Street. The promotion of the collectible plush extends to Macy’s Herald Square store windows, jumbotron, signage in all 800-plus Macy’s locations nationwide, in-store events at high-traffic stores in key major markets, dedicated ROP and Magazine advertising in local and national publications, and a feature television spot that will run on major network affiliates in select top 10 markets.

As reported on Yahoo! Movies, Paul Reubens, a.k.a. Pee-Wee Herman, is joining the cast of the upcoming live-action Smurfs movie from Sony/Columbia Pictures.

Reuben will play Jokey Smurf, who, incidentally, was my favorite Smurf. He was the one who used to give his friends presents that blew up when they opened them, then crack up about it. It was funny because I love mean-spirited humor, and because they fell for it again and again. There’s some sort of Pavlovian lesson to be learned here.

The Smurfs movie is due out sometime next year.

For a trip down memory lane, here’s the opening for the old Smurfs cartoon, followed by the opening for Pee-Wee’s Playhouse. Man, I’m really getting old.

—Jennifer Sinclair