John Dudley Ball Jr. (July 8, 1911 – October 15, 1988) was an American writer. He is best known for mystery novels involving police detective Virgil Tibbs. Tibbs was introduced in the 1965 novel In the Heat of the Night, which won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel from the Mystery Writers of America and was made into an Oscar-winning film of the same name, starring Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger.
John Ball has 3 screen credits in a career dating back to 1967. Their work is anchored in the Virgil Tibbs Trilogy universe with 2 titles. Signature works include In the Heat of the Night, In the Heat of the Night: A Matter of Justice, The Organization. Explore the interactive character relationship maps on each title page to trace how their roles connect across franchises.
