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Jonny’s on a two-hour quest for new adventure on USA--with Mom in tow

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Those who were kids in the ‘60s rejoice! Access to childhood memories aplenty are coming at you fast and furiously. First, MTV brings back “Speed Racer” (Monday through Friday 6-6:30 a.m. and 1-1:30 a.m.). Now, USA presents the new Jonny’s Golden Quest, a two-hour “Jonny Quest” adventure.

Kind of an animated “Indiana Jones” for the younger set, “Jonny’s Golden Quest” features 11-year-old Jonny; his dad, scientist Dr. Benton Quest; family friend, bodyguard and secret agent Race Bannon; their guide Hadji, and their miniature bulldog Bandit. They travel the world--to save it or to search for adventure.

New additions for the movie will be Jonny’s mother, Dr. Rachel Quest (Meredith MacRae’s voice); 3-Dac, their three-dimensional voice-activated computer, and Jade (JoBeth Williams’ voice), Race’s ex-wife, a special agent assigned to assist the Quests.

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In this Hanna-Barbera/USA Network movie, the gang’s on a mission in the rain forests of Peru that leads them to the streets of Tokyo and the secret aqueducts of Rome.

The series, which first aired in prime time in 1964 and 1965, appeared on all three major networks and ran through 1980.

For trivia buffs: actor Tim Matheson was Jonny’s original voice.

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“Jonny’s Golden Quest” airs Sunday from 7 to 9 p.m. on USA. For ages 3 and up.

MORE FAMILY SHOWS

Shining Time Station (Sunday 8-8:30 a.m. and 8:30 to 9 a.m. KCET; Monday through Friday 10-10:30 a.m. and Sunday 10:30-11 a.m. KPBS), which combines comedy, drama and variety, begins its third season. George Carlin returns as Mr. Conductor, the 18-inch-high master of imagination and storytelling. Each show includes live-action animated segments featuring the popular Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends in a story about a basic human value or common social dilemma. For ages 2 to 8.

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Two-time Parent’s Choice Gold Award-winner Frank Cappelli’s live-action series Cappelli & Company (Monday-Friday 11:30-noon Nickelodeon) premieres on the cable channel this week. The show uses music and vignettes to highlight important things in a kids’ lives. For ages 2 to 8 .

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While the adults in search of Easter fare will no doubt turn to the standard always-aired-at-this-time “Easter Parade,” the Disney Channel offers kids The Easter Bunny Is Coming to Town (Tuesday 6-7 p.m.) featuring narration by none other than “Easter Parade” star Fred Astaire; A Family Circus Easter (Sunday 11:30 a.m.-noon), with Dizzy Gillespie as the voice of the Easter Bunny; and Mr. Horatio Knibbles (Saturday 1-2 p.m.), a kid-sized Harvey, about a girl who befriends a 6-foot bunny who can only be seen by those who truly love rabbits. For ages 2 to 8 .

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While so poignant at times it is disturbing, Alan & Naomi (Thursday 8-9:35 p.m. Disney Channel) tells an effective period tale. In 1944 Brooklyn, 14-year-old Alan Silverman (Lukas Haas) feels forced into befriending Naomi, a catatonic girl from war-torn Europe. Gradually, Alan manages to break through to Naomi, using his Wrangler Jack dummy and her doll Yvette. But a schoolyard fight triggers Naomi’s past and she once again retreats into catatonia. Although she is placed in a sanitarium, and Alan feels responsible, he visits her because he believes there must be hope. For ages 11 and up.

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