{
  "id": 10771284,
  "title": "Molly Ringwald And Martin Short Starred In A Forgotten '80s Anthology Series",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/29/molly-ringwald-and-martin-short-starred-in-a-forgotten-80s-anthology",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-29T20:12:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TVLine",
    "slug": "tvline",
    "url": "https://www.tvline.com/2270338/molly-ringwald-martin-short-star-episode-forgotten-80s-anthology-series/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Molly Ringwald and Martin Short shared the screen in a seldom-remembered 1980s television anthology series called Tall Tales & Legends. The nine-episode show, produced by the late Shelley Duvall, aired in 1985 and 1986 and featured recognizable actors playing iconic American folklore characters. Duvall, known for her roles in The Shining and Popeye, was a prolific producer and host of children's television during the 1980s.\n\nShort portrayed Johnny Appleseed in the fifth episode, while Reiner took on the role of an antagonist. Ringwald played the niece of Johnny, adding a romantic subplot to the story. Christopher Guest co-wrote the episode, which was one of several tales adapted from American folklore. Other episodes of the series explored the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow with Ed Begley Jr., John Henry with Danny Glover, and Annie Oakley with Jamie Lee Curtis.\n\nDuvall's interest in the genre began with her collection of illustrated fairy tale books, leading her to invite Robin Williams to discuss The Frog Prince during downtime on the set of Popeye. This interest eventually led to the creation of Faerie Tale Theatre, another successful fantasy TV series. After the success of Faerie Tale Theatre, Duvall launched her own production company and went on to create Tall Tales & Legends, as well as Nightmare Classics and Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories.",
  "summary": "Martin Short, Molly Ringwald, and Rob Reiner all shared the screen together back in the 1980s - and it's all thanks to the hard work of one actor/producer.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}