In the Heat of the Night

• When was In the Heat of the Night released?

  1967
• Who are the main characters in 'In the Heat of the Night'?

  Detective Tibbs and Gillespie
• Who played Detective Tibbs?

  Sidney Poitier
• What did Sidney Poitier win in 1999?

  A Life Achievement
• What was Sidney Poitier the first to be nominated for?


  First black actor to be nominated for the Best Actor Oscar
• What did Poitier help to found after WW2?

  The Committee for the Negro in the Arts (CNA) to improve roles for African Americans
• What did founding the CNA mean for Poitier?


  He was initially blacklisted from major productions
• When was Poitier nominated for his first best Actor oscar?

  1958 for 'The Defiant Ones'
• When was the next time that another black actor would win the Lead actor category?

  Denzel Washington in the 'Training Day' in 2002
• What was In the Heat of the Night based on?

  The 1960 novel by John Ball
• How is Tibbs presented?

  As a professional superiority, keen to prove a rich, white supremacist guilty
• How does Gilespie initially see Tibbs?


  Presumes him guilty of murder, racist
• What was the overall critical response to the film?

  An overall positive critical response
• What does the film's success show?

  The success of the film suggests the liberal views about race relations must have been accepted by considerable numbers of cinema audiences
• What was revolutionary about the film?

  Detective Tibbs slaps a white landowner in retaliation, after he was slapped
• What was the black American reaction in NY to the slap?

  'You could hear the black people say, "Go get them Sidney" and the white people saying, "Oh!"'
• What else occurred in NY audiences?

  There were some cheers in New York movie theatres, but it was more liberal
• What shows a lack of support in the film?

  The film was made on a limited budget due to an expectation it wouldn't draw Southern audiences
• What did the studio recognise about the film?

  That it could be made cheaply and survive without Southern audience which suggests attitudes hadn't shifted
• Who was the Director of the film?

  Norman Jewison
• What happened to Poitier and his family?

  His wife organised a fundraiser for James Meredith and they experienced a burning cross in front of their house
• Where did Poitier refuse to film?

  Refused to film in the South
• Where was the majority of it filmed?

  Chicago, Illinois
• Where did they film in the South?

  A few days in Tennessee to film alongside a cotton field
• Where did the crew have to stay in Tennessee?

  A Holiday Inn Motel as no other place accepted black people in the state
• What happened when the local population heard about the film?

  They grew hostile and threatening after finding out it was about a black detective
• Why was the Academy Awards Ceremony postponed?

  Postponed for 2 days due to respect for King's death
• What did the Academy director say?

  '...Of the five films nominated for Best Picture of the Year, 2 dealt with the subject of understanding between the races'
• What award did In the Heat of the Night win?

  Best Picture of the Year
• How many oscars did it win?

  2 oscars- Actor and picture
• Where did Tibbs live?

  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• When did Poitier win the oscar for best actor?

  1963 for 'Lilies in the Field'
• Who did Poitier play in, 'Lilies in the Field'?

  Homer Smith