An Early Frost

An Early Frost
DVD cover
GenreDrama
Written byRon Cowen
Daniel Lipman
Story bySherman Yellen
Directed byJohn Erman
StarringAidan Quinn
Gena Rowlands
Ben Gazzara
Sylvia Sidney
D. W. Moffett
John Glover
Music byJohn Kander
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducersPerry Lafferty
Art Seidel
CinematographyWoody Omens
EditorJerrold L. Ludwig
Running time95 minutes
Production companyNBC Productions
Original release
NetworkNBC
ReleaseNovember 11, 1985 (1985-11-11)
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An Early Frost is a 1985 American made-for-television drama film. It was the first major film with major motion picture stars, Aidan Quinn, Gena Rowlands, Ben Gazzara, and Sylvia Sidney, broadcast on a major television network, NBC, to deal with the topic of AIDS. It was viewed by 34 million households in its initial airing, the highest rated show of the night, even beating Monday Night Football. It received 14 Emmy nominations, winning 3 including Best Original Teleplay, a Peabody Award, as well as multiple Golden Globe nominations, including one for Sylvia Sidney who won for Best Supporting Actress. It was a major breakthrough into mass culture, as it was the first time an American audience of that size saw a film about a gay man who had AIDS, which up until then was considered a gay disease.

It was first broadcast on the NBC television network on November 11, 1985. It was directed by John Erman, from the Emmy Award-winning teleplay written by Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman (story by Sherman Yellen). Aidan Quinn stars as Michael Pierson, a Chicago attorney who goes home to break the news that he is gay and has AIDS to his parents, played by Ben Gazzara and Gena Rowlands.