Roots (1977 miniseries)
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Roots is an American television miniseries based on Alex Haley's 1976 novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family. The series first aired on ABC in January 1977. Roots received 37 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and won nine. It also won a Golden Globe and a Peabody Award. It received...
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Warner Bros. Entertainment Wiki
Roots is an American television miniseries based on Alex Haley's 1976 novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family. The series first aired on ABC in January 1977. Roots received 37 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and won nine. It also won a Golden Globe and a Peabody Award. It received unprecedented Nielsen ratings for the finale, which holds the record as the third-highest-rated episode for any type of television series, and the second-most-watched overall series finale in U.S. television history. It was produced on a budget of $6.6 million.

A sequel, Roots: The Next Generations, first aired in 1979, and a second sequel, Roots: The Gift, a Christmas television film, starring Burton and Louis Gossett Jr., first aired in 1988. A related film, Alex Haley's Queen, is based on the life of Queen Jackson Haley, who was Alex Haley's paternal grandmother.

In 2016, a remake of the original miniseries, with the same name, was commissioned by the History channel and screened by the channel on Memorial Day.

Plot[]

Colonial times[]

In the Gambia, West Africa, in 1750, Kunta Kinte is born to Omoro Kinte (Thalmus Rasulala), a Mandinka warrior, and his wife, Binta (Cicely Tyson). He is raised in a Muslim family. When Kunta (LeVar Burton) reaches the age of 15, he and other boys undergo a semi-secretive tribal rite of passage, under the kintango (Moses Gunn), which includes wrestling, circumcision, philosophy, war-craft and hunting skills; while tasked to catch a bird unharmed, Kunta crosses paths with Gardner's small party of European slave hunters and their captives.

Shortly after his ceremonial return, while fetching wood outside his village to make a drum for his younger brother, Kunta is captured by Gardner and four black collaborators. He is then sold to a slave trader and placed aboard the slave ship Lord Ligonier under the command of Capt. Thomas Davies (Edward Asner) for a three-month journey to Colonial America. During the voyage, Kunta bonds with a Mandinka wrestler (Ji-Tu Cumbuka) who was part of his manhood training, as well as a Mandinka girl named Fanta whom he met shortly before his kidnapping. An insurrection among the human cargo fails to take over the ship, but results in the death of the cruel overseer Mr. Slater (Ralph Waite), several crew members and several Africans, including the wrestler.

The ship eventually arrives in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1767, where the captured Africans are sold at auction as slaves. John Reynolds (Lorne Greene), a plantation owner from Spotsylvania County, Virginia, near Fredericksburg, buys Kunta and gives him the Christian name Toby. Reynolds assigns an older slave, Fiddler (Louis Gossett Jr.), to teach Kunta English and train him in the ways of servitude. Although Kunta gradually warms up to Fiddler, he wants to preserve his Mandinka (and Islamic) heritage, and he defiantly refuses to eat pork or accept his Christian name.

Kunta makes several unsuccessful attempts to escape, first breaking his leg chain with a broken tool blade he finds half buried in a field. After this attempt the overseer, Ames (Vic Morrow), gathers the slaves and directs another slave to whip Kunta until he acknowledges his new name "Toby". Fiddler comforts the bloody-backed Kunta and uses his Mandinka name for the first time, assuring him "there will be another day". For events that occur in 1775, between the above period and the post-Revolutionary War, where the next section begins, see Roots: The Gift.

Late 18th century[]

In 1776, the adult Kunta Kinte (John Amos), still haunted by his Mandinka roots and desire for freedom, tries again to escape. He makes it to a nearby plantation where his boyhood friend Fanta is enslaved, although he discovers after spending the night with her that she has turned away from her African name and heritage in the name of survival. A pair of slave-catchers track him there and hobble him by chopping off almost half his right foot with a hatchet. Exasperated, John Reynolds decides to sell Kunta, which will also settle a debt with his brother Dr. William Reynolds (Robert Reed), the local physician. John transfers several of his slaves, including Fiddler, to William.

Bell (Madge Sinclair), the cook for William's family, successfully treats both Kunta's mangled foot and wounded spirit. A trusted member of the Reynolds household, she arranges for Kunta to become Dr. Reynolds's driver. Eventually Kunta submits to a life of servitude, although he never entirely renounces Africa (declaring to Bell, "I ain't never gonna be no Christian man...I ain't never gonna eat no pig meat"), nor his hope of returning there. He marries Bell, in a ceremony which includes jumping across a broom, although his talk of Africa frustrates her. Bell bears a daughter in 1790, to whom Kunta gives the name Kizzy, which means "stay put" in the Mandinka language (in hopes of ensuring that she will never be sold away). Fiddler continues to mentor Kunta, and dies an old man shortly after Kizzy's birth.

Turn of the 19th century[]

An adulterous relationship between Dr. William Reynolds and John Reynolds's wife (Lynda Day George) produces a daughter, Missy Anne (Sandy Duncan), whom John believes is his own. Missy Anne and Kizzy become playmates and best friends despite the social confines of Southern plantation culture. Missy Anne secretly teaches Kizzy to read and write, a skill forbidden to human chattel. In 1806, Kizzy (Leslie Uggams), falls in love with Noah (Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs), a spirited slave who attempts to flee North with a "traveling pass" forged by Kizzy from a pass given to her by Missy Anne.

Dr. Reynolds, although amiable and compassionate toward his chattel, regards the pass and escape to be such an egregious breach of trust that he separately sells both Noah and Kizzy, much to the horror of Bell and Kunta. Missy Anne, who had offered Kizzy a place as her companion and maid, instead renounces their friendship and watches dispassionately as Kizzy is dragged away. Tom Moore (Chuck Connors), a planter in Caswell County, North Carolina, with a sexual appetite for young female slaves, becomes Kizzy's new owner, and violently rapes her the night of her arrival. Kizzy becomes pregnant from the assault and gives birth to their son, George, nine months after her arrival.

Early 19th century[]

In 1824, an adult Kizzy is wooed by Sam Bennett (Richard Roundtree), a fancy carriage driver whose master is visiting the Moores. Seeking to impress Kizzy, he takes her for a short visit to her former home on Dr. Reynolds's plantation, in the hope that she can see her parents. Kizzy learns that Bell has been sold away and that Kunta died two years earlier. Kizzy sees her father's grave and his wooden marker; using a small stone, she scratches over the name Toby and writes below it "Kunta Kinte," and promises him that his descendants will be free one day.

The cheerful and confident George (Ben Vereen), under the tutelage of an older slave named Mingo (Scatman Crothers), learns much about cockfighting. By direction of Moore, George takes over as the chief trainer, the "cock of the walk." George befriends Marcellus, a free black man, and fellow cockfighter, who informs him about the possibility of buying his own freedom. At the same time, he believes Moore to be a close friend. However, in 1831 (not 1841 as erroneously listed in the TV captions), George realizes his master's true feelings when he and his family are threatened at gunpoint by Moore and his wife, as a result of the Nat Turner rebellion. Although none of Moore's slaves are personally involved in the rebellion, they become victims of the paranoid suspicions of their master, so they start planning to buy their freedom, although Moore tells George he will never allow it. In an emotional scene, Kizzy finally tells George that Moore is his father.

George becomes an expert in cockfighting, thus earning for himself the moniker "Chicken George." Squire James (Macdonald Carey), Moore's main adversary in the pit, arranges for a British owner, Sir Eric Russell (Ian McShane), and twenty of his cocks to visit and to participate in the local fights. Moore eventually bets a huge sum on his best bird, which George has trained, but he loses, and he cannot pay.

Under the terms of a settlement between Moore and Russell, George goes to England to train cocks for Russell and to train more trainers and is forced to leave behind Kizzy (his mother), Tildy (Matilda, his wife) (Olivia Cole) and his sons, Tom and Lewis (Georg Stanford Brown and Hilly Hicks). Moore promises to set George free on the latter's return and to keep the family together in his absence. However, a now-broke Moore then sells all of his remaining slaves except Kizzy.

In one brief scene, Kizzy and Missy Anne Reynolds, both elderly, meet by chance one last time. Missy Anne denies that she "recollects" a "darkie by the name of Kizzy." Kizzy then spits into Missy Anne's cup of water without Missy Anne's realizing it.

The Civil War[]

George returns in 1861, shortly before the start of the Civil War. He proudly announces that Moore, after some reluctance on Moore's part and some persuasion on George's part, has kept his word by granting George his freedom. He learns that Kizzy has died two months before, and that Tildy, Tom and Lewis now belong to Sam Harvey (Richard McKenzie). Tom (Georg Stanford Brown) has become a blacksmith on the Harvey plantation and has a wife, Irene (Lynne Moody), and two sons.

George is welcomed warmly and learns that his relatives have spoken well of him during his absence. He further learns that according to a law in North Carolina, if he stays 60 days in that state as a freed slave, he will lose his freedom, so he heads northward, seeking the next stage in his career as a cockfighter and awaiting the end of the war, the emancipation of the slaves, and another reunion of his family.

While the war continues to its inevitable end, a hungry and destitute young white couple from South Carolina, George and Martha Johnson (Brad Davis and Lane Binkley), arrive and ask for help, and the slave family take them in. George Johnson is given a job as overseer of the plantation, but has no experience with slaves and balks at the expectation that he mistreat them. Martha soon gives birth, but the child is stillborn. The white couple stays on with Tom and his wife, becoming a part of their community. Tom Harvey meets harassment at the hands of two brothers, Evan and Jemmy Brent (Lloyd Bridges and Doug McClure).

Eventually, a month before the surrender by the South, Jemmy deserts the Confederate Army during the final desperate days of the war, and he shows up at Tom's blacksmith shop. Tom reluctantly runs an errand for him but, on returning, he finds Jemmy trying to rape Irene, and in the resulting fight Tom drowns him in the quenching tub. Later Evan, now an officer in the Confederate cavalry, arrives at the shop, demands to know about Jemmy, gets no answer, and angrily tells Tom that he has not yet finished with him.

After the war several local white men, led by Evan Brent and wearing white hoods (made from fabric sacks from Evan's store) begin to harass and terrorize Tom, his family, and other members of his community. Tom emerges as the leader among his group, while tensions arise between the white Johnsons and Tom's brother Lewis. As the local blacksmith, Tom devises a horseshoeing method to identify the horses involved in the raids by the hooded men. But when Tom reports his suspicions and his evidence to the sheriff (John Quade), who is in sympathy with Evan and knows every member of the white mob, the sheriff tips off Evan.

Meanwhile, the former owner of the farm, Sam Harvey, is forced to surrender all of his property to Senator Arthur Justin (Burl Ives), a local politician intent on acquiring as much land as possible. Under the terms of the surrender, his former slaves are allowed to stay on as sharecroppers, with eventual rights to own a part of the land. However, because no written deed has been filed, the senator deems the agreement void and imposes heavy debts on the black farmers as a legal pretext to keep them from leaving the county. He gives oversight of the farm to Evan, who reinstates George Johnson as overseer, believing whites should not farm alongside blacks otherwise.

Evan's mob leads another raid against Tom, during which Tom is whipped savagely. George Johnson intervenes and is forced to whip Tom, to his own horror and disgust, in order to save his friend's life. Lewis emotionally reconciles with the Johnsons as the family treats Tom's injuries, unsure of their future.

Postwar[]

On the night Tom was whipped, George unexpectedly returns, raises the spirits of his relatives and friends, and begins to plot their next step. He reports that he has bought some land in Tennessee. Using some cunning and deception of their own, the black farmers make preparations for their move away. The group eventually lures Evan and his gang to the farm and overpowers them, jubilantly departing for Tennessee as they watch helplessly. In the last scene George and his group arrive on his land in Henning, Lauderdale County, Tennessee, to start their new life.

George retells part of the story from Kunta Kinte in Africa to himself in Tennessee. Then Alex Haley briefly narrates a montage of photographs of family members connecting Tom's daughter, Cynthia, a great-great-granddaughter of Kunta Kinte, to Haley himself. For the continuation of the story from the late 19th century into the 20th century, see Roots: The Next Generations.

Cast[]

Number in parentheses indicates how many episodes in which the actor/character appears.

LeVar Burton – Young Kunta Kinte (2)

Olivia Cole – Matilda (3)

Louis Gossett Jr. – Fiddler (3)

Ben Vereen – Chicken George Moore (3)

Vic Morrow – Ames (2)

John Amos – Older Kunta Kinte (3)

Ji-Tu Cumbuka – Wrestler (2)

Edward Asner – Capt. Davies (2)

Lynda Day George – Mrs. Reynolds (3)

Robert Reed – Dr. William Reynolds (4)

Madge Sinclair – Bell Reynolds (3)

Chuck Connors – Tom Moore (2)

Sandy Duncan – Missy Anne Reynolds (2)

Leslie Uggams – Kizzy Reynolds (2)

Carolyn Jones – Mrs. Moore (2)

Lloyd Bridges – Evan Brent (2)

Georg Stanford Brown – Tom Harvey (2)

Brad Davis – Ol' George Johnson (2)

Lane Binkley – Martha Johnson (2)

Hilly Hicks – Lewis (2)

Lynne Moody – Irene Harvey (2)

Austin Stoker – Virgil (2)

Ralph Waite – Third mate Slater (2)

Cicely Tyson – Binta (1)

Thalmus Rasulala – Omoro (1)

Moses Gunn – Kintango (1)

Hari Rhodes – Brima Cesay (1)

Ren Woods – Fanta (2)

Ernest Lee Thomas – Kailuba (1)

Lorne Greene – John Reynolds (2)

Scatman Crothers – Mingo (1)

George Hamilton – Stephen Bennett (1)

Lillian Randolph – Sister Sara (1)

Roxie Roker – Malizy (1)

Richard Roundtree – Sam Bennett (1)

Thayer David – Harlan (2)

Tanya Boyd – Genelva (2)

John Quade – Sheriff Biggs (1)

Maya Angelou – Nyo Boto (1)

O.J. Simpson – Kadi Touray (1)

Beverly Todd – Older Fanta (1)

Paul Shenar – John Carrington (1)

Gary Collins – Grill (1)

Richard Farnsworth – Trumbull (1)

Raymond St. Jacques – Drummer (1)

Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs – Noah (1)

John Schuck – Ordell (1)

Macdonald Carey – Squire James (1)

Ian McShane – Sir Eric Russell (1)

Doug McClure – Jemmy Brent (1)

Burl Ives – Sen. Arthur Justin (1)

Richard McKenzie – Sam Harvey (2)

Sally Kemp – Lila Harvey (2)

William C. Watson – Gardner (1)

Charles Cyphers – Drake (1)

Macon McCalman – Poston (1)

Brion James – Slaver (1)

Tracey Gold – Young Missy Reynolds (1)

Todd Bridges – Bud (1)

Ross Chapman – Sergeant Williams (1)

Grand L. Bush – Captured runaway slave (1)

Production[]

The miniseries was directed by Marvin J. Chomsky, John Erman, David Greene and Gilbert Moses. It was produced by Stan Margulies. David L. Wolper was executive producer. The score was composed by Gerald Fried, and Quincy Jones for only the first episode. Many familiar white TV actors, such as Ed Asner (from The Mary Tyler Moore Show), Chuck Connors (The Rifleman), Lorne Greene (Bonanza and later Battlestar Galactica), Robert Reed (The Brady Bunch), and Ralph Waite (The Waltons), were cast against type as slave holders and traders. ABC television executives "got cold feet" after seeing the brutality depicted in the series and attempted to cut the network's predicted losses by airing the series over eight consecutive nights in January in one fell swoop. The Museum of Broadcast Communications recounts the apprehensions that Roots would flop, and how this made ABC prepare the format:

Music[]

Main article: Roots (soundtrack)

Reception[]

The series received positive reviews. Review aggregator website, Rotten Tomatoes later rated it 88% "fresh" based on 8 reviews. Variety reviewed it positively, summarizing, "The production and performances are strong, with newcomer LeVar Burton effective as the African youngster trapped into slavery. Edward Asner, as he did in Rich Man, Poor Man a year ago, dominates the screen in his opening scenes."

Legal issues[]

Following the success of the original novel and the miniseries, Haley was sued by author Harold Courlander, who asserted that Roots was plagiarized from his own novel The African, published nine years prior to Roots in 1967. The resulting trial ended with an out-of-court settlement and an admission from Haley that certain passages within Roots had been copied from Courlander's work. Separately, researchers refuted Haley's claims that, as the basis for Roots, Haley had traced his own ancestry back through slavery to a very specific individual and village in Africa.

After a five-week trial in federal district court, Courlander and Haley settled the case with a financial settlement and a statement that "Alex Haley acknowledges and regrets that various materials from The African by Harold Courlander found their way into his book, Roots." During the trial, presiding U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Ward stated, "Copying there is, period." In a later interview with BBC Television, Judge Ward stated, "Alex Haley perpetrated a hoax on the public." During the trial, Alex Haley had maintained that he had not read The African before writing Roots. Shortly after the trial, however, a minority studies teacher at Skidmore College, Joseph Bruchac, came forward and swore in an affidavit that he had discussed The African with Haley in 1970 or 1971 and had given his own personal copy of The African to Haley, events that took place well before publication of Roots.

Historical accuracy[]

Further information: Roots: The Saga of an American Family § Historical accuracy

Broadcast history[]

Episode lists[]

Roots originally aired on ABC for eight consecutive nights from January 23 to 30, 1977. In the United Kingdom, BBC One aired the series in six parts, starting with parts 1 to 3 over the weekend of April 8 to 11, 1977. The concluding three parts were broadcast on Sunday nights, from April 15 to May 1.[citation needed] The six-part version screened by the BBC is the version released on home video.

Original run # Re-edited version # Approximate time period Featured Kinte descendant(s) Kunta Kinte Kizzy Chicken George Tom Harvey Part I (90m) 1750–1767 Yes Part II (90m) 1767–1768 Yes Part III (45m) Part III (90m) 1776 Yes Part IV (45m) 1780–1790 Yes Yes Part V (45m) Part IV (90m) 1806 Yes Yes Part VI (90m) 1824 Yes Yes Part V (90m) 1841–1847 Yes Yes Yes Part VII (45m) 1861–1865 Yes Yes Part VIII (90m) Part VI (90m) 1865–1870 Yes Yes

U.S. television ratings=[]

The miniseries was watched by an estimated 130 million and 140 million viewers total (more than half of the U.S. 1977 population of 221 million—the largest viewership ever attracted by any type of television series in US history as tallied by Nielsen Media Research) and averaged a 44.9 rating and 66% to 80% viewer share of the audience. The final episode was watched by 100 million viewers and an average of 80 million viewers watched each of the last seven episodes. Eighty-five percent of all television homes saw all or part of the miniseries. All episodes rank within the top-100-rated TV shows of all time.

Episode Nielsen Ratings Date All-time ranking Households

(millions)

Rating Share 1 Roots Part I #82 28.84 40.5 61% January 23, 1977 2 Roots Part II #32 31.40 44.1 62% January 24, 1977 3 Roots Part III #27 31.90 44.8 68% January 25, 1977 4 Roots Part IV #35 31.19 43.8 66% January 26, 1977 5 Roots Part V #21 32.54 45.7 71% January 27, 1977 6 Roots Part VI #18 32.68 45.9 66% January 28, 1977 7 Roots Part VII #50 30.12 42.3 65% January 29, 1977 8 Roots Part VIII #3 36.38 51.1 71% January 30, 1977

On February 16–18, 2013, in honor of Black History Month and the 36th anniversary of Roots, cable network BET aired both Roots and its sequel miniseries, Roots: The Next Generations. Celebrating the 35th anniversary of Roots, BET premiered the miniseries on a three-day-weekend showing in December 2012, which resulted in its being seen by a total of 10.8 million viewers, according to Nielsen ratings, and became the number-one Roots telecast in cable-television history. As for the BET network, its 35th-anniversary airing of Roots became its best "non-tentpole" weekend in the network's history. On Sunday, October 18, 2015, TV One rebroadcast Roots in high definition.

Home media[]

Warner Home Video, which released a three-disc 25th-anniversary DVD edition of the series in 2002, released a four-disc (three double-sided, one single-sided) 30th-anniversary set on May 22, 2007. Bonus features include a new audio commentary by LeVar Burton, Cicely Tyson and Ed Asner, among other key cast members, "Remembering Roots" behind-the-scenes documentary, "Crossing Over: How Roots Captivated an Entire Nation" featurette, new interviews with key cast members and the DVD-ROM "Roots Family Tree" feature.

In 2016, Warner released the 40th-anniversary Blu-ray, which restored the program to its original eight-episode format and was completely remastered from the original elements. Along with that it carried over previous bonus material and added some new material.

The miniseries has also been released in the digital format for streaming. Though these versions have the edited six-episode format.

Awards and nominations[]

ccolades[]

Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref. 1977 Golden Globe Awards Best Series – Drama Roots Won Best Actress – Drama Series Leslie Uggams Nominated Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Limited Series Roots Won Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series David Greene (for "Part I") Won Marvin J. Chomsky (for "Part III") Nominated John Erman (for "Part II") Nominated Gilbert Moses (for "Part VI") Nominated Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series Ernest Kinoy and William Blinn (for "Part II") Won M. Charles Cohen (for "Part VIII") Nominated James Lee (for "Part V") Nominated Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy Series Louis Gossett Jr. (for "Part IV") Won John Amos (for "Part V") Nominated LeVar Burton (for "Part I") Nominated Ben Vereen (for "Part VI") Nominated Outstanding Lead Actress for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy Series Madge Sinclair (for "Part IV") Nominated Leslie Uggams (for "Part VI") Nominated Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Series Ed Asner (for "Part I") Won Moses Gunn (for "Part I") Nominated Robert Reed (for "Part V") Nominated Ralph Waite (for "Part I") Nominated Outstanding Single Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Comedy or Drama Series Olivia Cole (for "Part VIII") Won Sandy Duncan (for "Part V") Nominated Cicely Tyson (for "Part I") Nominated Outstanding Art Direction or Scenic Design for a Drama Series Solomon Brewer and Joseph R. Jennings Nominated Charles C. Bennett and Jan Scott Nominated Outstanding Cinematography for a Series Stevan Larner (for "Part II") Nominated Joseph M. Wilcots (for "Part VII") Nominated Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama or Comedy Series Jack Martell (for "Part I") Nominated Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for a Series (Dramatic Underscore) Quincy Jones and Gerald Fried (for "Part I") Won Gerald Fried (for "Part VIII") Nominated Outstanding Film Editing for a Drama Series Neil Travis (for "Part I") Won James T. Heckert (for "Part II") Nominated Peter Kirby (for "Part III") Nominated Neil Travis and James T. Heckert (for "Part VIII") Nominated Outstanding Achievement in Film Sound Editing Larry Carow, George Fredrick, Colin Mouat, Larry Neiman, Dave Pettijohn, Paul Bruce Richardson, Don Warner (for "Part II") Won Outstanding Achievement in Film Sound Mixing Richard Portman, David M. Ronne, Don MacDougall, Curly Thirlwell (for "Part I") Nominated Willie D. Burton, George Porter, Eddie Nelson, Robert L. Harman (for "Part IV") Nominated Hoppy Mehterian, George Porter, Eddie Nelson, Arnold Braun (for "Part VII") Nominated George Porter, Eddie Nelson, Robert L. Harman, Arnold Braun (for "Part VIII") Nominated

Remake[]

The History channel produced a remake of the miniseries after acquiring rights from David L. Wolper's son, Mark Wolper, and Alex Haley's estate. The new eight-hour miniseries, with Mark Wolper as executive producer, drew on Haley's novel and the original miniseries albeit from a contemporary perspective. Lifetime and A&E also simulcast it. Will Packer, Marc Toberoff and Mark Wolper executive produced it, alongside Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal. LeVar Burton and Korin Huggins co-executive produced it.

The four-night, eight-hour event series premiered on Memorial Day, May 30, 2016. The ensemble cast includes Forest Whitaker as Fiddler, Anna Paquin as Nancy Holt, Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Tom Lea, Anika Noni Rose as Kizzy, Tip "T.I." Harris as Cyrus, Emayatzy Corinealdi as Bell, Matthew Goode as Dr. William Waller, Mekhi Phifer as Jerusalem, James Purefoy as John Waller, introduces Regé-Jean Page as Chicken George and Malachi Kirby as Kunta Kinte, and Laurence Fishburne as Alex Haley.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

References[]

[]

Roots (1977 miniseries) at Wikipedia

Roots at the Internet Movie Database

Roots at AllMovie

Encyclopedia of Television Archived April 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine

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