Lassie (1997 TV series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For the original Lassie series on CBS-TV, see Lassie (1954-74 series)
| Lassie (1997 TV series) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Children's television series |
| Starring | Corey Sevier |
| Country of origin |  Canada |
| No. of episodes | 54 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 24 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Animal Planet |
| Original run | 1997 – 1999 |
| Links | |
| IMDb profile | |
Lassie was a Canadian television series which aired from 1997 to 1999 on YTV in Canada and the Animal Planet network in the United States, as a remake of the original Lassie TV series about a boy and his faithful dog. As with the original Lassie TV series, which was in production for twenty years (1954-1974), and several movies dating back to the original Lassie Come Home movie of 1943, the star was Lassie, a trained Rough Collie.
Not to be confused with a previous, syndicated remake entitled The New Lassie which aired 1989-1991, the Canadian-produced Lassie starred Corey Sevier as 13-year old "Timmy Cabot" in the fictional town of Hudson Falls, Vermont. The show was filmed in Quebec by Cinar Productions and directed by John Bell. In this series' story line, Timmy and his recently-widowed mother, Karen Cabot, move to Hudson Falls, where Karen takes over a veterinary practice.
Unlike the first two Lassie TV series, Cinar Productions initially did not use a collie descended from Pal, the dog in the original 1943 movie Lassie Come Home. Previously, the role of Lassie in movies and television had always been played by Pal or his offspring, owned by brothers Frank and Rudd Weatherwax, who were professional animal trainers . Pal and Rudd Weatherwax are credited with making the role famous in the first Lassie movie, 1943's Lassie Come Home. Following Lassie fan protests, an 8th-generation descendent of Pal owned by Weatherwax Trained Dogs was brought in as Lassie, midway through shooting the show's second season.
Although young Corey Sevier impressed critics, others complained that the series relegated Lassie to a bystander role by focusing more on the Cabot family's dealings with various townspeople, at the expense of featuring Lassie's action stunts and feats as had been traditional in the famous canine's previous movie and TV incarnations.
The show was cancelled after two seasons.
[edit] Cast
- Corey Sevier as Timmy Cabot
- Susan Almgren as Dr. Karen Cabot
- Walter Massey as Dr. Donald Stewart
- Tim Post as Ethan Bennet
[edit] See also
- Lassie (main article)
- Lassie Come Home, the original movie
- Pal, the first dog actor to play Lassie
- Rudd Weatherwax, Lassie animal trainer
