HALEY, ALEX

born Aug. 11, 1921, Ithaca, N.Y., U.S. died Feb. 10, 1992, Seattle, Wash. Haley on the set of Roots, 1978 in full Alex Palmer Haley American writer whose works of historical fiction and reportage depicted the struggles of American blacks. Although his parents were teachers, Haley was an indifferent student. He began writing to avoid boredom during voyages while serving in the U.S. Coast Guard (193959). His first major work, The Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965), was an authoritative and widely read narrative based on Haley's interviews with the Black Muslim spokesman. The work is recognized as a classic of black American autobiography. Haley's greatest success was Roots: The Saga of an American Family (1976). This well-researched genealogyborn of the history recited by Haley's maternal grandmothercovers seven American generations, from the enslavement of Haley's African ancestors to his own genealogical quest. The work forcefully shows relationships between generations and between races. Roots was adapted as a multi-episode television program, which, when first broadcast in January 1977, became one of the most popular shows in the history of American television. That same year Haley won a special Pulitzer Prize. A successful sequel was first broadcast in February 1979 as Roots: The Next Generations. Roots spurred much interest in family trees, and Haley created the Kinte Foundation (1972) to store records that aid in tracing black genealogy.