Children’s author, Astrid Lindgren, first brought Pippi Longstocking to life in 1945, through a series of extremely popular novels. But although the precocious and strong-willed Pippi made her big screen debut in Sweden all the way back in 1949, it would take almost forty years for her reach American theaters. In 1988, everybody’s favorite pig-tailed protagonist finally got her chance in The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking.

The film begins with Pippi, her pet horse, Alfonso, and her pet monkey, Mr. Neilson washing up on the Florida coastline after a storm wreaks havoc on her father’s ship, “The Hoptoad.” She finds her way to her family’s nearby abandoned home, a place that is thought to be haunted by the neighborhood children, and takes up residence. When two local tykes, Tommy and Annika, enter the house to explore, they meet up with Pippi and the three become friends. Pippi leads them on numerous silly and exciting adventures, including everything from using “scrubbing shoes” to clean the floors to heading over waterfalls in wooden barrels. Meanwhile, the children try to help Pippi avoid the trappings of an orphanage and being sent to school.

While Pippi’s American big-screen debut didn’t exactly set any box-office records, her charming and rambunctious appeal was enough to bring her back in 1997, in the animated film, Pippi Longstocking. And by 1998, she was starring in her very own animated television series.