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The New Lassie facts for kids

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The New Lassie
Genre Children/Family
Drama
Starring Will Nipper
Christopher Stone
Dee Wallace-Stone
Wendy Cox
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 2
No. of episodes 49
Production
Executive producer(s) Al Burton
Producer(s) John Ward
Camera setup Single-camera
Running time 25 mins.
Production company(s) Al Burton Productions
Palladium Entertainment
MCA TV
Distributor NBCUniversal Television Distribution
Release
Original network Syndication
Picture format 480i (SDTV)
Audio format Stereo
Original release September 8, 1989 (1989-09-08) – February 15, 1992 (1992-02-15)
Chronology
Preceded by Lassie
Followed by Lassie

The New Lassie is an American TV show for kids and families. It's a drama series that was shown on TV from September 8, 1989, to February 15, 1992. The show stars Will Estes (who was known as Will Nipper back then) as Will McCullough. He is Lassie's new owner. Real-life husband and wife Christopher Stone and Dee Wallace-Stone play Will's parents in the show.

The New Lassie is like a follow-up to the original Lassie TV series from 1954. The character of Lassie first appeared in a movie called Lassie Come Home in 1943. After that, there were more movies and the long-running TV show.

Meet the McCulloughs: Lassie's New Family

This TV series is about the McCullough family. They are a regular family living in a town called Glen Ridge, California. They own the current descendant of the famous dog, Lassie.

Christopher Stone and Dee Wallace-Stone play the parents, Chris and Dee McCullough. Their son, Will, is played by Will Estes (credited as Will Nipper). Wendy Cox plays their teenage daughter, Megan.

New Lassie 1989
Will McCullough (Will Nipper) with Lassie

Timmy Martin's Return

Did you know that Jon Provost, who played Timmy Martin in the original Lassie show, also appears in The New Lassie? He plays Chris's brother, Steve McCullough. In one episode called "Roots," it's revealed that Steve is actually the adult Timmy Martin!

In that special episode, June Lockhart also returned as Ruth Martin, Timmy's foster mother from the old show. Timmy explains that he was never officially adopted by the Martins. So, he couldn't go with them when they moved to Australia. He was later adopted by the McCullough family and started using his middle name, Steven.

Meet the Cast of The New Lassie

Here are the main actors who brought the McCullough family and their friends to life:

  • Will Nipper as Will McCullough
  • Christopher Stone as Chris McCullough
  • Dee Wallace-Stone as Dee McCullough
  • Wendy Cox as Megan McCullough
  • Jon Provost as Timmy Martin/Steve McCullough

Special Guest Stars

Some famous faces from Lassie's past also appeared on the show. Roddy McDowall, who was in the very first Lassie movie (Lassie Come Home in 1943), was a guest star. Also, Tommy Rettig, who played Jeff Miller in the early years of the original TV series, made an appearance.

Other well-known guest stars included Leonardo DiCaprio and Todd Bridges.

Episodes of The New Lassie

The New Lassie had two seasons with a total of 49 episodes. Each episode was about 25 minutes long.

Season 1 (1989–90)

The first season aired from 1989 to 1990. It included episodes like "Occurrence at Glen Ridge," "Halloween," and "Roots," where Timmy Martin's story was explained.

Season 2 (1991–92)

The second season ran from 1991 to 1992. Some episodes from this season were "Best of Show," "The Cave," and "A Rabbit's Tale."

Where to Watch Reruns

After The New Lassie finished its original run, reruns were shown on TV. For example, in 2007, the show aired on a channel called TV Land Canada.

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