Haley, Alex (1921-1992), was an American author who became famous for his book Roots: The Saga of an American Family (1976). In the book, Haley combined fact and fiction as he described the history of his family, beginning in the mid-1700’s in Africa. Roots tells how Haley’s ancestor Kunta Kinte was kidnapped in Gambia in 1767 and taken to America as a slave. It follows the struggles of Haley’s family in America as slaves and later as free people.
Haley spent 12 years researching Roots. His fame grew after an eight-part dramatization of Roots appeared on television in the United States in 1977. The final episode of the dramatization attracted one of the largest audiences in television history. That same year, Haley received the Spingarn Medal and a special citation from the Pulitzer Prize Board for his book. Roots was remade into another TV miniseries in 2016.
Alexander Murray Palmer Haley was born on Aug. 11, 1921, in Ithaca, New York, and grew up in Henning, Tennessee, and other Southern communities. He served in the Coast Guard from 1939 to 1959 and began to write articles and short stories during that period. Haley edited The Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965). He died on Feb. 10, 1992.
