Atticus Finch trial "State of Alabama vs. Charles White, Alias," and Atticus Finch's defense of Tom Robinson in "To Kill a Mockingbird". In a letter to the author, Harper Lee herself noted the "obvious parallels" between the cases (Lee was 12 at the time of the Charles White trial) and between Atticus Finch and Foster Beck, though she also stated that she could not recall the trial, and that "To Kill a Mockingbird" was a work of fiction. Former President Barack Obama referenced Atticus Finch as an ideal American character. In addition Atticus was mentioned during one of Obama's speeches. In July
In the Heat of the Night (film) The film was followed by two sequels, "They Call Me Mister Tibbs!" in 1970, and "The Organization" in 1971. In 1988, it also became the basis of a television series adaptation of the same name. Although the film was set in the fictional Mississippi town of Sparta (with supposedly no connection to the real Sparta, Mississippi), most of the movie was filmed in Sparta, Illinois, where many of the film's landmarks can still be seen. The quote "They call me "Mister Tibbs!" was listed as number 16 on the American Film Institute's "100 Years...100 Movie Quotes", a list of top