#TBT: Molly Ringwald Is 50

Fans of director John Hughes' iconic 1980s films may be startled to realize that actress Molly Ringwald is blowing out 50 candles on February 18! 

Ringwald shot to fame as the star of Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club and Pretty in Pink. To some, she remains an adorable redhead navigating the perils of teen angst in the suburbs.


But her resume is anything but frozen in time. In addition to her many movie appearances, she has a long list of TV credits dating from her childhood, when she was a first-season cast member of NBC's The Facts of Life. From made-for-TV movies and miniseries in the 1990s to cable TV in the 2010s, she has played roles both large and small. She was featured in the 1994 miniseries The Stand, based on Stephen King's book by the same name.

More recently, she has starred in ABC Family's The Secret Life of the American Teenager and has appeared on The CW's Riverdale. Plus, she has numerous stage credits. Two of her prominent roles in the early 2000s included a turn as Sally Bowles in the Broadway revival of Cabaret, and as Rose Arnott in Enchanted April.

Music is in Ringwald's genes—her father, Robert Scott Ringwald, is a jazz pianist. She's recorded a jazz album of her own, Except Sometimes.

She's written books, too: Getting the Pretty Back and When It Happens to You.

Happy Birthday, Molly Ringwald!