In the Heat of the Night (1967)
Crime · Drama · Mystery
Overview
African-American Philadelphia police detective Virgil Tibbs is arrested on suspicion of murder by Bill Gillespie, the racist police chief of tiny Sparta, Mississippi. After Tibbs proves not only his own innocence but that of another man, he joins forces with Gillespie to track down the real killer. Their investigation takes them through every social level of the town, with Tibbs making enemies as well as unlikely friends as he hunts for the truth.
Cast
- Sidney Poitier as Det. Virgil Tibbs
- Rod Steiger as Police Chief Bill Gillespie
- Warren Oates as Deputy Sam Wood
- Lee Grant as Mrs. Leslie Colbert
- Larry Gates as Eric Endicott
- James Patterson as Mr. Purdy
- William Schallert as Mayor Schubert
- Beah Richards as Mama Caleba
- Peter Whitney as Deputy Courtney
- Kermit Murdock as Henderson