It was revealed at the beginning of the police procedural’s final season that Althea and Virgil were getting a divorce. She moved to Philadelphia with their kids to be closer to her parents and he was completing a law degree in Jackson, Miss., which explained why they were no longer in Sparta. Article continues below advertisement
He and his wife Althea have separated, and she has taken their twins back to live in Philadelphia. At Virgil's first appearance in court, Judge Sims appoints him to represent pro bono an accused murderer, Delbert Pike.
What happened to Althea on 'In the Heat of the Night'? Anne-Marie decided to leave the show at the end of Season 6 in order to take a job on Fox’s sketch comedy series In Living Color. She followed up that one-year stint with a guest-starring arc on Melrose Place.
In the Heat of the Night is an American police procedural crime drama television series based on the 1967 film and the 1965 novel of the same title.
When asked about her exit in a 2013 interview with In the Heat of the Night' s fan club, Anne-Marie stated, "The timing was right and I was fortunate to move on to other respected projects." She also shared, "I knew Howard [Rollins, who played her on-screen husband Virgil Tibbs] was moving on and storylines were being created for other characters.
The theme song, " In the Heat of the Night ," was originally recorded by Quincy Jones, with Ray Charles on vocals and piano for the movie. It is usually paired with "They Call Me Mr. Tibbs" on albums. Bill Champlin of the band Chicago sang the opening theme song for the television series.
During the filming of the episode "Walkout", Carroll O'Connor began to experience fatigue.
Rollins was dropped from the show due to health reasons plus three outstanding warrants in Rockdale County and the city of Covington, GA. He was replaced for season seven by Carl 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 series star Carroll O'Connor was in contact with Rollins during this period. It was hoped that Rollins would get his legal and personal issues resolved and return to the series —- but unfortunately, that was not the case.
For example, the TV Sparta is situated along Interstate 20, 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 Georgia, 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 Covington, Georgia. Rural scenes were filmed in a wide surrounding area, in the Georgia counties of Newton (where Covington is located), Rockdale, Walton, Morgan, and Jasper. 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.
Parker is a Vietnam veteran, as explained in the episode "My Name is Hank". As the comic relief 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". Parker can be seen holding his tea jar with a Christmas bow stuck on it.
TGG Direct released the first season on DVD in Region 1 on August 30, 2012. The eighth and final season was released on June 11 , 2013. On October 23, 2012, TGG Direct released an 8-disc best-of set entitled In the Heat of the Night – 24hr Television Marathon.
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 David Koresh and his followers.
In 2010, In The Heat Of The Night was adapted for the stage. An L.A. Theater Works production toured during the 2014-2015 season and the play continues to be produced nationwide. In addition, a contemporary TV reboot is in the works from writer-producer Joe Robert Cole.
In the pilot, Virgil and his wife Althea ( Anne-Marie Johnson) come to Sparta for the funeral of Virgil’s mother. “When Virgil came back to Philadelphia after his last visit he could hardly talk about anything else,” Althea says to Gillespie.
to Philadelphia. Rod Steiger was cast as Gillespie and Sidney Poitier took on the role of Tibbs, with Norman Jewison directing. At the time, Poitier was best known as the first black performer to win an Academy Award for Best Actor (for Lilies Of The Field ). Steiger took home the Best Actor Oscar for his performance, one of five the film won (including Best Picture).
8. O’Connor missed the end of season two due to illness. O’Connor was diagnosed with a life-threatening coronary artery blockage during season two and underwent sextuple bypass, forcing him to miss four episodes. Joe Don Baker ( Walking Tall) stepped in as acting chief Tom Dugan.
In 1970, Sidney Poitier returned as Tibbs for a follow-up film. They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! gets its title from Virgil’s most iconic line (which he actually says in the first movie). Tibbs is now a San Francisco cop with a wife (Barbara McNair), daughter (Wanda Spell), and son (George Spell).
A year later, Rollins left and was replaced by Carl Weathers as new chief Hamilton Forbes. The series was cancelled (again) after season seven, only to return (again) for an eighth season of four TV movies.
The TV adaptation of In The Heat Of The Night starring Carroll O’Connor and Howard Rollins celebrated its 30 th anniversary in 2018. But did you know that the story of chief Bill Gillespie and detective Virgil Tibbs has been going on for more than half a century?
IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT, Carroll O’Connor, 1988-94 / Everett Collection. He helped the show become so successful it even spawned a couple of spinoffs, Archie Bunker’s Place, and of course, The Jeffersons. We have a great Jefferson’s deep dive if you wanna ‘move on up’ after this.
One of the more interesting early plot developments. Rollins really was superb as Tibbs, which was a daunting role considering the legendary Sidney Poitier originated the part. IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT, Howard Rollins, Carroll O’Connor, 1988-94 / Everett Collection. We first met Rollins in 1981, when he made his film debut in the film adaptation ...
Then in 1984 Rollins starred in the critically acclaimed film A Soldi er’s Story, which directly led to his role as Virgil Tibbs. During the show’s run, Rollins struggled with addiction to drugs and alcohol. He was arrested four times for possession, and spent one month in jail for driving under the influence.
Then, in 2017, Marvel chose Thorne to be head writer and showrunner of the animated series, Avengers: Black Panther’s Quest. Today he’s 51 and is the Co-Executive Producer of Ghost, the first spinoff of the popular STARZ show, Power. 7.
At the age of 16, Hugh was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease but conquered it with the help of chemotherapy. It was around this time that Hugh became addicted to drugs. IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT, Hugh O’Connor, Carroll O’Connor, 1988-94 / Everett Collection.
Geoffrey Thorne got his start in 1987, securing his knack for playing officers with a one-off on Hill Street Blues. In the Heat of the Night was certainly his most notable role, but he worked solidly until 2000, his last gig being 2 episodes on the show Bull. David Hart and Geoffrey Thorne / CBS/NBC.
David Hart started acting in the early ’80s. His real first recurring gig was In The Heat of the Night, and he never again matched that level of success. The last time we saw him was in the 2011 Western, Forgiven, written and directed by Alan Autry, aka Bubba. NBC/CBS.
The parallels are few between Tuesday's "In the Heat of the Night" movie on CBS and series regular Hugh O'Connor's tragic life and recent death but they are jarring nonetheless. At one point during the movie, Hugh O'Connor, as Sparta, Miss. Police Lt. Lonnie Jamison, says he once told an alcoholic character central to the story ...
It premiered in 1988 on NBC, but when the network wanted shows that would attract a younger audience, "Heat" and "Matlock" were cast off, even though both were doing fine in the ratings. "Heat" moved to CBS in 1992, where for a time it beat NBC shows slotted against it.
And a plot resolution may be especially painful for Carroll O'Connor, who won an Emmy for his portrayal of Sheriff Bill Gillespie, even though it's evident the movie was made long before Hugh's death.