The Neon Ceiling is a 1971 American drama television film starring Gig Young and Lee Grant that aired on NBC Monday Night at the Movies. It was written by Carol Sobieski and directed by Frank Pierson. The film score was composed by Billy Goldenberg.
Plot An unhappy housewife takes her precocious teenage daughter and leaves their suburban home in the middle of the night, stopping at a lonely diner in the California desert when her 1960 Ford Galaxie runs into car trouble. She runs up against, and eventually befriends, the diner's owner, a gruff, beer-drinking mechanic and artist whose life's work are the neon sculptures he creates and attaches to the ceiling.
Cast Gig Young as Jones Lee Grant as Carrie Miller Denise Nickerson as Paula Miller Herb Edelman as Harry William Smithers as Doctor Miller Robert Pratt as Carnival Boy James McEachin as Highway Patrolman
Production Lee Grant was set to appear in a TV film of The Price with George C. Scott when Universal sent her the script for “The Neon Ceiling”. "The moment I read that script I was hooked and couldn't let it go", she said. "It's a real departure from what is normally seen on TV."
Reception The Los Angeles Times called it "an extraordinary experience... a work of art."
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref. 1971 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role Gig Young Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Lee Grant Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography for Entertainment Programming – For a Special or Feature Length Program Made for Television Edward Rosson Outstanding Achievement in Film Editing for Entertainment Programming – For a Special or Feature Length Program Made for Television Robert F. Shugrue
Notes
References
External links