Molly Ringwald And Martin Short Starred In A Forgotten '80s Anthology Series

Molly Ringwald, Martin Short, and Rob Reiner were on a TV show together? It might sound like a tall tale, but it's true: The three stars appeared in an episode of "Tall Tales & Legends," a mostly forgotten anthology series about American folklore.

The late Shelley Duvall created the great Showtime series, which ran for nine episodes in 1985 and 1986. Though best remembered as an actor who starred in films like "The Shining" and "Popeye," Duvall was a prolific producer and host of children's television in the '80s, including "Tall Tales & Legends." Nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Children's Program, the show adapted classic stories from Americana and featured recognizable actors in the leading roles.

Short starred in the fifth episode, "Johnny Appleseed," playing the title character. Reiner played an antagonist while Ringwald played his niece, acting as a love interest to Johnny. Christopher Guest, who co-wrote "This Is Spinal Tap" alongside Reiner, penned the episode. It's not one of Reiner's best TV appearances, but he's good here as the bad guy.

Other episodes of "Tall Tales & Legends" told the stories of the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow (with Ed Begley Jr. as Ichabod Crane), John Henry (with Danny Glover in the title role), and Annie Oakley (with Jamie Lee Curtis as the titular sharpshooter of the Wild West). Duvall herself led the fourth episode, "Darlin' Clementine."

"Tall Tales & Legends" wasn't the first time that Shelley Duvall rallied a bunch of big-name actors to star in make-believe stories on the small screen. Duvall had always been interested in the genre, as she was a collector of illustrated fairy tale books. During some downtime while filming Robert Altman's "Popeye," she asked her co-star, Robin Williams, about his thoughts on "The Frog Prince." Two years later, Williams starred as the amphibian royal in the premiere of "Faerie Tale Theatre," perhaps one of the best fantasy TV shows ever made. The series premiered on Showtime in September 1982 and was one of the first original premium cable shows. Other entries of the 27-episode series starred celebrities like Susan Sarandon, Carrie Fisher, Liza Minnelli, James Earl Jones, and Mick Jagger.

"Faerie Tale Theatre" was a hit, and when it sold into syndication for $5 million, Duvall launched her own production company to make more shows. She next made "Tall Tales & Legends" and two additional series with a similar premise. "Nightmare Classics," which adapted classic scary stories like "The Turn of the Screw" and "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," was the least successful, lasting only four episodes on Showtime.

"Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories," an animated adaptation of children's books, came next. That show ran for two seasons and boasted a star-studded cast, just like the rest of Duvall's shows. Martin Short, Johnny Appleseed himself, also appeared in "Bedtime Stories," narrating a dinosaur-centric episode in Season 1.