In the Heat of the Night (1967)

This is a GREAT one about prejudice and racism. Terrific performances by Sidney Poitier (Virgil Tibbs is #19 on AFI’s hero list) and Rod Steiger who won his only Best Actor Academy Award on (incredibly) his last Oscar nomination. Warren Oates and Lee Grant are among those who also appear. It was the first PG movie ever to win the Academy Award for Best Picture (if you don’t count the re-ratings of the earlier films). It also won Oscars for Adapted Screenplay Writing (Stirling Silliphant on his only nomination from the John Ball novel) Hal Ashby’s Editing and Sound. Director Norman Jewison (The Russians are Coming the Russians are Coming (1966)) was nominated as were the film’s Sound Effects (James Richard’s only nomination). Added to the National Film Registry in 2002. “They call me Mister Tibbs!” is #16 on AFI’s 100 Greatest Movie Quotes list. #21 on AFI’s 100 Most Inspiring Movies list.

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