Cookie Jar Entertainment, a Canadian company, will buy Burbank-based children’s animation company DIC Entertainment Holdings Inc.

Cookie Jar, a privately held children’s entertainment programming company based in Toronto, will pay $31.5 million for DIC, assume its debt and cover transaction costs. The total deal is valued at $87.5 million. Cookie Jar announced the deal on Friday.

Burbank-based DIC is best known for the cartoon series “Inspector Gadget” and “Care Bears.” The company also did cartoons based on Strawberry Shortcake, a ragdoll-type character owned by American Greetings Corp.

An Ohio judge on Friday granted the request of American Greetings to halt the sale with a temporary restraining order. American Greeting alleged DIC can’t transfer the rights of the character without its consent.

Depending on the outcome of the Strawberry Shortcake dispute, and if the deal is approved by DIC shareholders, the sale could be completed this fall. DIC shares are traded on AIM, a market operated by the London Stock Exchange.

Burbank-based DIC has about 200 employees worldwide, with the majority of those working out of its Burbank headquarters.

Cookie Jar executives believe that the businesses are complementary and the merger should not impact jobs at either company, said Toper Taylor, president and chief operating officer at Cookie Jar in Los Angeles.

“There are a number of very creative and intelligent people working here in L.A. and I envision that we will continue to have a presence here for many years to come,” Taylor said.

DIC is expected to continue producing children’s programming, which skews toward young girls.

Privately-held Cookie Jar also produces children’s programming skews more toward young boys with animated series such as “Johnny Test.”

Taylor said that Cookie Jar is currently expanding its programming to reach the prime-time animation audience with adult-themed shows similar to Fox’s “Family Guy.”