abstract:Virgil Tibbs is a fictional character who is one of the two leading male characters in John Ball's 1965 novel, In the Heat of the Night. He is also the protagonist in six sequels to that novel, the Oscar-winning 1967 film of the same name based on the original novel, the sequel films, They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!
In addition to Lilies of the Field, I suppose the, really the role for which he's often still best known is VirgilTibbs, the Philadelphia cop who comes down to Mississippi, where the local white police chief, Chief Gillespie is played by Rod Steiger, In the Heat of the Night.