Roots

Overview

The epic tale of celebrated Pulitzer-prize winning author Alex Haley's ancestors as portrayed in the acclaimed twelve hour mini-series Roots, was first told in his 1976 bestseller Roots: The Saga of an American Family. The docu-drama covers a period of history that begins in mid-1700s Gambia, West Africa and concludes during post-Civil War United States, over 100 years later. This 1977 miniseries eventually won 9 Emmy awards, a Golden Globe award, and a Peabody award, and still stands as the most watched miniseries in U.S. history.

Roughly 12h to watch every episode. This is an estimate: 8 episodes at the typical episode runtime of 90 minutes.

Trailer

Play trailer: ROOTS (1977)

Official video hosted on YouTube. The player loads only when you press play.

Series cast and crew

• 

  Olivia ColeMathilda
  8 episodes

• 

  Ben VereenChicken George Moore
  8 episodes

• 

  John AmosOlder Kunta Kinte
  8 episodes

• 

  Madge SinclairBelle Reynolds
  8 episodes

• 

  Robert ReedDr. William Reynolds
  4 episodes

• 

  Louis Gossett Jr.Fiddler
  3 episodes

• 

  Lynda Day GeorgeMrs. Reynolds
  3 episodes

• 

  LeVar BurtonKunta Kinte
  2 episodes

• 

  Ji-Tu CumbukaWrestler
  2 episodes

• 

  Chuck ConnorsTom Moore
  2 episodes

• 

  Leslie UggamsKizzy Reynolds
  2 episodes

• 

  Lorne GreeneJohn Reynolds
  2 episodes

• 

  Ralph WaiteSlater
  2 episodes

• 

  Ren WoodsFanta
  2 episodes

• 

  Sandy DuncanMissy Anne Reynolds
  2 episodes

• 

  Lawrence Hilton-JacobsNoah
  2 episodes

• 

  Tanya BoydGenelva
  2 episodes

• 

  Thayer DavidHarlan
  2 episodes

Created by

Alex Haley

Network

ABC

Seasons and episodes

• Miniseries1977 · 8 episodes
• Specials8 episodes