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Sidney Poitier’s character portrayal of a Philadelphia police officer in the classic film In the Heat of the Night is a remarkable one. There are several other actors that also depict their characters well, but Sidney Poitier truly stands out. There are dozens of reasons why his portrayal is so good and why he appeals to the American public. For example, he represents a minority, is incredibly smart, and is dedicated. Sidney Poitier was to Hollywood what Jackie Robinson was to major league baseball. Simply put, he was the man who broke the color barrier. While the sight of a non-white actor starring in a Hollywood film is now fairly common, though still considered a risk, back in 1967 this was unheard of. The film made it obvious that the people in Sparta did not like Sidney Poitier’s character. They thought that he did not have the ability and knowledge that they did. They accuse Tibbs, Sidney Poitier’s character, of killing a man simply because he is black. This was something that w