the long journey back 1978

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Long Journey Back - with Cloris Leachman, Stephanie Zimbalist & Mike Connors (TV movie from 1978)

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• Cast & Crew

The Long Journey Back

• 1 hr 37 mins

About a teenager (Stephanie Zimbalist) whose family helps her overcome handicaps sustained in a collision. Mike Connors, Cloris Leachman, Katy Kurtzman, Howard McGillin, Nicolas Coster. Dr. Rojas: Luis Avalos. Cal: John Lamont. Filmed in and around Los Angeles. Directed by Mel Damski.

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0:53 Long Journey Back

Cast & Crew See All

Stephanie zimbalist, mike connors.

Cloris Leachman

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Long Journey Back

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Film details, brief synopsis, cast & crew, john lamont, bret williams, lee wallace, katy kurtzman, penelope willis, technical specs.

This film depicts a teenage girl's courageous fight following a crushing school bus accident that leaves her physically and emotionally handicapped.

Peter Lempert

Stephanie zimbalist, howard mcgillin, michael alldredge.

Michael Connors

Blair ashley, nicolas coster, david m cohen, luis avalos, carol carrington, stephen keep, philip levien, nina alexrod, meegan king, holly irving, weldon bleiler, patricia conklin, eunice christopher, george englund.

Cloris Leachman

Eve roberts, richard doran, richard birnbaum, philip capice, john e chilberg, herbert h dow, j. p. farrell, fred karlin, stevan larner, audrey davis levin, robert lovenheim, judith ramesy, miscellaneous notes.

Aired in United States December 15, 1978

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Long Journey Back (1978)

Directed by mel damski.

• AllMovie Rating 6
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Description by Wikipedia

Long Journey Back is a 1978 made-for-TV coming of age drama film based on the Gilchrest Road, New York crossing accident in which a Nyack High School bus was struck and sliced down the middle by a train, killing 3 people and injuring 40 others. The film stars Stephanie Zimbalist as main character Celia, who struggles with life as an amputee and with brain damage following the accident. Co-stars include Cloris Leachman and Mike Connors. The film also features a live singing of the song "Day by Day" from the musical Godspell. Zimbalist's character, as well as Katy Kurtzman's, were based on real-life sisters Irene and Joan Ferrara, who were severely injured in the accident.

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Alternate Titles

Long Journey Back

Mike Connors (Vic Casella) Cloris Leachman (Laura Casella) Stephanie Zimbalist (Celia Casella) Katy Kurtzman (Amy Casella) Howard McGillin (Steve) Luis Avalos (Dr. Ropaz) Nicolas Coster (Dr. Roberts) John Lamont (Cal) Michael Alldredge (Dave Lewis) Eunice Christopher (Dee Lewis)

After a harrowing accident when a train crashes into her school bus, a young popular teenager, Celia, learns to handle life with brain damage, the death of several friends, and an amputated limb.

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Long Journey Back (TV)

• Credits 
• Image gallery  [1]

All images are copyrighted by their respective copyright holders and/or producers/distributors.

• Katy Kurtzman
• Howard McGillin
• Luis Avalos

• Michael Alldredge
• Philip Levien
• Richard Doran
• Penelope Willis
• Stephen Keep Mills
• Lee Wallace
• See all credits

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Long journey back.

Directed by Mel Damski

A true story of love and triumph

A teenage girl puts up a courageous fight following a crushing school bus accident that leaves her physically and mentally handicapped.

Mike Connors Cloris Leachman Stephanie Zimbalist Katy Kurtzman Howard McGillin Luis Ávalos Nicolas Coster Lee Wallace John Lamont Michael Alldredge Eunice Christopher Philip Levien Richard Doran Blair Ashley Penelope Willis Stephen Keep Mills Nina Axelrod Weldon Bleiler Carol Carrington David M. Cohen Patricia Conklin Eddy Donno George Englund Jr Hollis Irving Meegan King Peter Lampert Tammy Neal Eve Roberts Sara Slack Show All… Brett Williams Teris Wyss

Director Director

Producer producer.

Robert Lovenheim

Writer Writer

Audrey Davis Levin

Original Writer Original Writer

Judith Ramsey

Casting Casting

Jerold Franks Barbara Miller Irene Mariano

Editors Editors

John Farrell Herbert H. Dow

Cinematography Cinematography

Stevan Larner

Assistant Directors Asst. Directors

Kelly A. Manners Bill Lukather

Executive Producers Exec. Producers

Lee Rich Philip Capice

Lighting Lighting

Calvin Maehl

Art Direction Art Direction

John E. Chilberg II

Set Decoration Set Decoration

Toby Considine

Composer Composer

Fred Karlin

Sound Sound

Richard I. Birnbaum

Makeup Makeup

Jack Obringer

Hairstyling Hairstyling

Christine George

Lorimar Productions American Broadcasting Company (ABC)

Drama TV Movie

Releases by Date

15 dec 1978, releases by country.

100 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Michael Shawn ★★★★ 3

I'm such a sucker for a good, heartwarming triumph-over-adversity story, and this made-for-television film fits the bill. Stephanie Zimbalist stars as Celia Casella, a pretty, bright, popular teenager who survives a train ramming into her school bus with severe brain damage and an amputated leg. With the help of her parents (Mike Connors & Cloris Leachman) and teams of doctors and rehabilitation specialists, she is able to come back to some form of normalcy after months of hard effort. I know, it sounds saccharine and sickening, but it's a testament to the director and the phenomenal cast that it really isn't. It's riveting, and it really sucks you into championing not only Celia, but her whole family, who were inevitably all…

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Long Journey Back

Cast & crew.

Mike Connors

Vic Casella

Stephanie Zimbalist

Celia Casella

Cloris Leachman

Laura Casella

Long Journey Back (1978 TV Movie)

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Long Journey Back

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Long Journey Back is a 1978 American television drama film directed by Mel Damski which aired on December 15, 1978 on the ABC network.

After a train crashes into her school bus, teenager Celia Casella learns to handle life with brain damage, the death of several friends and an amputated limb.

• Stephanie Zimbalist as Celia Casella
• Mike Connors as Vic Casella
• Cloris Leachman as Laura Casella
• Katy Kurtzman as Amy Casella
• Howard McGillin as Steve
• Luis Avalos as Dr. Ropaz
• Nicolas Coster as Dr. Roberts

Critical Reception [ ]

In their review of "Long Journey Back", The New York Times wrote: "The inspirational story has been put together nicely, and the production contains several solid performances. Cloris Leachman and Mike Connors are good as the parents, and Stephanie Zimbalist is lovely as the stricken daughter."

Long Journey Back

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Long Journey Back is a 1978 ABC network drama film which aired on Television on December 15, 1978. This Movie aired during the Carter Administration.

When a train smashes into Celia Casella's school bus after a train crashes into her school bus, it causes her to suffer from brain damage and one of her legs has to be amputated by the doctors.

As Celia recovers from the accident, her family fights to not be torn apart by the tragedy and hope that she gets through this coming out a living miracle.

• Stephanie Zimbalist as Celia Casella
• Mike Connors as Vic Casella
• Cloris Leachman as Laura Casella
• Katy Kurtzman as Amy Casella
• Howard McGillin as Steve
• Luis Avalos as Dr. Ropaz
• Nicolas Coster as Dr. Roberts
• John Lamont as Cal
• Michael Alldredge as Dave Lewis
• Eunice Christopher as Dee Lewis
• Philip Levien as Jim Thompson
• Richard Doran as Alan Wilcox
• Blair Ashley as Lisa
• Penelope Willis as Peggy
• Stephen Keep Mills as Dr. Ross

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