
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, September 18, 1993                   TAG: 9309180367
SECTION: SPECTATOR                    PAGE: S-12   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: N.F. MENDOZA LOS ANGELES TIMES
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

`BEDTIME STORIES' OPENS NEW CHAPTERS IN IT'S 2ND SEASON

What child doesn't love a good bedtime story? And what child wouldn't love one read by some of the most engaging actors around? Sunday marks the second season of the animated "Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories," all of which are narrated by a lineup of celebrities including Billy Crystal, Charles Grodin, Rhea Perlman, Richard Dreyfuss, Shelley Long, Morgan Freeman, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Begley Jr., Kathy Bates, Duvall and others.

"Bedtime Stories," Duvall's fourth Showtime series, is produced and directed by Arthur Leonardi, a 30-year veteran of the business, who first received acclaim for his work on developing the original animated Pink Panther for the first Blake Edwards film.

The debut episode will feature Steve Martin ("L.A. Story") and Candice Bergen ("Murphy Brown"). Martin, who played a baddie in "Little Shop of Horrors," narrates "Tugford Wanted to Bad," the story of a young mouse who decides he wants to be like the "bad" guys in the movies. His great "outlaw" scheme backfires when he discovers he has almost foiled his own birthday.

More family shows

Also bowing in for its second season Sunday is "American Heroes & Legends" (at 7:30 a.m. on Showtime). The six-episode weekly series premieres with Garrison Keillor's narration of the classic American tale "Johnny Appleseed."

This story of the tree-planting folk hero features music by Nashville (and Grammy winner) fiddler Mark O'Connor and illustrations by Stan Olson. Appleseed is the American naturalist who roamed the Ohio Valley region in the early 1800s, planting orchards, caring for stricken animals and spreading good will. For ages 2 to 8.

by CNB