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In the Heat of the Night

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For other uses, see In the Heat of the Night (disambiguation)}}}.
In the Heat of the Night is a 1967 film, based on the John Ball novel published in 1965 of the same name, which tells the story of a Northern African-American police detective who becomes involved in a murder investigation in a racist small town in Mississippi.

In 2002 the United States Library of Congress deemed the original film "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry. The quote, "They call me Mister Tibbs!," was listed as #16 on the American Film Institute's AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes, a list of top movie quotes.

The movie would later become the basis of a television series entitled In the Heat of the Night, starring Carroll O'Connor, Howard Rollins, Alan Autry, David Hart, Anne-Marie Johnson, and Hugh O'Connor.

Part of the movie was filmed in Sparta, Illinois, where many of the film's landmarks can still be seen.

Contents

Synopsis

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.
When a wealthy man planning to build a factory in a town in Sparta, Mississippi, is murdered, Police Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) is pressured to find his killer quickly. Northerner Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier), passing through, is picked up at the train station with a substantial amount of money in his wallet. Gillespie jumps to the conclusion he has his (African American) man, but is embarrassed to learn that Tibbs is a respected Philadelphia homicide detective who had been visiting his mother. After this racist treatment, Tibbs wants nothing more than to leave as quickly as possible, but the victim's widow (Lee Grant) is impressed by the detective's expertise and threatens to stop construction on the much-needed factory unless he leads the investigation. Gillespie then talks Tibbs' captain into loaning his services.

Despite the rocky start to their relationship, they come to respect each other as they are forced to work together to solve the crime.

Spoilers end here.

Primary cast

Awards

Wins

Nominations

Sequels

In the Heat of the Night was followed by two sequels, They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! in 1970, and The Organization in 1971.

See also

External links

Academy Award for Best Picture: Winners (1961-1980)
1961: West Side Story | 1962: Lawrence of Arabia | 1963: Tom Jones | 1964: My Fair Lady | 1965: The Sound of Music | 1966: A Man for All Seasons | 1967: In the Heat of the Night | 1968: Oliver! | 1969: Midnight Cowboy | 1970: Patton | 1971: The French Connection | 1972: The Godfather | 1973: The Sting | 1974: The Godfather Part II | 1975: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest | 1976: Rocky | 1977: Annie Hall | 1978: The Deer Hunter | 1979: Kramer vs. Kramer | 1980: Ordinary People

 

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