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problems</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Rollins'_substance_abuse_problems-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-1990–1991" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#1990–1991"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.4</span> <span>1990–1991</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-1990–1991-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-1991–1992" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#1991–1992"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.5</span> <span>1991–1992</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-1991–1992-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-1992–1993" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#1992–1993"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.6</span> <span>1992–1993</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-1992–1993-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Howard_Rollins'_firing" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Howard_Rollins'_firing"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.6.1</span> <span>Howard Rollins' firing</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Howard_Rollins'_firing-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Seventh_season,_1993–1994" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Seventh_season,_1993–1994"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.7</span> <span>Seventh season, 1993–1994</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Seventh_season,_1993–1994-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-TV_movies_and_Hugh_O'Connor's_death" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#TV_movies_and_Hugh_O'Connor's_death"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.8</span> <span>TV movies and Hugh O'Connor's death</span> 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class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1</span> <span>Broadcast and syndication</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Broadcast_and_syndication-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Home_media" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Home_media"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7</span> <span>Home media</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Home_media-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Awards" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Awards"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8</span> <span>Awards</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Awards-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Soundtrack" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Soundtrack"> <div 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class="firstHeading mw-first-heading"><i>In the Heat of the Night</i> (TV series)</h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="Go to an article in another language. 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interwiki-fr mw-list-item"><a href="https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dans_la_chaleur_de_la_nuit_(s%C3%A9rie_t%C3%A9l%C3%A9vis%C3%A9e)" title="Dans la chaleur de la nuit (série télévisée) – French" lang="fr" hreflang="fr" data-title="Dans la chaleur de la nuit (série télévisée)" data-language-autonym="Français" data-language-local-name="French" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Français</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-it mw-list-item"><a href="https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27ispettore_Tibbs" title="L'ispettore Tibbs – Italian" lang="it" hreflang="it" data-title="L'ispettore Tibbs" data-language-autonym="Italiano" data-language-local-name="Italian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Italiano</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nl mw-list-item"><a href="https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(televisieserie)" title="In the Heat of the Night (televisieserie) – Dutch" lang="nl" hreflang="nl" data-title="In the Heat of the Night (televisieserie)" data-language-autonym="Nederlands" data-language-local-name="Dutch" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Nederlands</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-simple mw-list-item"><a href="https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)" title="In the Heat of the Night (TV series) – Simple English" lang="en-simple" hreflang="en-simple" data-title="In the Heat of the Night (TV series)" data-language-autonym="Simple English" data-language-local-name="Simple English" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Simple English</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sh mw-list-item"><a href="https://sh.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_serija)" title="In the Heat of the Night (TV serija) – Serbo-Croatian" lang="sh" hreflang="sh" data-title="In the Heat of the Night (TV serija)" data-language-autonym="Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски" data-language-local-name="Serbo-Croatian" 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</div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">American crime drama series</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1257001546">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme)>div:not(.notheme)[style]{background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme) div:not(.notheme){background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media(min-width:640px){body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table{display:table!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>caption{display:table-caption!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>tbody{display:table-row-group}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table tr{display:table-row!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table th,body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table td{padding-left:inherit;padding-right:inherit}}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1230561210">.mw-parser-output .ib-tv{border-collapse:separate;border-spacing:0 3px;padding:3px 5px}.mw-parser-output .ib-tv .infobox-above{background-color:#CCCCFF;color:inherit;font-size:125%;padding:0.25em 1em}.mw-parser-output .ib-tv .infobox-header{background-color:#CCCCFF;color:inherit;padding:0.25em 1em}.mw-parser-output .ib-tv img{background-color:white}.mw-parser-output .ib-tv-aka{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output .ib-tv-network-release td,.mw-parser-output .ib-tv-network-release th{border-top:1px solid #a2a9b1}</style><table class="infobox ib-tv vevent"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-above summary"><i>In the Heat of the Night</i></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Frameless"><a href="/wiki/File:In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)_cast_photo.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f5/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_%28TV_series%29_cast_photo.jpg" decoding="async" width="143" height="143" class="mw-file-element" data-file-width="143" data-file-height="143" /></a></span><div class="infobox-caption">Foreground: Carroll O'Connor; left middle: Howard Rollins; back row left to right: Hugh O'Connor; David Hart; Geoffrey Thorne; Alan Autry</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Genre</th><td class="infobox-data category"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style><div class="plainlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Police_procedural" title="Police procedural">Police procedural</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Crime_drama" class="mw-redirect" title="Crime drama">Crime drama</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Based on</th><td class="infobox-data">Characters created by <a href="/wiki/John_Ball_(novelist)" title="John Ball (novelist)">John Ball</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Developed by</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/wiki/James_Lee_Barrett" title="James Lee Barrett">James Lee Barrett</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Starring</th><td class="infobox-data attendee"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"><div class="plainlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Carroll_O%27Connor" title="Carroll O'Connor">Carroll O'Connor</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Howard_Rollins" title="Howard Rollins">Howard Rollins</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alan_Autry" title="Alan Autry">Alan Autry</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anne-Marie_Johnson" title="Anne-Marie Johnson">Anne-Marie Johnson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/David_Hart_(actor)" title="David Hart (actor)">David Hart</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Christian_LeBlanc" title="Christian LeBlanc">Christian LeBlanc</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lois_Nettleton" title="Lois Nettleton">Lois Nettleton</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geoffrey_Thorne" title="Geoffrey Thorne">Geoffrey Thorne</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hugh_O%27Connor" title="Hugh O'Connor">Hugh O'Connor</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Carl_Weathers" title="Carl Weathers">Carl Weathers</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Crystal_R._Fox" title="Crystal R. Fox">Crystal R. Fox</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Denise_Nicholas" title="Denise Nicholas">Denise Nicholas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Randall_Franks" title="Randall Franks">Randall Franks</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Theme music composer</th><td class="infobox-data"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"><div class="plainlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Quincy_Jones" title="Quincy Jones">Quincy Jones</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alan_and_Marilyn_Bergman" title="Alan and Marilyn Bergman">Alan and Marilyn Bergman</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Opening theme</th><td class="infobox-data">performed by <a href="/wiki/Bill_Champlin" title="Bill Champlin">Bill Champlin</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Country of origin</th><td class="infobox-data">United States</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Original language</th><td class="infobox-data">English</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><abbr title="Number">No.</abbr> of seasons</th><td class="infobox-data">7</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><abbr title="Number">No.</abbr> of episodes</th><td class="infobox-data">147 + 4 TV movies <span class="nowrap">(<a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">list of episodes</a>)</span></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header summary">Production</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Executive producers</th><td class="infobox-data"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"><div class="plainlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Fred_Silverman" title="Fred Silverman">Fred Silverman</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Juanita_Bartlett" title="Juanita Bartlett">Juanita Bartlett</a></li> <li>David Moessinger</li> <li>Carroll O'Connor</li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Production companies</th><td class="infobox-data"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"><div class="plainlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Fred_Silverman" title="Fred Silverman">The Fred Silverman Company</a></li> <li>Juanita Bartlett Productions</li> <li><a href="/wiki/MGM_Television" title="MGM Television">MGM/UA Television Productions</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/MGM_Television" title="MGM Television">MGM Television</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header summary">Original release</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Network</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/wiki/NBC" title="NBC">NBC</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Release</th><td class="infobox-data">March 6, 1988<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1988-03-06</span>)</span> –<br />May 19, 1992<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1992-05-19</span>)</span></td></tr><tr class="ib-tv-network-release"><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Network</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/wiki/CBS" title="CBS">CBS</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Release</th><td class="infobox-data">October 28, 1992<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1992-10-28</span>)</span> –<br />May 16, 1995<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1995-05-16</span>)</span></td></tr></tbody></table> <p><i><b>In the Heat of the Night</b></i> is an American <a href="/wiki/Police_procedural" title="Police procedural">police procedural</a> <a href="/wiki/Crime_drama" class="mw-redirect" title="Crime drama">crime drama</a> television series loosely based on <a href="/wiki/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(novel)" title="In the Heat of the Night (novel)">1965 novel</a> of the same title and <a href="/wiki/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(film)" title="In the Heat of the Night (film)">the 1967 film of the same name</a>. The TV series starred <a href="/wiki/Carroll_O%27Connor" title="Carroll O'Connor">Carroll O'Connor</a> as police chief Bill Gillespie and <a href="/wiki/Howard_Rollins" title="Howard Rollins">Howard Rollins</a> as police detective <a href="/wiki/Virgil_Tibbs" class="mw-redirect" title="Virgil Tibbs">Virgil Tibbs</a>. The series was broadcast on <a href="/wiki/NBC" title="NBC">NBC</a> from March 6, 1988 to May 19, 1992 before moving to <a href="/wiki/CBS" title="CBS">CBS</a>, where it aired from October 28, 1992 to May 16, 1995. Its executive producers were O'Connor, <a href="/wiki/Fred_Silverman" title="Fred Silverman">Fred Silverman</a> and <a href="/wiki/Juanita_Bartlett" title="Juanita Bartlett">Juanita Bartlett</a>. This series marked O'Connor's return to a series for the first time since the <i><a href="/wiki/All_in_the_Family" title="All in the Family">All in the Family</a></i> spinoff <i><a href="/wiki/Archie_Bunker%27s_Place" title="Archie Bunker's Place">Archie Bunker's Place</a></i> ended in 1983. </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Premise">Premise</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Premise"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The show is a sequel to the 1967 film, whose events are said to have occurred "a few years ago" despite the show being set in the 1980s-1990s contemporary to its broadcast. In the premiere episode, Philadelphia homicide detective and criminal profiler Virgil Tibbs (Rollins) has returned to his hometown of <a href="/wiki/Sparta,_Mississippi" title="Sparta, Mississippi">Sparta, Mississippi</a> for his mother's funeral. He is persuaded by Mayor James Findlay to remain in Sparta as Chief of Detectives under Bill Gillespie (O'Connor), the police chief with whom he fostered a relationship during a previous murder investigation in which he assisted. Mayor Findlay himself has an ulterior motive for hiring Tibbs: he wants to have some kind of record on civil rights to run for Congress and hiring Tibbs to integrate the all-white Sparta police department would not only help to overcome the local squad's reputation of being racist and underskilled, but also benefits him. Although the team suffers friction over Tibbs' dissatisfaction with the department's limited resources and racial attitudes and Gillespie is annoyed at the detective's condescending suspicions about his hometown, the two men prove highly effective in enforcing the law. At the beginning of the seventh season, Tibbs takes a leave of absence, moving to <a href="/wiki/Jackson,_Mississippi" title="Jackson, Mississippi">Jackson, Mississippi</a> to complete his law degree on a compressed schedule. Upon his return to Sparta, he and his wife, Althea (<a href="/wiki/Anne_Marie_Johnson" class="mw-redirect" title="Anne Marie Johnson">Anne Marie Johnson</a>), have separated and they later divorce. She moves back to Philadelphia with their twins to be near her parents. Through the hard work of Sparta Councilwoman Harriet DeLong (<a href="/wiki/Denise_Nicholas" title="Denise Nicholas">Denise Nicholas</a>), Tibbs is able to retire, although two months shy of the qualifying period and keep his city pension. He begins practicing law upon accepting a position in Ben Taylor's law office. Rollins' final appearance on the series was February 2, 1994. Meanwhile, the Sparta city council dismisses Gillespie as chief of police, selecting Hampton Forbes (<a href="/wiki/Carl_Weathers" title="Carl Weathers">Carl Weathers</a>) as his replacement and making him the town's first African American to serve in that position. Gillespie finds a new post of equivalent authority as <a href="/wiki/County_sheriff" class="mw-redirect" title="County sheriff">county sheriff</a>. The two senior police officials find that they get along excellently, in both professional and personal spheres. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Themes">Themes</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Themes"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The show dealt with a variety of issues, including <a href="/wiki/Racism" title="Racism">racism</a>, <a href="/wiki/Police_brutality" title="Police brutality">police brutality</a>, <a href="/wiki/Interracial_relationships" class="mw-redirect" title="Interracial relationships">interracial relationships</a>, <a href="/wiki/Hate_crime" title="Hate crime">hate crimes</a>, <a href="/wiki/Drug_trafficking" class="mw-redirect" title="Drug trafficking">drug trafficking</a>, <a href="/wiki/Substance_abuse" title="Substance abuse">drug addiction</a>, <a href="/wiki/Alcoholism" title="Alcoholism">alcoholism</a>, <a href="/wiki/AIDS" class="mw-redirect" title="AIDS">AIDS</a>, <a href="/wiki/Misogyny" title="Misogyny">misogyny</a>, <a href="/wiki/Incest" title="Incest">incest</a>, <a href="/wiki/Child_abuse" title="Child abuse">child abuse</a>, <a href="/wiki/Sexual_harassment" title="Sexual harassment">sexual harassment</a>, <a href="/wiki/Euthanasia" title="Euthanasia">euthanasia</a>, <a href="/wiki/Anti-Semitism" class="mw-redirect" title="Anti-Semitism">anti-Semitism</a>, <a href="/wiki/Political_corruption" title="Political corruption">political corruption</a>, <a href="/wiki/Prostitution" title="Prostitution">prostitution</a>, <a href="/wiki/Domestic_violence" title="Domestic violence">domestic violence</a>, <a href="/wiki/Mental_disorder" title="Mental disorder">mental disorders</a>, <a href="/wiki/Dysfunctional_family" title="Dysfunctional family">dysfunctional families</a>, <a href="/wiki/Suicide" title="Suicide">suicide</a>, <a href="/wiki/Capital_punishment" title="Capital punishment">capital punishment</a>, <a href="/wiki/Poverty" title="Poverty">poverty</a> and <a href="/wiki/Drunk_driving" title="Drunk driving">drunk driving</a>. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Seasons_overview">Seasons overview</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Seasons overview"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236090951">.mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .hatnote{display:none!important}}</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">List of In the Heat of the Night episodes</a></div> <div style="display:block;overflow-x:auto"><table class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;height:1px;display:table"><tbody><tr style="text-align:center"><th scope="col" rowspan="2" style="min-width:50px;padding:0 8px">Season</th><th scope="col" rowspan="2" colspan="2" style="padding:0 8px">Episodes</th><th scope="colgroup" colspan="3">Originally aired</th><th scope="col" rowspan="2" style="padding:0 8px">Rank</th><th scope="col" rowspan="2" style="padding:0 8px">Rating</th></tr><tr><th scope="col">First aired</th><th scope="col">Last aired</th><th scope="col" style="padding:0 8px">Network</th></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:black;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#Season_1_(1988)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">1</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">8</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">March 6, 1988<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1988-03-06</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">May 3, 1988<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1988-05-03</span>)</span></td><td rowspan="5"><a href="/wiki/NBC" title="NBC">NBC</a></td><td>19</td><td>17.0</td></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:#FF5F5F;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#Season_2_(1988–89)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">2</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">22</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">December 4, 1988<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1988-12-04</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">May 16, 1989<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1989-05-16</span>)</span></td><td>19</td><td>17.3</td></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:#AAA;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#Season_3_(1989–90)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">3</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">22</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">October 24, 1989<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1989-10-24</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">May 8, 1990<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1990-05-08</span>)</span></td><td>17</td><td>17.3</td></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:#005500;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#Season_4_(1990–91)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">4</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">22</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">September 18, 1990<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1990-09-18</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">April 30, 1991<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1991-04-30</span>)</span></td><td>19</td><td>15.2</td></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:#ffff00;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#Season_5_(1991–92)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">5</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">22</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">October 1, 1991<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1991-10-01</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">May 19, 1992<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1992-05-19</span>)</span></td><td>30</td><td>13.1</td></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:#00ff00;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#Season_6_(1992–93)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">6</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">22</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">October 28, 1992<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1992-10-28</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">May 12, 1993<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1993-05-12</span>)</span></td><td rowspan="3"><a href="/wiki/CBS" title="CBS">CBS</a></td><td>37</td><td>11.9</td></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:#8C001A;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#Season_7_(1993–94)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">7</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">24</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">September 16, 1993<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1993-09-16</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">May 11, 1994<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1994-05-11</span>)</span></td><td>63</td><td>10.3</td></tr><tr style="height:100%"><th scope="row" colspan="1" style="height:inherit;padding:0"><span style="text-align:center;float:left;width:100%;height:100%"><span style="width:14px;background:#F0F0F0;color:#202122;height:100%;float:left;box-shadow:inset -1px 0 #A2A9B1"></span><span style="height:100%;width:calc(100% - 14px - 8px);display:flex;vertical-align:middle;align-items:center;justify-content:center;padding:0 4px"><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes#TV_films_(1994–95)" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">TV films</a></span></span></span></th><td colspan="2">4</td><td colspan="1" style="padding:0.2em 0.4em">October 21, 1994<span style="display:none"> (<span class="bday dtstart published updated itvstart">1994-10-21</span>)</span></td><td style="padding:0 8px">May 16, 1995<span style="display:none"> (<span class="dtend itvend">1995-05-16</span>)</span></td><td data-sort-value="" class="table-na" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;">—</td><td data-sort-value="" class="table-na" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;">—</td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="1988">1988</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: 1988"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The first season was filmed in <a href="/wiki/Hammond,_Louisiana" title="Hammond, Louisiana">Hammond, Louisiana</a>. Hammond was selected by Barrett to represent the small southern town of Sparta, Mississippi. The producers had difficulty finding usable filming locations, because other, more modern structures were close enough to be picked up in the images.<sup id="cite_ref-emmylegends_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-emmylegends-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Eight episodes were filmed—the two-hour pilot movie and six regular one-hour episodes. The series premiered on March 6, 1988, with the season finale airing on May 3. Many conflicts arose between Bartlett and O'Connor over the writing of the series. At first, she allowed him to consult on the series per his contract. After the pilot, however, she ordered scripts from her writers. O'Connor described these as "recycled material from other crime shows." He was disappointed in the writing, feeling that the writers were taking big-city stories and imposing them on a small town. He believed that the key to this show's success was to express its small-town locale and characters through the stories.<sup id="cite_ref-heat_2-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-heat-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Scripts would be given to him marked "FINAL: NO REWRITES", but O'Connor often rewrote scripts anyway, angering the production staff members, who felt they were burning up fax machines with the changes.<sup id="cite_ref-heat_2-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-heat-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> O'Connor described Bartlett as a very arrogant person.<sup id="cite_ref-emmylegends_1-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-emmylegends-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> If the show was going to be renewed, then O'Connor was not interested and threatened to quit the show unless Bartlett was replaced as executive producer.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (December 2019)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> The early episodes were gritty, raw and considered groundbreaking for that time<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (October 2024)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup>. There was an emphasis on grisly murders or other crimes, rather than the lives of the <a href="/wiki/New_South" title="New South">New South</a>-era characters, for which the series later became known. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="1988–1989"><span id="1988.E2.80.931989"></span>1988–1989</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: 1988–1989"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Season two premiered on December 4, 1988 due to a <a href="/wiki/1988_Writers_Guild_of_America_strike" title="1988 Writers Guild of America strike">writers' strike</a>; the season introduced a new look and set of executive producers, <a href="/wiki/Jeri_Taylor" title="Jeri Taylor">Jeri Taylor</a> and her husband David Moessinger, with on-location shooting moved from Hammond, Louisiana to <a href="/wiki/Covington,_Georgia" title="Covington, Georgia">Covington, Georgia</a>, which remained as the primary filming location of the show for the duration of the series. The season premiere was aired as a two-hour TV movie originally entitled "The Voodoo Murders", now known in syndication as "Don't Look Back". The plot revolved around a copycat murder of one that Gillespie had investigated 20 years earlier. Also, the Sparta city council was pushing Virgil Tibbs to run as a possible candidate for Chief of Police to replace Gillespie, but Virgil wasn't interested in doing so; regardless, a rumor begins that Tibbs is after Gillespie's job, causing dissension between the two men. Virgil's wife, Althea, who was a stay-at-home wife in the first season, is offered a position as a teacher and guidance counselor at local Sparta High School by city Councilman Ted Marcus (<a href="/wiki/Thom_Gossom_Jr." title="Thom Gossom Jr.">Thom Gossom Jr.</a>). Gone was <a href="/wiki/Christian_LeBlanc" title="Christian LeBlanc">Christian LeBlanc</a>, who portrayed Officer Junior Abernathy and added were two new regular characters-- Joanne St. John (<a href="/wiki/Lois_Nettleton" title="Lois Nettleton">Lois Nettleton</a>), the chief's sometime girlfriend and owner of the local diner, The Magnolia Cafe; and rookie officer Wilson Sweet (<a href="/wiki/Geoffrey_Thorne" title="Geoffrey Thorne">Geoffrey Thorne</a>), fresh out of the police academy. The season also introduced the first of several new recurring characters, including county coroner Dr. Frank Robb (<a href="/wiki/Dan_Biggers" title="Dan Biggers">Dan Biggers</a>). "The Creek" saw the introduction of the first new police character and the second prominent Georgia performer to claim a regular role on the series, Officer Randy Goode (1988-1993) played by <a href="/wiki/Randall_Franks" title="Randall Franks">Randall Franks</a>, who was cast following the show's move to Covington. "Gunshot", where Virgil experiences guilt and mental trauma after he shoots and kills a female robbery suspect, introduces a character with a criminal past who later becomes invaluable in supplying Gillespie and the Sparta P.D. with information, Jimmy Dawes (<a href="/wiki/Afemo_Omilami" title="Afemo Omilami">Afemo Omilami</a>). Plots in this season included Gillespie witnessing the execution of a man whom he arrested years ago, an episode that O'Connor wrote himself under the pseudonym Matt Harris ("A Trip Upstate"). During the filming of the episode "Walkout", O'Connor began to experience fatigue. It was later discovered that he needed sextuple heart bypass surgery, due to years of heavy smoking. During the last four episodes of the season, <a href="/wiki/Joe_Don_Baker" title="Joe Don Baker">Joe Don Baker</a> was brought in as Tom Dugan, a replacement for Chief Gillespie, who was said to be away at a police training conference at Quantico. The episodes where Gillespie was away were "Fifteen Forever", "Ladybug, Ladybug", "The Pig Woman of Sparta" and "Missing". Dugan was appointed acting chief by Councilwoman White, but he was actually working undercover for the FBI in an attempt to stop the assassination of a civil rights preacher during a visit to the town by a white supremacist group (that is not revealed until the season three episode "Anniversary"). </p><p>The season finale "Missing" has the chief being kidnapped upon his return to Sparta by two men in pig masks and the police and the FBI are trying to locate him and those responsible. O'Connor wanted the chief to undergo heart surgery in the storyline, but the Taylor and Moessinger came up with this storyline instead. It was the final straw in a long line of complaints against Taylor and Moessinger, who were fired at the end of the season, with O'Connor becoming sole executive producer the rest of the series.<sup id="cite_ref-emmylegends_1-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-emmylegends-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> When Taylor and Moessinger decided to do the show, Taylor was quoted, "I was one of those in the '60s that was out marching for civil rights" and "I was one of those who thought the major work had all been done. When we decided to do the show, we took research trips to the South and we saw that there had been an enormous amount of change. We came back with a renewed vigor but also with the realization that there is still a lot more to be done. There is still deeply entrenched racism. And addressing that became a much larger element in our thinking about the show." Moessinger was quoted, "What makes race relations a constant in our show is the two lead characters-- one is white and one is black. Whether they are angry at each other, whether they're happy or sad, we're showing the interaction of two men who are trying to do the best in life. If we never put one race issue into it, if we never said one word about it, the message is there because it's showing how people ought to interrelate, how they ought to work together, how they ought to get along."<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="1989–1990"><span id="1989.E2.80.931990"></span>1989–1990</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: 1989–1990"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In the third season, O'Connor took complete control of the show after firing Taylor and Moessinger. From that point on, he brought aboard writers and showrunners who shared his vision of where he wanted the series to go. Althea deals with the effects and aftermath of rape in the explosive season premiere episode titled "Rape". Upon returning home from the grocery store one afternoon after school, Althea is ambushed and raped in her kitchen by Sparta High School's new music teacher, Stephen Ainslee (<a href="/wiki/Kenneth_Marshall" title="Kenneth Marshall">Ken Marshall</a>), who Althea had an uneasy relationship with from the beginning because he couldn't handle her authority and it culminated in the attack. Althea and Virgil are frustrated trying to bring Stephen to justice because new district attorney Gerard Darnelle (<a href="/wiki/Wilbur_Fitzgerald" title="Wilbur Fitzgerald">Wilbur Fitzgerald</a>) doesn't have enough evidence to prosecute him, especially a positive ID (Ainslee blindfolded Althea with her scarf during the attack, so she couldn't see his face, but she recognized his voice) and Stephen's wife, Linda (Stacy Ray), provides him with an false alibi saying that he was at home with her at the time that Althea was attacked. After Chief Gillespie calls Linda out for her complicity, Linda finally comes forward and implicates Stephen, who invades the Tibbs home during this time and attempts to attack Althea again, but Althea successfully defends herself and Stephen is arrested. The second part of the season two finale, "Missing", is resumed in "Anniversary"-- a decision made by O'Connor that displeased NBC because the episodes were not shown in chronological order. The season two cliffhanger depicted Gillespie being kidnapped and Dugan murdered; with the displacement of the episodes, it was as if none of that ever happened. O'Connor selected "Rape" to kick off season three instead because he thought it was more powerful and would attract higher ratings. The character of Joanne St. John was eliminated to make room for Sparta city Councilwoman Harriet DeLong as Chief Gillespie's future love interest, first as a recurring character, then later as a main cast member. An attractive divorcée, Harriet was college-educated (an <a href="/wiki/Alpha_Kappa_Alpha" title="Alpha Kappa Alpha">Alpha Kappa Alpha</a> member), outspoken and brimming with attitude, which was a turn-off to Gillespie at first and the two of them did not get along. In "First Girl", Gillespie hires Christine Rankin, Sparta's first black policewoman, who is later killed her first day on duty in a shootout with a drug dealer and murder suspect, causing Gillespie despair and guilt. As a result, he is temporarily suspended from his duties as chief of police pending an investigation and intent on seeking out Rankin's killer. Her replacement was Officer LuAnn Corbin (<a href="/wiki/Crystal_R._Fox" title="Crystal R. Fox">Crystal R. Fox</a>), who would remain a prominent character throughout the rest of the series, although Fox was listed in the ending credits as a guest star until season seven where she finally appeared in the opening credits. Hiring LuAnn opens the door for more policewomen to join the force; Officer Dee Shepard (Dee Shaw) is hired later in the season. In the two-part season finale, "Citizen Trundel" (written by O'Connor, Cynthia Deming and William J. Royce), </p><p>Harriet's sister, Natalie, is murdered by order of her secret lover and the married father of her nine-year-old son, millionaire businessman V.J. "Vidge" Trundel. The situation causes Harriet anguish, rage and frustration, not only because of Natalie's murder but because Chief Gillespie is reluctant to pursue the powerful Trundel as a suspect. These are the first episodes in which we see Bill and Harriet's relationship blossom. During this period, he is able to see beyond her hardened exterior and finds a vulnerable and sensitive woman behind it; she discovers his compassionate side. From this point on, a camaraderie is formed between the two. This story arc was of special significance to Nicholas, as her real-life sister had been murdered ten years earlier and the culprit had never been caught. When O'Connor approached Nicholas about the storyline, it had upset her greatly and she had to write him a note explaining the situation, as he was unaware of the circumstances. He offered to have her not appear in the episode, but she chose to do so to bring closure for her and her family. She was able to channel her unresolved grief into the role. Only O'Connor and director <a href="/wiki/Leo_Penn" title="Leo Penn">Leo Penn</a> knew the truth during filming.<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Rollins'_substance_abuse_problems"><span id="Rollins.27_substance_abuse_problems"></span>Rollins' substance abuse problems</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Rollins' substance abuse problems"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>During the back half of season three, Rollins took six weeks off when he entered a drug and alcohol rehab program to battle his addiction issues.<sup id="cite_ref-rollins_5-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-rollins-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> He missed five episodes: "King's Ransom", "Triangle", "Hello In There", "December Days" and "An Angry Woman". MGM worked around his rehab schedule. Episodes were not necessarily aired in the order they were filmed, which explains why Tibbs was present one week and not the next. In an attempt to explain Rollins' absence, Tibbs was said to be in New Orleans working for the FBI. He considered suicide shortly before Christmas 1989, prompting his stay in rehab.<sup id="cite_ref-rollins_5-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-rollins-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> O'Connor threatened to sue a tabloid which published a story saying that MGM and O'Connor had fired Rollins for being absent from the set due to his problems.<sup id="cite_ref-rollins_5-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-rollins-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Nicholas said "Carroll set the standard for loyalty. If he liked you, he really liked you and would be there for you."<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="1990–1991"><span id="1990.E2.80.931991"></span>1990–1991</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: 1990–1991"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Cynthia Deming and William J. Royce were made main <a href="/wiki/Story_editor" title="Story editor">story editors</a>. The season opens with a two-hour movie entitled "Brotherly Love" and the birth of Virgil and Althea's twins, William and Sarah. While Althea is waiting to go into labor, Tibbs' friend and ex-colleague from the Philadelphia P.D. is found dead and it's at first labeled as a suicide. Tibbs heads up to the big city to attend his funeral, only to learn his friend's death was not by his own hand, but murder. Tibbs soon recognizes there is corruption going on within the police department and his friend was framed for the murder of a drug dealer. In the process of trying to clear his friend's name, he first becomes a target, then framed for murder himself. Chief Gillespie travels to Philly to get Virgil out of jail, help him solve the mystery of what happened to his friend and seek justice for him, expose the corrupt officers and make it back home to Sparta in time for the twins' birth. William and Sarah Tibbs were welcomed into the world on September 18, 1990. Other stories include Bubba going to Los Angeles to extradite a Sparta resident responsible for a fire that killed two people, which was actually the first of two backdoor pilots for a series that featured <a href="/wiki/Alan_Autry" title="Alan Autry">Alan Autry</a>, but neither were picked up by the network. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="1991–1992"><span id="1991.E2.80.931992"></span>1991–1992</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: 1991–1992"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The fifth season begins with the revelation that Chief Gillespie has a 19-year-old daughter, Lana Farren (<a href="/wiki/Christine_Elise" title="Christine Elise">Christine Elise</a>, formerly of <i><a href="/wiki/Beverly_Hills,_90210" title="Beverly Hills, 90210">Beverly Hills, 90210</a></i>). The chief is now good friends with her mother, Georgia (Stella Stevens). Lana was conceived during a period where her mother was separated from her husband and she and Gillespie had an affair. However, she was never divorced from her husband Ken. In the episode "The More Things Change", Gillespie and DeLong share their first kiss after he drives her home after attending a party and he finally reveals his affections for her. They both lament the very likely possibility that a relationship between the two of them would not be accepted by most in Sparta. Other storylines include Sweet's quest to discover the truth about the murder of his grandfather in 1948 and those responsible for it (a story loosely based on the murder of <a href="/wiki/Medgar_Evers" title="Medgar Evers">Medgar Evers</a>, "<a href="/wiki/Sweet,_Sweet_Blues" title="Sweet, Sweet Blues">Sweet, Sweet Blues</a>"<sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>) and racists sabotaging a celebration honoring a Sparta civil rights pioneer in "Odessa", the first of six episodes written by Nicholas, who, despite enjoying her role as Harriet, was bothered by the show's lack of black writers and complained about it to O'Connor, who admitted that she was right. He asked Nicholas to write a script, which she did. When she submitted it, O'Connor liked it so much that he encouraged her to write others for the series.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In the two-part season finale "Sanctuary" and "The Law on Trial", Sheriff McComb has Gillespie and Tibbs charged with obstruction and harboring a fugitive after an escaped prisoner-- a Salvadoran immigrant seeking asylum-- is given sanctuary in a monastery and the two don't arrest him when he refuses to give himself up. The prisoner is later shot and killed in a standoff with the sheriff's department. Father DiMarco's heartfelt summation to the jury contributes to the case being dismissed (though that is not revealed until the start of season six). Between court appearances, Harriet pays Gillespie an inconspicuous visit and the two share a tender and romantic moment. The conflict between Sheriff McComb and Chief Gillespie lingers throughout the following season, affecting every crossover dealing with subsequent interactions between McComb's deputies and Gillespie's officers. It isn't until the arrival of Chief Hampton Forbes (Weathers) in season seven that we see Sheriff McComb and Chief Gillespie as friends again. The episode and the season end with Gillespie and Tibbs awaiting the verdict in their respective residences on the evening the case is given to the jury. At the end of the original and final broadcast on <a href="/wiki/NBC" title="NBC">NBC</a>, it was revealed that the jury couldn't reach a verdict, a mistrial is declared and the two men are freed. Bill and Harriet spend the night together for the first time. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="1992–1993"><span id="1992.E2.80.931993"></span>1992–1993</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: 1992–1993"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>At the beginning of season six, <i>In the Heat of the Night</i> moved from <a href="/wiki/NBC" title="NBC">NBC</a> to <a href="/wiki/CBS" title="CBS">CBS</a>. It was not publicly known at the time when season five ended whether or not the show would continue. NBC ultimately decided not to renew the series, although the ratings were still respectable and there were still some open-ended plots that hadn't been resolved. A deal was made with CBS to keep the show on the air. Originally, CBS opted to pick up the series for only a set of six two-hour movies. However, it was eventually picked up for a full 22-episode order. The first two episodes of the season see the secret romance between Gillespie and DeLong intensify. They frequently meet in a studio apartment that doubles as Harriet's art studio. In the midst of all this, Harriet's son, Eugene, is a witness to a drive-by shooting involving rival drug gangs. Other highlights from the season include a faded country music singer (<a href="/wiki/Robert_Goulet" title="Robert Goulet">Robert Goulet</a>) who ends up committing murder; the reconciliation between Gillespie and his estranged daughter Lana; and a two-part episode directed by <a href="/wiki/Larry_Hagman" title="Larry Hagman">Larry Hagman</a> involves a white supremacist politician whose visit to Sparta has a couple of ulterior motives, including aspirations for a presidential run ("The Leftover Man"). <a href="/wiki/Burgess_Meredith" title="Burgess Meredith">Burgess Meredith</a> (in one of his last acting roles) also appears as an eccentric judge overseeing a case (he would return for a brief cameo in season seven). The season ends with Bill and Harriet forced to confront the impending execution of Harriet's ex-husband Vic (who was part of a robbery in Season Four where someone was killed and Vic was tried and convicted of first degree murder) and Eugene's disapproval of their relationship. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Howard_Rollins'_firing"><span id="Howard_Rollins.27_firing"></span>Howard Rollins' firing</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: Howard Rollins' firing"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Rollins was ultimately dropped from the show for health reasons plus three outstanding warrants in Rockdale County and the city of Covington.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> He was replaced for season seven by Weathers. Filming began on April 28, 1993. Rollins had not been seen on the set since January 1993, when season six wrapped. Despite numerous attempts by the media to contact Rollins, who was believed to be living in New York City, only O'Connor was in contact with Rollins during this period with the hope that Rollins would get his legal and personal issues resolved and return to the series, but unfortunately, that was not the case. After season 6, Johnson, Thorne and Rollins left the series. Rollins would return occasionally as a guest star, while Johnson took a starring role on the final season of <a href="/wiki/Fox_Broadcasting_Company" title="Fox Broadcasting Company">Fox</a>'s <a href="/wiki/Sketch_comedy" title="Sketch comedy">sketch comedy</a> series <i><a href="/wiki/In_Living_Color" title="In Living Color">In Living Color</a></i> and Thorne left to pursue a career as a novelist and screenwriter; the character of Sweet simply vanished from the series without any explanation. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Seventh_season,_1993–1994"><span id="Seventh_season.2C_1993.E2.80.931994"></span>Seventh season, 1993–1994</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: Seventh season, 1993–1994"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Season 7 opens with Bill Gillespie being forced out of office and former Memphis, Tennessee Police Department Inspector Hampton Forbes (<a href="/wiki/Carl_Weathers" title="Carl Weathers">Carl Weathers</a>) is hired as the new police chief by the city council. After nearly three decades on the Sparta police force, Gillespie does not receive a new contract from the council because his romance with Harriet is now out in the open, although other excuses are made for his dismissal. He seems to be accepting of the outcome, while Harriet doesn't hesitate to show her fury over the decision. The transition from Gillespie being in charge to Forbes taking over is slightly uneasy at the very start, but soon things smooth out. </p><p>However, Gillespie is soon appointed as the acting Sheriff of Newton County when Nathan McComb suffers a heart attack and is too ill to continue his duties. This new appointment for Gillespie angers several on the city council. They want an investigation, which is upsetting and hurtful for Harriet. </p><p>Other cases involve a nine-year-old girl being killed because of a drunk driver (Hagman directed), the return of Parker's stepfather, Roy Eversole (<a href="/wiki/Pat_Hingle" title="Pat Hingle">Pat Hingle</a>, first seen in Season 6) and his lady friend Miss Roda (<a href="/wiki/Anne_Meara" title="Anne Meara">Anne Meara</a>). Gillespie must once again confront his racist past when a new synagogue moves into Sparta and the rabbi (<a href="/wiki/Jerry_Stiller" title="Jerry Stiller">Jerry Stiller</a>) detests Gillespie, who in the 1960s was serving as an officer on the Sparta Police, for his failure to oppose the then serving anti-Semitic Sparta police chief, who was then Gillespie's boss, and who refused to investigate the burning of the local synagogue back in the 1960s. Lana Farren also makes one final appearance as Bill's daughter in the Hagman-directed episode "A Love Lost", in which he must protect her from a former boyfriend who is involved in a gun-running scheme with someone in Sparta. </p><p>Virgil Tibbs returns from Jackson with his juris doctor — which explains his absence – in his new capacity as attorney in three episodes ("Virgil Tibbs: Attorney At Law", "Good Cop, Bad Cop", "Conspiracy of One") and assists the Sparta P.D. with several cases after having moved into Ben Taylor's law office. Virgil reveals to Gillespie in "Virgil Tibbs: Attorney At Law" that Althea has left him and took their twins back home to Philadelphia to live, fed up with her life in Sparta and traumatized from all that had happened to her while living there. She didn't want to make the marriage work and later files for divorce, which a heartbroken Virgil does not contest, although he has difficulty accepting his new status as a divorced man. The episode "Conspiracy of One", where Virgil suspects that one of his law firm's clients orchestrated an "accident" which resulted in his spouse's death, marks Howard Rollins' final appearance on the show (air date February 2, 1994). </p><p>In the episode "Ches and the Grand Lady", <a href="/wiki/Bobby_Short" title="Bobby Short">Bobby Short</a> reprises his role as Ches Collins, the blues musician from "Sweet, Sweet Blues" in Season 5. The episode also guest stars <a href="/wiki/Jean_Simmons" title="Jean Simmons">Jean Simmons</a> as the dying grand dame of Sparta who also happens to be Ches's old flame and the overbearing great-aunt of Lonnie Jamison. Harriet's son Eugene once again finds himself at odds with the police, endangering his parole trying to help a friend. Maybelle Chesboro (played by <a href="/wiki/Elizabeth_Ashley" title="Elizabeth Ashley">Elizabeth Ashley</a>), the ex-madam, returns. (The role of Maybelle was initially played by <a href="/wiki/Diane_Ladd" title="Diane Ladd">Diane Ladd</a> in Season 3's "Home Is Where The Heart Is".) She has returned to operate a legal phone sex business. </p><p>Finally, in "Dangerous Engagement", Gillespie and DeLong tie the knot at the same sanctuary involved in the "Sanctuary" case from Season 5. Chief Forbes serves as best man. </p><p>The season and the TV series wraps up with a two-hour <a href="/wiki/Movie_of_the_week" class="mw-redirect" title="Movie of the week">movie of the week</a>, "<a href="/wiki/Give_Me_Your_Life" class="mw-redirect" title="Give Me Your Life">Give Me Your Life</a>", starring <a href="/wiki/Peter_Fonda" title="Peter Fonda">Peter Fonda</a> as Marcantony Appfel, leader of a religious cult in which the sexual abuse of children is rumored to have occurred. The story (by O'Connor and written by Cynthia Deming & William J. Royce) is loosely based on the real-life drama in Waco, Texas, in 1993 with the cult leader <a href="/wiki/David_Koresh" title="David Koresh">David Koresh</a> and his followers. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="TV_movies_and_Hugh_O'Connor's_death"><span id="TV_movies_and_Hugh_O.27Connor.27s_death"></span>TV movies and Hugh O'Connor's death</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: TV movies and Hugh O'Connor's death"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Four made-for-television movies were produced during the 1994–95 season, which was supposedly the continuation of the series. Once released on DVD, these combined movies were considered the eighth season of the show.<sup id="cite_ref-Season_8_DVD_10-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Season_8_DVD-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The movies were: </p> <ul><li><i>A Matter of Justice</i></li> <li><i>Who Was Geli Bendl?</i> (directed by Larry Hagman)</li> <li><i>By Duty Bound</i></li> <li><i>Grow Old Along with Me</i></li></ul> <p>Carroll's son and series cast member <a href="/wiki/Hugh_O%27Connor" title="Hugh O'Connor">Hugh O'Connor</a> died by suicide nearly two months before the fourth film aired, having been struggling with a substance abuse issue since his teen years which culminated in his demise.<sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> When the film was broadcast in its original, two-hour format, a black screen was added in between the intro tag and the opening title; it read "In memory of Hugh O'Connor: 1962–1995". </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Writing_staff">Writing staff</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: Writing staff"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li>Carroll O'Connor (1989–1995) as Matt Harris</li> <li>Mark Rodgers (1989–1990)</li> <li>David Moessinger (1988–1989)</li> <li>Jeri Taylor (1988–1989)</li> <li>Edward Deblasio (1989–1990)</li> <li>Nancy Bond (1988–1990)</li> <li>William J Royce (1989–1994)</li> <li>Cynthia Deming (1990–1994)</li> <li>Robert Bielak (1990–1991)</li> <li>Mitch Schneider (1990–1994)</li> <li>Joe Gannon (1991–1994)</li> <li>Denise Nicholas (1992–1995)</li> <li>Terri Erwin (1989–1991)</li> <li>Bill Taub (1991)</li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Cast_and_characters">Cast and characters</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: Cast and characters"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1251242444">.mw-parser-output .ambox{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;border-left:10px solid #36c;background-color:#fbfbfb;box-sizing:border-box}.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+link+.ambox{margin-top:-1px}html body.mediawiki .mw-parser-output .ambox.mbox-small-left{margin:4px 1em 4px 0;overflow:hidden;width:238px;border-collapse:collapse;font-size:88%;line-height:1.25em}.mw-parser-output .ambox-speedy{border-left:10px solid #b32424;background-color:#fee7e6}.mw-parser-output .ambox-delete{border-left:10px solid #b32424}.mw-parser-output .ambox-content{border-left:10px solid #f28500}.mw-parser-output .ambox-style{border-left:10px solid #fc3}.mw-parser-output .ambox-move{border-left:10px solid #9932cc}.mw-parser-output .ambox-protection{border-left:10px solid #a2a9b1}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-text{border:none;padding:0.25em 0.5em;width:100%}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image{border:none;padding:2px 0 2px 0.5em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-imageright{border:none;padding:2px 0.5em 2px 0;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-empty-cell{border:none;padding:0;width:1px}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image-div{width:52px}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .ambox{margin:0 10%}}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .ambox{display:none!important}}</style><table class="box-Summarize_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-style" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg/40px-Edit-clear.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg/60px-Edit-clear.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg/80px-Edit-clear.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="48" data-file-height="48" /></span></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>may be <a href="/wiki/Help:Section#Section_size_policies" title="Help:Section">too long</a> and excessively detailed.</b><span class="hide-when-compact"> Please consider summarizing the material.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">October 2020</span>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Main">Main</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=16" title="Edit section: Main"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <table class="wikitable"> <tbody><tr> <th>Actor</th> <th>Role </th></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Carroll_O%27Connor" title="Carroll O'Connor">Carroll O'Connor</a></td> <td>Starred in the lead role of William O. "Bill" Gillespie, a tough but honorable small city police chief. Initially somewhat resentful of Virgil Tibbs, Gillespie later becomes very close to Virgil and the rest of the Tibbs family. Their relationship in the TV series is much less adversarial than it is in the film. For the first six seasons, he is the chief of the Sparta Police Department until the city council fires him at the beginning of the 7th season. He becomes interim County Sheriff after the previous Sheriff becomes ill. A World War II veteran, he identifies himself as serving with a black man in the 227th Military Police (it is assumed the 227th was a colored unit and Gillespie was the commanding officer) and has a penchant for wearing high-powered sidearms such as the <a href="/wiki/Colt_Python" title="Colt Python">Colt Python</a> and later a brushed chrome <a href="/wiki/Desert_Eagle" title="Desert Eagle">Desert Eagle</a>. Gillespie was married to Anna, his Italian war bride whom he brought home from his WWII service in Italy; both she and their son would die in childbirth. He has an older daughter, Lana, played by Christine Elise. Gillespie eventually falls in love with and marries Harriet DeLong, the much younger black city Councilwoman. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Howard_Rollins" title="Howard Rollins">Howard Rollins</a></td> <td>Starred in the lead role of Detective/Chief of Detectives/Captain <a href="/wiki/Virgil_Tibbs" class="mw-redirect" title="Virgil Tibbs">Virgil Tibbs</a>. Unlike the movie where he was just a visitor passing through, in the series, Virgil is a Sparta native who later moves north and becomes a police detective in Philadelphia, PA. He returns to Sparta after the death of his mother and is offered a job as Chief of Detectives and the rank of Captain with the city police department. Meticulous and highly intelligent, Tibbs initially has a supercilious attitude toward those in the department and frequently criticizes the force for not being more contemporary or tech-savvy. He and Gillespie butt heads initially, but soon become close friends; Gillespie becomes godfather to Virgil and Althea's twins. Tibbs also clashed with Bubba early in the series, but after helping Bubba clear his name during a case where he is falsely accused of rape, they become good friends, as well. Though some city council members want to make him chief, Tibbs prefers to work with Gillespie. A sensitive young man, he expresses himself openly when something affects him. After continued legal problems, Rollins was dropped from the series in 1993, and Tibbs was written out as having left the community following his graduation from law school and becoming an attorney in private practice. Rollins would return as a guest star several times during the 7th season in his new profession, attorney at law. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Alan_Autry" title="Alan Autry">Alan Autry</a></td> <td>First cast as Officer, then later Sergeant, Lieutenant, and finally Captain V. L. "Bubba" Skinner. Bubba is initially portrayed as a <a href="/wiki/Redneck_(stereotype)" class="mw-redirect" title="Redneck (stereotype)">redneck</a>. Intimidating and physically powerful, he is never afraid to use force when needed. He is also a sort of ladies' man around Sparta, as he always seemed to have a new girlfriend. He is known to turn female heads, including that of Althea Tibbs, who refers to him as a "hunk". Bubba deeply resents Virgil's presence on the police force at first, clashing with him on several occasions. He eventually became close friends with the Tibbs family, particularly after Virgil helped clear his name in a false allegation of rape. As the series progresses, Bubba is shown to be a brave and honorable man who is more complex and intelligent than people give him credit for. Bubba also becomes more racially tolerant, referring to bigots and racists as "knotheads". Bubba is from a large family and is shown to be an expert shot with a rifle. When the Sparta police need a sniper (such as when Captain Tibbs's wife Althea is taken hostage in the episode "...And Then You Die") it is Skinner who takes the shot. Bubba carries a <a href="/wiki/Smith_%26_Wesson_Model_10" title="Smith & Wesson Model 10">Smith & Wesson Model 10</a> revolver in his belt holster like most of the other Sparta police officers. In Season 1, Bubba's rank seemed to be patrolman but is never explicitly stated. By Season 2's premiere, he is a Sergeant. Eventually, he rises to the rank of Captain before Gillespie leaves the Sparta Police. In Season 5, it is revealed that Bubba's first and middle initials are V. L. Bubba also always wears "white socks" with his uniform. Bubba usually is the one who is asked to arrest the tougher suspects due to his large size and immense strength. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Anne-Marie_Johnson" title="Anne-Marie Johnson">Anne-Marie Johnson</a></td> <td>Starred for six seasons as Virgil's wife, teacher and counselor Althea Tibbs. She herself was born and raised in Philadelphia and had never been south before the death of her mother-in-law. As the daughter of a retired police detective, Althea's life in Sparta is difficult: she is held captive by a murderous fugitive at the end of the first season, terrorized by an unstable ex-boyfriend and a racist mob at her home in season two, raped by Stephen Ainslee in season three and later suffered a mental breakdown after witnessing the suicide of one of her students. She is a caring individual who wants to assist her students and those in her community. At the end of season three, she announces her pregnancy-- something she and Virgil had been trying for quite some time-- and in the Season 4 premiere, it is revealed she is pregnant with twins. She has a close father/daughter-type relationship with Chief Gillespie and supposedly has a close friendship with Bubba Skinner, who discovers that she had been raped and transports her to the hospital. Althea did not reappear for season seven and her character was written out as Althea had been separated from Virgil and moved back to Philadelphia. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Lois_Nettleton" title="Lois Nettleton">Lois Nettleton</a></td> <td>Starred for two seasons as Joanne St. John, the owner of the Magnolia Cafe, a popular eatery in Sparta (as seen in season two's opening) and Gillespie's love interest. After it is revealed that Joanne was once a <a href="/wiki/Prostitute" class="mw-redirect" title="Prostitute">prostitute</a>, she and Gillespie broke up and she eventually left Sparta out of shame, although she does appear in several episodes afterward and was in the season two finale with Gillespie when he was kidnapped. She is briefly mentioned in "Anniversary", but does not appear. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/David_Hart_(actor)" title="David Hart (actor)">David Hart</a></td> <td>Portrayed Officer Parker Williams. A very perceptive character, he genuinely loves the people of Sparta, whom he has sworn to serve and protect, and he often senses when someone is hurting. Like his movie counterpart Courtney, he habitually eavesdrops on the conversations of others. Parker knows everybody in town and is able to get through to them because of his kindness. Parker generally sits behind the dispatcher's desk, handling the telephone and radio, although he is also assigned to patrol duty. In 1994, he rises to the rank of Senior Sergeant. Parker is a <a href="/wiki/Vietnam_War" title="Vietnam War">Vietnam</a> <a href="/wiki/Veteran" title="Veteran">veteran</a>, as explained in the episode "My Name is Hank". As the <a href="/wiki/Comic_relief" title="Comic relief">comic relief</a> of the show, Parker always has a Mason jar of sweet tea on his desk, including when he is at the Tibbs' house for Christmas in the episode "Blessings", holding his tea jar with a Christmas bow stuck on it. He also has the distinction as the only cast member who never missed an episode during the entire run of the series. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Christian_LeBlanc" title="Christian LeBlanc">Christian LeBlanc</a></td> <td>Starred for the first season as Junior Abernathy, a young and inexperienced policeman often chastised by Detective Tibbs or Chief Gillespie for not knowing proper police procedure, he often rises to the occasion to assist in arrests or at other incidents in Sparta. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Geoffrey_Thorne" title="Geoffrey Thorne">Geoffrey Thorne</a></td> <td>Starred for five seasons as Officer Wilson Sweet, the cocky, young rookie fresh out of the police academy who, aside from Detective Tibbs, is one of the first black men to join Sparta's police force. He is very focused and detailed about what his goals were, as he spoke quite often of going to law school. He loves to read, mostly on topics that can assist him with his work as a police officer, as well as African American literature. With Tibbs as a reluctant mentor, he is well liked and a clever and driven asset to the department. A number of the racially conscious storylines on the show involved his character. His ambition is to rise in the ranks of the Sparta police force and become Sparta's first black Police Chief, a part which was eventually played by Carl Weathers. By Season 5, he had been promoted to the rank of Sergeant. His character was eliminated when Thorne chose to exit the show after the sixth season ended and his departure is never mentioned or explained. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Hugh_O%27Connor" title="Hugh O'Connor">Hugh O'Connor</a></td> <td>Recurring season one, made a main cast member in season two. As Lonnie Jamison, he is an officer and later, acting investigator on the Sparta police force. Lonnie eventually rises to the rank of Lieutenant and Acting Chief of Detectives. A very capable officer who takes his job seriously, he usually has a serious and straightforward personality, with a dry humor that always fits the moment, and is an amiable and friendly person overall. One of the many facets of Lonnie's character is a fierce, undying loyalty to his friends, primarily displayed over several episodes as Lonnie's friendship with Harriet DeLong's son Eugene. Lonnie is Eugene's track team coach at Sparta High, and it is Lonnie Jamison who is able to get through to the young man when Eugene's father is being tried for murder, episode "No Other Road". Lonnie is a crack shot with a rifle and is often selected by Chief Gillespie to handle a situation requiring a long range rifle shot, as in episodes "My Name is Hank", "An Eye for An Eye" and "Crackdown". Along with Bubba, the Sparta Police has a very lethal sniper team. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Carl_Weathers" title="Carl Weathers">Carl Weathers</a></td> <td>Joined the cast in the final season as Police Chief Hampton Forbes. Handpicked by the Sparta city council to lead the department after the controversial firing of Bill Gillespie, Forbes is the first black chief of the department. He recently retired from the Memphis, TN, police department, after 20 years, serving in one of the four police districts in the city of Memphis as an inspector. Forbes becomes friends with Gillespie and often works closely with him when Gillespie becomes acting county sheriff. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Crystal_R._Fox" title="Crystal R. Fox">Crystal R. Fox</a></td> <td>Cast as Officer LuAnn Corbin in Season 3. After the first black woman to join the force, Officer Christine Rankin, died in the line of duty on her first day on the job, Corbin is recruited as her replacement. LuAnn often drove Gillespie around and was the go-between for him and Harriet before the two of them went public with their relationship. LuAnn was also a singer and was given several opportunities to showcase her voice on the series, in such episodes such as "Odessa" and "Singin' The Blues". </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Denise_Nicholas" title="Denise Nicholas">Denise Nicholas</a></td> <td>First joined the cast in a recurring role in 1989 as Sparta City Councilwoman Harriet DeLong. A divorcée, her relationship with Chief Gillespie is deeply adversarial in the beginning, and the two clash often when she first appears on the show. Gillespie once referred to her as "The Dragon Lady". However, during the series, Harriet sees Gillespie's softer, more caring side and begins to think more fondly of him. By the time Nicholas becomes a series regular, Harriet and Gillespie are romantically involved, greatly upsetting her son, Eugene, and others in Sparta who are opposed to interracial relationships. She is close friends with Virgil and is also a gifted artist. In the two-part episode, "Citizen Trundel", Harriet's sister, Natalie, is the mistress of conniving millionaire businessman, V.J. Trundel, who later has her murdered. They have a son named Eric from their illicit affair. Harriet eventually gains custody of him after Trundel deliberately crashes his private airplane after a confrontation about the murder with Gillespie. Emily Trundel, V.J.'s estranged widow, attempts to gain custody of Eric two seasons later, but only succeeds in gaining visitation rights, something Harriet deeply opposes. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Randall_Franks" title="Randall Franks">Randall Franks</a></td> <td>Played Officer Randy Goode (Season 2–6) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=C.C._Taylor&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="C.C. Taylor (page does not exist)">C.C. Taylor</a></td> <td>Officer Charlie Peake (Season 3–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Dee_Shaw&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Dee Shaw (page does not exist)">Dee Shaw</a></td> <td>Officer Dee Shepard (Season 3–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Harvey_E._Lee_Jr.&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Harvey E. Lee Jr. (page does not exist)">Harvey E. Lee Jr.</a></td> <td>Played Officer Ken Covey. (Season 6–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td>Mark Johnson</td> <td>Played Officer Luke Everett. (Season 6–8) </td></tr></tbody></table> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Recurring">Recurring</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=17" title="Edit section: Recurring"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <table class="wikitable"> <tbody><tr> <th>Actor</th> <th>Role </th></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Thom_Gossom_Jr." title="Thom Gossom Jr.">Thom Gossom Jr.</a></td> <td>Ted Marcus, Sparta city councilman and attorney (Seasons 2–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Tonea_Stewart" title="Tonea Stewart">Tonea Stewart</a></td> <td>Virgil's widowed maternal aunt Etta Kibbee. She resides with Virgil and Althea Tibbs and is caretaker of their twins, William Calvin and Sarah Ruth. (Seasons 4–7) Prior to her role as Kibbee, Stewart also appeared on the Season 2 episode "Prisoners" as Ms. Gray, the mother of slain prison victim, Eric Gray. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Dan_Biggers" title="Dan Biggers">Dan Biggers</a></td> <td>Dr. Frank "Doc" Robb, physician and medical examiner (Season 2–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Wilbur_Fitzgerald" title="Wilbur Fitzgerald">Wilbur Fitzgerald</a></td> <td>District Attorney Gerard Darnelle (Seasons 3–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td>Rugg Williams</td> <td>Eugene Glendon, Harriet DeLong's teenage son (Seasons 4–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Afemo_Omilami" title="Afemo Omilami">Afemo Omilami</a></td> <td>Jimmy Dawes, ex-con who becomes a police informant (Seasons 2–6). He was also cast in a Season 7 episode in a different role as an Atlanta detective. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Christine_Elise" title="Christine Elise">Christine Elise</a></td> <td>Lana Farren, Gillespie's daughter by Georgia Farren as the result of a long-ago love affair. They had no relationship while Lana was growing up. (Seasons 5–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Bob_Penny&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Bob Penny (page does not exist)">Bob Penny</a></td> <td>Louis Alvin Epp, corrupt realtor and attorney in Sparta with mob connections (Seasons 3–6) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Scott_Brian_Higgs&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Scott Brian Higgs (page does not exist)">Scott Brian Higgs</a></td> <td>Randy Calhoun, Lana's quirky and odd neighbor, although he appeared on the show as far back as Season 3, long before the storyline about Gillespie having an illegitimate daughter was created. (Seasons 3–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wallace_Merck&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Wallace Merck (page does not exist)">Wallace Merck</a></td> <td>Earl "Holly" Colmer Sr., councilman and nemesis to Bill Gillespie, Virgil Tibbs and Harriet DeLong (Seasons 5–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Karen_Carlson" title="Karen Carlson">Karen Carlson</a></td> <td>Sarah Hallisey, attorney (Seasons 5–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Adair_Simon&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Adair Simon (page does not exist)">Adair Simon</a></td> <td>Emily Trundel, wife of millionaire V.J. Trundel, who impregnated Harriet DeLong's younger sister Natalie during an illicit affair. (Seasons 3, 5) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Burgess_Meredith" title="Burgess Meredith">Burgess Meredith</a></td> <td>Judge Cully (Seasons 6–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Stuart_Culpepper&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Stuart Culpepper (page does not exist)">Stuart Culpepper</a></td> <td>Judge Colter, Judge Henry Sims (Seasons 3, 7). He also appeared in other episodes during the run of the series playing other characters. </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Joe_Don_Baker" title="Joe Don Baker">Joe Don Baker</a></td> <td>Captain Tom Dugan, a retired Mississippi Highway Patrol police captain, Dugan appeared on the last four episodes of the second season. Baker was brought in as a stand-in for Carroll O'Connor while O'Connor was recovering from open-heart surgery. Dugan is placed in the department by the <a href="/wiki/FBI" class="mw-redirect" title="FBI">FBI</a> to uncover a plot by a <a href="/wiki/White_supremacist" class="mw-redirect" title="White supremacist">white supremacist</a> group to assassinate a civil rights leader during his visit to Sparta. Dugan is murdered by these same white supremacists at the end of the second season. Dugan's godson, who had become involved with these people, later agrees to help the police. (Season 2) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Ron_Culbreth&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Ron Culbreth (page does not exist)">Ron Culbreth</a></td> <td>Sheriff Nathan McComb, the former Newton County sheriff. Culbreth appeared on nine episodes as Sheriff McComb. In the 7th season, McComb becomes too ill to continue his duties, and Gillespie is appointed as acting sheriff in his place. Prior to his appearances as McComb, Culbreth also appeared on the episodes "The Hammer and the Glove" and "Missing" in guest roles. (Seasons 3–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Pat_Hingle" title="Pat Hingle">Pat Hingle</a></td> <td>Roy Eversole, Parker Williams' step-father. Hot tempered, Eversole had a great deal of difficulty maintaining steady employment. He was once a murder suspect after getting into a heated argument with a former employer, who is subsequently found dead a short time later. (Seasons 6–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Fran_Bennett" title="Fran Bennett">Fran Bennett</a></td> <td>Virgil's maternal aunt Ruda Gibson (Seasons 4–6) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/John_Wesley_(actor)" title="John Wesley (actor)">John Wesley</a></td> <td>Vic Glendon, Harriet DeLong's ex-husband and Eugene's father (Seasons 4–6) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Christopher_Allport" title="Christopher Allport">Christopher Allport</a></td> <td>District Attorney Myron Dutton (Season 2) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Dennis_Lipscomb" title="Dennis Lipscomb">Dennis Lipscomb</a></td> <td>Sparta Mayor Jim Findlay (Season 1) </td></tr> <tr> <td>Michael Burgess</td> <td>Tyrell Gibson, Virgil Tibbs' younger cousin and Ruda Gibson's son (Season 4–6) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Maureen_Dowdell&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Maureen Dowdell (page does not exist)">Maureen Dowdell</a></td> <td>Nurse Tracey Boggs, Bubba's girlfriend. Also played Nurse Jill and Lydia Kinsey. (Seasons 5–8) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/Jen_Harper" title="Jen Harper">Jen Harper</a></td> <td>Dr. Winona Day (Seasons 5–7) </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/w/index.php?title=Christopher_Lobban&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Christopher Lobban (page does not exist)">Christopher Lobban</a></td> <td>Bobby Johnson, a youngster that Gillespie takes in when one of his brothers murders the other, and his grief-stricken mother leaves Sparta and eventually passes away. Bobby wants to remain in Sparta so he can attend Sparta High once he's old enough. Althea Tibbs is a teacher and counselor at the high school and it was Bobby's slain brother's wish that Bobby be mentored by her. Althea initially wants Bobby to move in with her and Virgil, but Virgil is not sold on the idea. To quell the tensions between the Tibbses over this, Gillespie volunteers to keep the boy in his home. When Gillespie moves into his new home in Season 7, Bobby moves along with him. (Seasons 4–7) </td></tr> </tbody></table> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Guest_stars">Guest stars</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=18" title="Edit section: Guest stars"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>During the series' 7-season run, many actors and actresses have made guest appearances and others were newcomers who went on to become well-known. Some of those appearing in <i>In the Heat of the Night</i> episodes were: </p> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1184024115">.mw-parser-output .div-col{margin-top:0.3em;column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .div-col-small{font-size:90%}.mw-parser-output .div-col-rules{column-rule:1px solid #aaa}.mw-parser-output .div-col dl,.mw-parser-output .div-col ol,.mw-parser-output .div-col ul{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .div-col li,.mw-parser-output .div-col dd{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}</style><div class="div-col" style="column-width: 25em;min-width: min(25em, 100%);"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Claude_Akins" title="Claude Akins">Claude Akins</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ed_Ames" title="Ed Ames">Ed Ames</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mitchell_Anderson" title="Mitchell Anderson">Mitchell Anderson</a></li> <li>Alan Arbus</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Elizabeth_Ashley" title="Elizabeth Ashley">Elizabeth Ashley</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dana_Barron" title="Dana Barron">Dana Barron</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jennifer_Bassey" title="Jennifer Bassey">Jennifer Bassey</a></li> <li>Michael Beck</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jason_Beghe" title="Jason Beghe">Jason Beghe</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vanessa_Bell_Calloway" title="Vanessa Bell Calloway">Vanessa Bell Calloway</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Paul_Benjamin" title="Paul Benjamin">Paul Benjamin</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/James_Best" title="James Best">James Best</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Taurean_Blacque" title="Taurean Blacque">Taurean Blacque</a></li> <li>Larry Black</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Susan_Blakely" title="Susan Blakely">Susan Blakely</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wayne_Brady" title="Wayne Brady">Wayne Brady</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Randy_Brooks_(actor)" title="Randy Brooks (actor)">Randy Brooks</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tony_Burton" title="Tony Burton">Tony Burton</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson_Byrd" title="Thomas Jefferson Byrd">Thomas Jefferson Byrd</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Martha_Byrne" title="Martha Byrne">Martha Byrne</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/John_Davis_Chandler" title="John Davis Chandler">John Davis Chandler</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Byron_Cherry" title="Byron Cherry">Byron Cherry</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kevin_Conway_(actor)" title="Kevin Conway (actor)">Kevin Conway</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Franklin_Cover" title="Franklin Cover">Franklin Cover</a></li> <li>Maury Covington</li> <li>Nicolas Cowan</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gary_Crosby_(actor)" title="Gary Crosby (actor)">Gary Crosby</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ken_Curtis" title="Ken Curtis">Ken Curtis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/John_Diehl" title="John Diehl">John Diehl</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Art_Evans_(actor)" title="Art Evans (actor)">Art Evans</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Frances_Fisher" title="Frances Fisher">Frances Fisher</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Louise_Fletcher" title="Louise Fletcher">Louise Fletcher</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Peter_Fonda" title="Peter Fonda">Peter Fonda</a></li> <li>Jeffrey Buckner Ford</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Don_Galloway" title="Don Galloway">Don Galloway</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Willie_Gault" title="Willie Gault">Willie Gault</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Marla_Gibbs" title="Marla Gibbs">Marla Gibbs</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thomas_Ian_Griffith" title="Thomas Ian Griffith">Thomas Ian Griffith</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Walton_Goggins" title="Walton Goggins">Walton Goggins</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Robert_Goulet" title="Robert Goulet">Robert Goulet</a></li> <li>J.D. Hall</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mariska_Hargitay" title="Mariska Hargitay">Mariska Hargitay</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kim_Hawthorne" title="Kim Hawthorne">Kim Hawthorne</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tiger_Haynes" title="Tiger Haynes">Tiger Haynes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tippi_Hedren" title="Tippi Hedren">Tippi Hedren</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Earl_Holliman" title="Earl Holliman">Earl Holliman</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Michael_Horton_(actor)" title="Michael Horton (actor)">Michael Horton</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Iman_(model)" title="Iman (model)">Iman</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Adrienne-Joi_Johnson" title="Adrienne-Joi Johnson">Adrienne-Joi Johnson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Laura_Johnson" title="Laura Johnson">Laura Johnson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mickey_Jones" title="Mickey Jones">Mickey Jones</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ren%C3%A9e_Jones" title="Renée Jones">Renée Jones</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stacy_Keach" title="Stacy Keach">Stacy Keach</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ken_Kercheval" title="Ken Kercheval">Ken Kercheval</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bruce_Kirby_(actor)" title="Bruce Kirby (actor)">Bruce Kirby</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Diane_Ladd" title="Diane Ladd">Diane Ladd</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ted_Lange" title="Ted Lange">Ted Lange</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mitchell_Laurance" title="Mitchell Laurance">Mitchell Laurance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kenny_Leon" title="Kenny Leon">Kenny Leon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ketty_Lester" title="Ketty Lester">Ketty Lester</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geoffrey_Lewis_(actor)" title="Geoffrey Lewis (actor)">Geoffrey Lewis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Josh_Lucas" title="Josh Lucas">Josh Lucas</a> (as Joshua Lucas)</li> <li>Marc Macaulay</li> <li>Ted Manson</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ken_Marshall" class="mw-redirect" title="Ken Marshall">Ken Marshall</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rod_Masterson" title="Rod Masterson">Rod Masterson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Whitman_Mayo" title="Whitman Mayo">Whitman Mayo</a></li> <li>Richard McKenzie</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bill_McKinney" title="Bill McKinney">Bill McKinney</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stephen_Nichols" title="Stephen Nichols">Stephen Nichols</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gail_O%27Grady" title="Gail O'Grady">Gail O'Grady</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lisa_Pelikan" title="Lisa Pelikan">Lisa Pelikan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Eric_Pierpoint" title="Eric Pierpoint">Eric Pierpoint</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Clifton_Powell" title="Clifton Powell">Clifton Powell</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Francesco_Quinn" title="Francesco Quinn">Francesco Quinn</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Logan_Ramsey" title="Logan Ramsey">Logan Ramsey</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lisa_Rieffel" title="Lisa Rieffel">Lisa Rieffel</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mark_Rolston" title="Mark Rolston">Mark Rolston</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sydne_Rome" title="Sydne Rome">Sydne Rome</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stephen_Root" title="Stephen Root">Stephen Root</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/William_Sadler_(Actor)" class="mw-redirect" title="William Sadler (Actor)">William Sadler</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/George_C._Scott" title="George C. Scott">George C. Scott</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Joe_Seneca" title="Joe Seneca">Joe Seneca</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Craig_Shoemaker" title="Craig Shoemaker">Craig Shoemaker</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bobby_Short" title="Bobby Short">Bobby Short</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sonny_Shroyer" title="Sonny Shroyer">Sonny Shroyer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jean_Simmons" title="Jean Simmons">Jean Simmons</a></li> <li>Michael Spound</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Marco_St._John" title="Marco St. John">Marco St. John</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stella_Stevens" title="Stella Stevens">Stella Stevens</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mel_Stewart" title="Mel Stewart">Mel Stewart</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jerry_Stiller" title="Jerry Stiller">Jerry Stiller</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Barbara_Stock" title="Barbara Stock">Barbara Stock</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Meshach_Taylor" title="Meshach Taylor">Meshach Taylor</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Christopher_Anne_Templeton" title="Christopher Anne Templeton">Christopher Templeton</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ernest_Lee_Thomas" title="Ernest Lee Thomas">Ernest Lee Thomas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Melvin_Van_Peebles" title="Melvin Van Peebles">Melvin Van Peebles</a></li> <li>Jordan Vaughn</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nana_Visitor" title="Nana Visitor">Nana Visitor</a></li> <li>Lou Walker</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Michael_Warren_(actor)" title="Michael Warren (actor)">Michael Warren</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Darnell_Williams" title="Darnell Williams">Darnell Williams</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gary_Anthony_Williams" title="Gary Anthony Williams">Gary Anthony Williams</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Traci_Wolfe" title="Traci Wolfe">Traci Wolfe</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sharon_Wyatt" title="Sharon Wyatt">Sharon Wyatt</a></li></ul></div> <p>Future <i><a href="/wiki/Dr._Quinn,_Medicine_Woman" title="Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman">Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman</a></i> stars <a href="/wiki/Helene_Udy" title="Helene Udy">Helene Udy</a>, <a href="/wiki/William_Shockley_(actor)" title="William Shockley (actor)">William Shockley</a> and <a href="/wiki/Chad_Allen_(actor)" title="Chad Allen (actor)">Chad Allen</a> made guest appearances. Future <i><a href="/wiki/Desperate_Housewives" title="Desperate Housewives">Desperate Housewives</a></i> star <a href="/wiki/Doug_Savant" title="Doug Savant">Doug Savant</a> and veteran actor <a href="/wiki/Kevin_McCarthy_(actor)" title="Kevin McCarthy (actor)">Kevin McCarthy</a> also made their guest appearances on the two-part <a href="/wiki/Television_pilot" title="Television pilot">pilot</a> episode, as well as <a href="/wiki/O._J._Simpson" title="O. J. Simpson">O. J. Simpson</a> (whom NBC executives originally wanted for the role of Virgil Tibbs before O'Connor selected Rollins), who made a <a href="/wiki/Cameo_appearance" title="Cameo appearance">cameo appearance</a> in Season 2. <a href="/wiki/William_Schallert" title="William Schallert">William Schallert</a>, who played Mayor Schubert in the original 1967 film, also made an appearance on the show in Season 4. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Broadcast_history">Broadcast history</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=19" title="Edit section: Broadcast history"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The series debuted as a <a href="/wiki/Midseason_replacement" class="mw-redirect" title="Midseason replacement">midseason replacement</a> for the <a href="/wiki/NBC" title="NBC">NBC</a> series <i><a href="/wiki/J.J._Starbuck" title="J.J. Starbuck">J.J. Starbuck</a>,</i> premiering on March 6, 1988. The series ran on the network until May 19, 1992, when it moved to <a href="/wiki/CBS" title="CBS">CBS</a> and aired until May 16, 1995. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Locations">Locations</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=20" title="Edit section: Locations"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Like the original movie, the television series also took place in a fictionalized version of <a href="/wiki/Sparta,_Mississippi" title="Sparta, Mississippi">Sparta, Mississippi</a>. While there is a real Sparta, the version of Sparta shown on television is very different from the real town. For example, the TV Sparta is situated along <a href="/wiki/Interstate_20" title="Interstate 20">Interstate 20</a>, while the real town is nowhere near any interstate. During the first season, Hammond, Louisiana was the site of the show's production. In the second season, the show was moved to <a href="/wiki/Georgia_(U.S._state)" title="Georgia (U.S. state)">Georgia</a>, to an area east of Atlanta and it remained there for the rest of its run. The principal area of Sparta was in fact downtown <a href="/wiki/Covington,_Georgia" title="Covington, Georgia">Covington, Georgia</a>. Rural scenes were filmed in a wide surrounding area, in the Georgia counties of <a href="/wiki/Newton_County,_Georgia" title="Newton County, Georgia">Newton</a> (where Covington is located), <a href="/wiki/Rockdale_County,_Georgia" title="Rockdale County, Georgia">Rockdale</a>, <a href="/wiki/Walton_County,_Georgia" title="Walton County, Georgia">Walton</a>, <a href="/wiki/Morgan_County,_Georgia" title="Morgan County, Georgia">Morgan</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Jasper_County,_Georgia" title="Jasper County, Georgia">Jasper</a>. Decatur in Dekalb County was used as a stand-in for an episode as the Mississippi Capital city of Jackson, and Atlanta itself was used in one episode, in which Bubba worked on a case there. In fact, during the series' run, many of the cast members had homes in the area and were often spotted in local restaurants and retail stores. The cast members would also go around to local schools to speak to students. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Broadcast_and_syndication">Broadcast and syndication</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=21" title="Edit section: Broadcast and syndication"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The series also airs in broadcast syndication on <a href="/wiki/Ovation_(American_TV_channel)" title="Ovation (American TV channel)">Ovation</a>. Ovation airs the show every Monday and Tuesday afternoon for five hours from 2:00 PM ET to 7:00 PM ET back to back. <a href="/wiki/NewsNation" title="NewsNation">WGN America</a> previously aired the series every weekday morning starting at 11AM ET for 4 hours usually until 3PM ET Monday through Thursday. WGN aired the show Fridays, too, at the same time. Ovation now has moved the show to Monday mornings from 8 AM to 2 PM as part of their "Morning Mysteries" crime and mystery drama block, and Thursdays at 10 PM/9 PM ET/CT (or sometimes 11 PM/10 PM ET/CT.). The show also aired Tuesdays nights at 7PM ET, but was scaled down to just a Thursday airing starting December 7, 2020. <a href="/wiki/MeTV" title="MeTV">MeTV</a> also acquired the rights to the show and it began airing in around either 2018 or 2019, running it every weekday beginning at 11AM ET/10AM CT. <a href="/wiki/MGM" class="mw-redirect" title="MGM">MGM</a>'s <a href="/wiki/ThisTV" class="mw-redirect" title="ThisTV">ThisTV</a> network, a classic movie-focused network, also airs the show weekdays. The show previously aired on <a href="/wiki/TNT_(American_TV_network)" title="TNT (American TV network)">TNT</a> from 1995 to 2005. The show has remained relatively strong in syndication to this day, particularly airing on some local stations. <a href="/wiki/Bounce_TV" title="Bounce TV">Bounce TV</a> began airing reruns of the series starting September 13, 2021. </p> <table class="wikitable"> <tbody><tr> <th>Season</th> <th>Time</th> <th>Rank</th> <th>Rating</th> <th>Viewers </th></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/1987%E2%80%9388_United_States_network_television_schedule" title="1987–88 United States network television schedule">1987–88</a></td> <td rowspan="4">Tuesday at 9:00–10:00 PM on NBC</td> <td>19</td> <td>17.0</td> <td>15,639,200 </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/1988%E2%80%9389_United_States_network_television_schedule" title="1988–89 United States network television schedule">1988–89</a></td> <td>18</td> <td>17.3</td> <td>15,564,900 </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/1989%E2%80%9390_United_States_network_television_schedule" title="1989–90 United States network television schedule">1989–90</a></td> <td>19</td> <td>16.9</td> <td>13,871,900 </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/1990%E2%80%9391_United_States_network_television_schedule" title="1990–91 United States network television schedule">1990–91</a></td> <td>21</td> <td>14.9 (tied with <i><a href="/wiki/Major_Dad" title="Major Dad">Major Dad</a></i>)</td> <td data-sort-value="" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;" class="table-na">— </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/1991%E2%80%9392_United_States_network_television_schedule" title="1991–92 United States network television schedule">1991–92</a></td> <td>Tuesday at 9:00–10:00 PM on NBC <small>(October 1, 1991 – January 7, 1992)</small><br />Tuesday at 8:00–9:00 PM on NBC <small>(January 14 – May 19, 1992)</small></td> <td>30</td> <td>13.1 (tied with <i><a href="/wiki/The_Golden_Girls" title="The Golden Girls">The Golden Girls</a></i>)</td> <td data-sort-value="" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;" class="table-na">— </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/1992%E2%80%9393_United_States_network_television_schedule" title="1992–93 United States network television schedule">1992–93</a></td> <td>Wednesday at 9:00–10:00 PM on CBS</td> <td>46</td> <td data-sort-value="" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;" class="table-na">—</td> <td>10,630,000 </td></tr> <tr> <td><a href="/wiki/1993%E2%80%9394_United_States_network_television_schedule" title="1993–94 United States network television schedule">1993–94</a></td> <td>Thursday at 8:00–9:00 PM on CBS <small>(September 16, 1993 – January 6, 1994)</small><br />Wednesday at 9:00–10:00 PM on CBS <small>(January 12 – May 11, 1994)</small></td> <td data-sort-value="" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;" class="table-na">—</td> <td data-sort-value="" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;" class="table-na">—</td> <td data-sort-value="" style="background: var(--background-color-interactive, #ececec); color: var(--color-base, inherit); vertical-align: middle; text-align: center;" class="table-na">— </td></tr></tbody></table> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Home_media">Home media</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=22" title="Edit section: Home media"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>TGG Direct released the first season on DVD in Region 1 on August 30, 2012.<sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The eighth and final season was released on June 11, 2013.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>13<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>On October 23, 2012, TGG Direct released an 8-disc best-of set entitled <i> In the Heat of the Night – 24hr Television Marathon</i>.<sup id="cite_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>TGG Direct released seasons 4 and 5 onto DVD on December 10, 2013. However, due to licensing issues, the following episodes are missing from the box set: Brotherly Love, Shine On Sparta Moon, Sweet, Sweet Blues, Sanctuary, Law On Trial.<sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-16"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>16<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>TGG Direct released seasons 2 & 3 in a single boxed set onto DVD on March 11, 2014. However, due to clearance issues, the following episodes are excluded – Season 2 Excluded Episodes: The Family Secret, The Hammer and the Glove, A Trip Upstate, Intruders, Sister Sister, Walkout; Season 3 Excluded Episodes: Fairest of Them All, Crackdown, Anniversary, My Name is Hank, King's Ransom, A Loss of Innocence, Home is Where the Heart Is, Indiscretions, Citizen Trundel Part 1 and Part 2 </p><p>TGG Direct also released seasons 6 and 7 in individual boxed sets onto DVD on March 11, 2014. However, due to clearance issues, the following episode is excluded from Season 6: Random's Child and the following episodes are excluded from Season 7: Singin' The Blues, Every Man's Family, Maybelle Returns, Ches and the Grand Lady, Dangerous Engagement. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Awards">Awards</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=23" title="Edit section: Awards"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Both Carroll O'Connor and Howard Rollins received prestigious awards for their work on the show in 1989. O'Connor received the <a href="/wiki/Primetime_Emmy_Award_for_Outstanding_Lead_Actor_in_a_Drama_Series" title="Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series">Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series</a>, and Rollins the <a href="/wiki/NAACP_Image_Award_for_Outstanding_Actor_in_a_Drama_Series" title="NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series">NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series</a>, his second. </p><p><i>In the Heat of the Night</i> won the <a href="/wiki/NAACP_Image_Award_for_Outstanding_Drama_Series" title="NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Drama Series">NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Drama Series</a> (formally Outstanding Drama Series, Mini-Series or Television Movie), two years in a row, 1992 and 1993. The 1992 win was specifically for the Season 5 episode, "<a href="/wiki/Sweet,_Sweet_Blues" title="Sweet, Sweet Blues">Sweet, Sweet Blues</a>". </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Soundtrack">Soundtrack</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=24" title="Edit section: Soundtrack"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The theme song, "<a href="/wiki/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(Ray_Charles_song)" title="In the Heat of the Night (Ray Charles song)">In the Heat of the Night</a>", was originally recorded by <a href="/wiki/Quincy_Jones" title="Quincy Jones">Quincy Jones</a>, with <a href="/wiki/Ray_Charles" title="Ray Charles">Ray Charles</a> on vocals and piano for the movie. It is usually paired with "They Call Me Mr. Tibbs" on albums. <a href="/wiki/Bill_Champlin" title="Bill Champlin">Bill Champlin</a> of the band <a href="/wiki/Chicago_(band)" title="Chicago (band)">Chicago</a> sang the opening theme song for the television series. </p><p>The original song itself is supposed to be from Virgil's point of view, being a stranger in a hostile environment. In the case of the TV series, the lyrics refer to both main characters fighting crime in the tiny town of Sparta. </p><p><a href="/wiki/Randall_Franks" title="Randall Franks">Randall Franks</a> and <a href="/wiki/Alan_Autry" title="Alan Autry">Alan Autry</a> co-produced the cast CD <i>Christmas Time's A Comin'</i> for Sonlite and MGM/UA, featuring the entire cast and a host of music stars. It was released Christmas 1991 and 1992, and was among the top holiday recordings of those years around the South and Midwest. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=25" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap mw-references-columns"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-emmylegends-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-emmylegends_1-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-emmylegends_1-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-emmylegends_1-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.emmytvlegends.org/interviews/shows/in-the-heat-of-the-night">"In the Heat of the Night"</a>. <i>Television Academy Interviews</i>. <a href="/wiki/Archive_of_American_Television" class="mw-redirect" title="Archive of American Television">Archive of American Television</a>. 23 October 2017.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Television+Academy+Interviews&rft.atitle=In+the+Heat+of+the+Night&rft.date=2017-10-23&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.emmytvlegends.org%2Finterviews%2Fshows%2Fin-the-heat-of-the-night&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-heat-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-heat_2-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-heat_2-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFHill1988" class="citation news cs1">Hill, Michael E. (December 11, 1988). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1988/12/11/carroll-oconnor-putting-the-heat-to-the-night/848f81f6-7db6-496d-bdd7-f5ff9dc2dc0b/">"Carroll O'Connor Putting The Heat To 'The Night'<span class="cs1-kern-right"></span>"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/The_Washington_Post" title="The Washington Post">The Washington Post</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+Washington+Post&rft.atitle=Carroll+O%27Connor+Putting+The+Heat+To+%27The+Night%27&rft.date=1988-12-11&rft.aulast=Hill&rft.aufirst=Michael+E.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Farchive%2Flifestyle%2Ftv%2F1988%2F12%2F11%2Fcarroll-oconnor-putting-the-heat-to-the-night%2F848f81f6-7db6-496d-bdd7-f5ff9dc2dc0b%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFWeinstein1989" class="citation web cs1">Weinstein, Steve (February 15, 1989). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-02-15-ca-2564-story.html">"<span class="cs1-kern-left"></span>'In the Heat of the Night' Sends a Message : Popular NBC Series Gives Positive Role Model of Race Relations, Says Producer"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Los_Angeles_Times" title="Los Angeles Times">Los Angeles Times</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Los+Angeles+Times&rft.atitle=%27In+the+Heat+of+the+Night%27+Sends+a+Message+%3A+Popular+NBC+Series+Gives+Positive+Role+Model+of+Race+Relations%2C+Says+Producer&rft.date=1989-02-15&rft.aulast=Weinstein&rft.aufirst=Steve&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Farchives%2Fla-xpm-1989-02-15-ca-2564-story.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-4">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFParkArmstrong1990" class="citation web cs1">Park, Jeannie; Armstrong, Lois (May 7, 1990). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://people.com/archive/in-the-heat-of-the-nights-eerie-parallels-to-her-sisters-murder-allow-actress-denise-nicholas-to-finally-conquer-her-grief-vol-33-no-18/">"In the Heat of the Night's Eerie Parallels to Her Sister's Murder Allow Actress Denise Nicholas to Finally Conquer Her Grief"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/People_(magazine)" title="People (magazine)">People</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=People&rft.atitle=In+the+Heat+of+the+Night%27s+Eerie+Parallels+to+Her+Sister%27s+Murder+Allow+Actress+Denise+Nicholas+to+Finally+Conquer+Her+Grief&rft.date=1990-05-07&rft.aulast=Park&rft.aufirst=Jeannie&rft.au=Armstrong%2C+Lois&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fpeople.com%2Farchive%2Fin-the-heat-of-the-nights-eerie-parallels-to-her-sisters-murder-allow-actress-denise-nicholas-to-finally-conquer-her-grief-vol-33-no-18%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-rollins-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-rollins_5-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-rollins_5-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-rollins_5-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-12-20-ca-856-story.html">"O'Connor to Sue Tabloid for Rollins Story"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Los_Angeles_Times" title="Los Angeles Times">Los Angeles Times</a></i>. December 20, 1989.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Los+Angeles+Times&rft.atitle=O%27Connor+to+Sue+Tabloid+for+Rollins+Story&rft.date=1989-12-20&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Farchives%2Fla-xpm-1989-12-20-ca-856-story.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">TV Guide, July 14–20, 2001</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0610671">"In the Heat of the Night: Sweet, Sweet Blues – Season 5, Episode 8"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/IMDb" title="IMDb">IMDb</a></i>. 26 November 1991.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=IMDb&rft.atitle=In+the+Heat+of+the+Night%3A+Sweet%2C+Sweet+Blues+%E2%80%93+Season+5%2C+Episode+8&rft.date=1991-11-26&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.imdb.com%2Ftitle%2Ftt0610671&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFPaisley2016" class="citation web cs1">Paisley, Laura. USC News (April 5, 2016). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://news.usc.edu/96860/the-civil-rights-experience-of-novelist-denise-nicholas-inspired-her-artistry/">"The Civil Rights Experience of novelist Denise Nicholas inspired her artistry"</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=The+Civil+Rights+Experience+of+novelist+Denise+Nicholas+inspired+her+artistry&rft.date=2016-04-05&rft.aulast=Paisley&rft.aufirst=Laura.+USC+News&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.usc.edu%2F96860%2Fthe-civil-rights-experience-of-novelist-denise-nicholas-inspired-her-artistry%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFKloer1993" class="citation web cs1">Kloer, Phil (May 6, 1993). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1993/05/06/howard-rollins-in-seclusion-his-acting-career-in-jeopardy/">"Howard Rollins In Seclusion, His Acting Career In Jeopardy"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Orlando_Sentinel" title="Orlando Sentinel">Orlando Sentinel</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Orlando+Sentinel&rft.atitle=Howard+Rollins+In+Seclusion%2C+His+Acting+Career+In+Jeopardy&rft.date=1993-05-06&rft.aulast=Kloer&rft.aufirst=Phil&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.orlandosentinel.com%2F1993%2F05%2F06%2Fhoward-rollins-in-seclusion-his-acting-career-in-jeopardy%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Season_8_DVD-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Season_8_DVD_10-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.amazon.com/Heat-Night-Complete-Season-Final/dp/B00BF0SKKQ">"In The Heat of the Night Complete Season 8 (The Final Season)"</a>. <i>Amazon.com</i>. 9 July 2013<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">March 18,</span> 2015</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Amazon.com&rft.atitle=In+The+Heat+of+the+Night+Complete+Season+8+%28The+Final+Season%29&rft.date=2013-07-09&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FHeat-Night-Complete-Season-Final%2Fdp%2FB00BF0SKKQ&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-11">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nytimes.com/1995/03/30/us/carroll-o-connor-s-son-kills-himself-at-33.html">"Carroll O'Connor's Son Kills Himself at 33"</a>. <i>The New York Times</i>. 30 March 1995.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+New+York+Times&rft.atitle=Carroll+O%27Connor%27s+Son+Kills+Himself+at+33&rft.date=1995-03-30&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F1995%2F03%2F30%2Fus%2Fcarroll-o-connor-s-son-kills-himself-at-33.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-12">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008K1PWMW">"In the Heat of the Night: The First Season"</a>. <i>Amazon</i>. 30 August 2012.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Amazon&rft.atitle=In+the+Heat+of+the+Night%3A+The+First+Season&rft.date=2012-08-30&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB008K1PWMW&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIn+the+Heat+of+the+Night+%28TV+series%29" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-13">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.amazon.com/Heat-Night-Complete-Digitally-Remastered/dp/B01EGQFPDK/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1II66Z8CUFRTK&keywords=in+the+heat+of+the+night+season+8+dvd&qid=1557452377&s=gateway&sprefix=in+the+heat+of+the+night+season+8%2Caps%2C132&sr=8-1">In the Heat of the Night: The Complete Eighth Season: Carroll O'Connor, Carl Weathers, Alan Autry, David Hart, Hugh O'Connor, Crystal Fox, Denise Nicholas</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-14">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Heat-Night-24-Hour-Television-Marathon/17521">In the Heat of the Night DVD news: Announcement for In the Heat of the Night – 24 Hour Television Marathon | TVShowsOnDVD.com</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120924043513/http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Heat-Night-24-Hour-Television-Marathon/17521">Archived</a> 2012-09-24 at the <a href="/wiki/Wayback_Machine" title="Wayback Machine">Wayback Machine</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-15">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.amazon.com/Heat-Night-Season-4/dp/B00GM1X2RO/ref=sr_1_5?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1385330103&sr=1-5&keywords=in+the+heat+of+the+night+tv">Amazon.com: In The Heat of the Night Season 4: Carroll O'Connor, Alan Autry, David Hart, Hugh O'Connor, Howard E. Rollins Jr., Geoffrey Thorne: Movies & TV</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-16">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.amazon.com/In-The-Heat-Night-Season/dp/B00GM1X2JM/ref=pd_bxgy_mov_img_y">Amazon.com: In The Heat of The Night Season 5: Carroll O'Connor, Alan Autry, David Hart, Hugh O'Connor, Howard E. Rollins Jr., Geoffrey Thorne: Movies & TV</a></span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(TV_series)&action=edit&section=26" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094484/"><i>In the Heat of the Night</i></a> at <a href="/wiki/IMDb_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="IMDb (identifier)">IMDb</a></li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.allmovie.com/movie/v135294"><i>In the Heat of the Night</i></a> at <a href="/wiki/AllMovie" title="AllMovie">AllMovie</a></li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" 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title="NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Drama Series">NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Drama Series</a></div></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Women_of_Brewster_Place_(miniseries)" title="The Women of Brewster Place (miniseries)">The Women of Brewster Place</a></i> (1990)</li> <li><i><a class="mw-selflink selflink">In the Heat of the Night</a></i> (1991)</li> <li><i><a class="mw-selflink selflink">In the Heat of the Night</a></i> (1992)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/I%27ll_Fly_Away_(TV_series)" title="I'll Fly Away (TV series)">I'll Fly Away</a></i> (1993)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/I%27ll_Fly_Away_(TV_series)" title="I'll Fly Away (TV series)">I'll Fly Away</a></i> (1994)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/New_York_Undercover" title="New York Undercover">New York Undercover</a></i> (1995)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/New_York_Undercover" title="New York Undercover">New York Undercover</a></i> (1996)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Touched_by_an_Angel" title="Touched by an Angel">Touched by an Angel</a></i> (1997)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Touched_by_an_Angel" title="Touched by an Angel">Touched by an Angel</a></i> (1998)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Touched_by_an_Angel" title="Touched by an Angel">Touched by an Angel</a></i> (1999)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/City_of_Angels_(2000_TV_series)" title="City of Angels (2000 TV series)">City of Angels</a></i> (2000)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Soul_Food_(TV_series)" title="Soul Food (TV series)">Soul Food</a></i> (2001)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Soul_Food_(TV_series)" title="Soul Food (TV series)">Soul Food</a></i> (2002)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Soul_Food_(TV_series)" title="Soul Food (TV series)">Soul Food</a></i> (2003)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Law_%26_Order" title="Law & Order">Law & Order</a></i> (2004)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Grey%27s_Anatomy" title="Grey's Anatomy">Grey's Anatomy</a></i> (2005)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Grey%27s_Anatomy" title="Grey's Anatomy">Grey's Anatomy</a></i> (2006)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Grey%27s_Anatomy" title="Grey's Anatomy">Grey's Anatomy</a></i> (2007)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Grey%27s_Anatomy" title="Grey's Anatomy">Grey's Anatomy</a></i> (2008)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Lincoln_Heights_(TV_series)" title="Lincoln Heights (TV series)">Lincoln Heights</a></i> (2009)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Grey%27s_Anatomy" title="Grey's Anatomy">Grey's Anatomy</a></i> (2010)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Law_%26_Order:_Special_Victims_Unit" title="Law & Order: Special Victims Unit">Law & Order: Special Victims Unit</a></i> (2011)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Scandal_(TV_series)" title="Scandal (TV series)">Scandal</a></i> (2012)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Scandal_(TV_series)" title="Scandal (TV series)">Scandal</a></i> (2013)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/How_to_Get_Away_with_Murder" title="How to Get Away with Murder">How to Get Away with Murder</a></i> (2014)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Empire_(2015_TV_series)" title="Empire (2015 TV series)">Empire</a></i> (2015)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Queen_Sugar" title="Queen Sugar">Queen Sugar</a></i> (2016)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Power_(TV_series)" title="Power (TV series)">Power</a></i> (2017)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Power_(TV_series)" title="Power (TV series)">Power</a></i> (2018)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Greenleaf_(TV_series)" title="Greenleaf (TV series)">Greenleaf</a></i> (2019)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Power_Book_II:_Ghost" title="Power Book II: Ghost">Power Book II: Ghost</a></i> (2020)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Queen_Sugar" title="Queen Sugar">Queen Sugar</a></i> (2021)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/P-Valley" title="P-Valley">P-Valley</a></i> (2022)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Queen_Charlotte:_A_Bridgerton_Story" title="Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story">Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story</a></i> (2023)</li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235"></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="NAACP_Image_Award_for_Outstanding_Television_Movie,_Mini-Series_or_Dramatic_Special" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks hlist mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231"><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:NAACP_Image_Award_for_Outstanding_Television_Movie,_Mini-Series_or_Dramatic_Special" title="Template:NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic 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Special">NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">1980s</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Sister,_Sister_(1982_film)" title="Sister, Sister (1982 film)">Sister, Sister</a></i> (1982)</li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">1990s</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Women_of_Brewster_Place_(miniseries)" title="The Women of Brewster Place (miniseries)">The Women of Brewster Place</a></i> (1990)</li> <li><i><a class="mw-selflink selflink">In the Heat of the Night</a></i> (1991)</li> <li><i><a class="mw-selflink selflink">In the Heat of the Night</a></i> (1992)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/I%27ll_Fly_Away_(TV_series)" title="I'll Fly Away (TV series)">I'll Fly Away</a></i> (1993)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Alex_Haley%27s_Queen" title="Alex Haley's Queen">Alex Haley's Queen</a></i> (1994)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Tuskegee_Airmen" title="The Tuskegee Airmen">The Tuskegee Airmen</a></i> (1995)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/America%27s_Dream" title="America's Dream">America's Dream</a></i> (1996)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Miss_Evers%27_Boys" title="Miss Evers' Boys">Miss Evers' Boys</a></i> (1997)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Temptations_(miniseries)" title="The Temptations (miniseries)">The Temptations</a></i> (1998)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Introducing_Dorothy_Dandridge" title="Introducing Dorothy Dandridge">Introducing Dorothy Dandridge</a></i> (1999)</li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">2000s</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i>Sally Hemmings: An American Scandal</i> (2000)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Boycott_(2001_film)" title="Boycott (2001 film)">Boycott</a></i> (2001)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Rosa_Parks_Story" title="The Rosa Parks Story">The Rosa Parks Story</a></i> (2002)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/D.C._Sniper:_23_Days_of_Fear" title="D.C. Sniper: 23 Days of Fear">D.C. Sniper: 23 Days of Fear</a></i> (2003)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Something_the_Lord_Made" title="Something the Lord Made">Something the Lord Made</a></i> (2004)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Lackawanna_Blues_(film)" title="Lackawanna Blues (film)">Lackawanna Blues</a></i> (2005)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/When_the_Levees_Broke:_A_Requiem_in_Four_Acts" class="mw-redirect" title="When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts">When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts</a></i> (2006)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Life_Support_(film)" title="Life Support (film)">Life Support</a></i> (2007)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/A_Raisin_in_the_Sun_(2008_film)" title="A Raisin in the Sun (2008 film)">A Raisin in the Sun</a></i> (2008)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Gifted_Hands:_The_Ben_Carson_Story" title="Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story">Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story</a></i> (2009)</li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">2010s</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i>Sins of the Mother</i> (2010)</li> <li><i>Thurgood</i> (2011)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Steel_Magnolias_(2012_film)" title="Steel Magnolias (2012 film)">Steel Magnolias</a></i> (2012)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Being_Mary_Jane" title="Being Mary Jane">Being Mary Jane</a></i> (2013)</li> <li><i>The Trip to Bountiful</i> (2014)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Wiz_Live!" title="The Wiz Live!">The Wiz Live!</a></i> (2015)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_People_v._O._J._Simpson:_American_Crime_Story" title="The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story">The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story</a></i> (2016)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_New_Edition_Story" title="The New Edition Story">The New Edition Story</a></i> (2017)</li> <li><i>The Bobby Brown Story</i> (2018)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/When_They_See_Us" title="When They See Us">When They See Us</a></i> (2019)</li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">2020s</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Self_Made_(miniseries)" title="Self Made (miniseries)">Self Made</a></i> (2020)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Colin_in_Black_%26_White" title="Colin in Black & White">Colin in Black & White</a></i> (2021)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Best_Man:_The_Final_Chapters" title="The Best Man: The Final Chapters">The Best Man: The Final Chapters</a></i> (2022)</li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Swarm_(TV_series)" title="Swarm (TV series)">Swarm</a></i> (2023)</li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235"></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Virgil_Tibbs" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231"><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Virgil_Tibbs" title="Template:Virgil Tibbs"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Virgil_Tibbs" 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style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_(film)" title="In the Heat of the Night (film)">In the Heat of the Night</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/They_Call_Me_Mister_Tibbs!" title="They Call Me Mister Tibbs!">They Call Me Mister Tibbs!</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Organization_(film)" title="The Organization (film)">The Organization</a></i></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">TV series</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a class="mw-selflink selflink"><i>In the Heat of the Night</i></a> (<a href="/wiki/List_of_In_the_Heat_of_the_Night_episodes" title="List of In the Heat of the Night episodes">episodes</a>)</li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div>    </div><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?type=1x1" 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