Author John Dudley Ball, Jr. created the iconic African American detective Virgil Tibbs in his 1965 novel In the Heat of the Night. Sidney Poitier brought Virgil to life on the big screen in the classic film version in 1966. Poitier reprised the role in They Call Me Mister Tibbs (1970) and The Organization (1971).
Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at the forgotten (or at least neglected) novels and short stories which John Dudley Ball wrote about his fictional detective. I am amazed that no one adapted the other Virgil Tibbs novels in the 70s, 80s or 90s. He is up there with other American detectives like Sam Spade, Nero Wolfe, Moses Wine and more.
THE COOL COTTONTAIL (1966) – After winning the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best First Novel for In the Heat of the Night, John Ball wrote this follow-up novel about Virgil Tibbs. If you’re only familiar with the big screen Tibbs let me point out that The Cool Cottontail is set in Pasadena, CA, where the literary Virgil Tibbs was a homicide detective. In movies Virgil worked in Philadelphia and San Francisco while the In the Heat of the Night tv series stranded him down south. Continue reading
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