In the Heat of the Night: They Call Him Mr. Tibbs

The same year that the first black man was sworn in as a Supreme Court Justice of the United States, In the Heat of the Night brought the changing roles of African Americans in the U.S. to the big screen. Starring Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger, the movie is a flood light of harsh reality on the fight to change the perceptions of race in positions of authority and power in America and how far the fight still had left to go. In the Heat of the Night is a murder drama that follows an out of town African American homicide detective as he attempts to work with a segregated southern town to try and help solve the murder of a local businessman. 

A prominent businessman who has big plans to build a factory in the small Mississippi town of Sparta is found one night murdered in the street. Police officers comb the town looking for someone who might be guilty finally stumbling upon a black man alone in a train station in the middle of the night. An officer arrests the man and drags him back to the station where the racial assumptions continue until Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) provides his police badge to prove he is not the man they are looking for. Once Sheriff Gillespie (Rod Steiger) learns of Virgil’s skills as a homicide detective, and after some early reservations, he lets Virgil help in solving the case. As the days go by and the murder remains unsolved, tensions in the small segregated town mount. Many of the locals want the culprit brought to justice but don’t want a black man from up north solving the case.

Virgil Tibbs is a stoic man, steadfast in his resolve. He doesn’t say a word to the arresting officer or even to the sheriff who have wrongly intimidated, accused, and arrested him. When Virgil finally reveals his identity as a Philadelphia homicide detective, he opts to simply flip open his wallet and show his badge rather than speak. However, once his superior orders Virgil to stay in town and help with the investigation, he shows great perseverance trying to solve the crime no matter the hostility that is directed his way. Virgil ignores every warning to leave town for his safety, choosing instead to stay and step on even more toes in town in order to solve the case. 

Sheriff Gillespie is a stubborn man who is not very adept at the police part of being a sheriff. He spends most of his time lurching from one suspect to the next trying to close the murder case. It never seems to bother the sheriff whether the accused is actually guilty of the crime or not. While Gillespie has early reservations about Virgil, he slowly adapts to having his help. He uses his power to ensure that Virgil can go about his job unimpeded whether it is examining the body of the dead businessman before the autopsy or just letting Virgil walk into a café with him that has no intention of offering their services for anyone but whites. 

The story behind In the Heat of the Night carries almost as much importance as the movie itself. The movie was originally slated to be filmed in Mississippi, but a previous incident and a run in with the KKK made Sidney Poitier apprehensive about ever returning to the south. Eventually, the film’s director, Norman Jewison, agreed to move most of the production to Illinois. The biggest moment in the film, Virgil retaliating to a slap from a prominent local rich white man with one of his own, was a major point of contention during early screenings of the movie since this would be one of the first times on film that a black man reacted to provocation from a white man with violence. 

In the Heat of the Night went on to win five Academy Awards in 1967 including Best Actor for Rod Steiger and best picture. While Sidney Poirtier did not win for his role, Virgil Tibbs still stands as one of the most transformative performances of his illustrious career. Everyone will remember that they call him Mr. Tibbs. 

https://youtube.com/watch?v=K9bzzr3uhco%26nbsp%3B