Norman Jewison, director of 'In the Heat of the Night' & 'Moonstruck', dies

NEW YORK: Canadian film director Norman Jewison, whose eclectic array of masterpieces included the 1967 racial drama "In the Heat of the Night", the 1987 popular romantic comedy "Moonstruck" and the 1971 musical "Fiddler on the Roof", has died at the age of 97

Jewison, a three-time Oscar nominee who in 1999 received an Academy Award for lifetime achievement, died "peacefully" Saturday, his publicist said. Additional details were not immediately available.

The Toronto native was considered one of the most important directors of the last four decades of the 20th century. He was widely admired for his ability to craft powerful films in many different genres. His films received 46 Academy Award nominations and won 12 Oscars. "In the Heat of the Night", starring Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger, won the best picture Oscar for 1967.