After his daughter is killed in a hit and run crash, a brilliant scientist working on a top secret military weapon goes slowly insane causing the project to become stalled as he slow descends into madness. Believing his daughter is still alive, the scientist (excellently played by season 1 vet William Windom) talks to her as if she were still alive, brushes her hair, and reads her bedtime stories. Seeing the need for the information only he can provide, the Army enlists a injured test pilot to befriend the scientist and to play into the delusion that his daughter is still alive.
One of the better entries from Night Gallery's second season, "Little Girl Lost" is a smart commentary on the military industrial complex in this country and the effects that it has on the psyche of a brilliant scientist who is tasked with a top secret project that may, in the words of an Army general "affect the future survival of this country." After the scientist breaks down, slowly coming to the realization that his beloved daughter is dead, he tries to commit suicide, unsuccessfully. No matter, the army has their plans for what they think is controlled nuclear fission without radioactive material and the scientist is an afterthought... or his he?
One of the better entries from Night Gallery's second season, "Little Girl Lost" is a smart commentary on the military industrial complex in this country and the effects that it has on the psyche of a brilliant scientist who is tasked with a top secret project that may, in the words of an Army general "affect the future survival of this country." After the scientist breaks down, slowly coming to the realization that his beloved daughter is dead, he tries to commit suicide, unsuccessfully. No matter, the army has their plans for what they think is controlled nuclear fission without radioactive material and the scientist is an afterthought... or his he?