Remembering “Roots”…
“There gone be another day!”
In January of 1977, a historic snowstorm called “The Blizzard of 1977” hit Buffalo, New York and other surrounding states, demonstrating the wrath that nature is capable of. It was one of the worse storms in history, and it had a devastating effect on Cleveland, where I was living with my children at the time. The entire city was essentially paralyzed due to the severity of the storm. Blindingly heavy snowfall, Hurricane-force winds, extremely cold temperatures, and significant disruption of daily life. But around the same time, even amid all the reporting on this major weather catastrophe, one competing story managed to break through and seize attention. Print headlines filled newspaper and magazine pages. Radio and television ads permeated the airwaves, heralding the coming of a new television miniseries called “Roots”. Ubiquitous television commercials featuring interviewees who had seen the film were everywhere and brought news of the historical saga about the enslavement of Africans in the United States into our homes.
One television commercial, enhanced by a deeply resonant and compelling male voice announced: “Roots: The Triumph of an American Family is coming on January 22nd on ABC. Parental discretion is advised.”
Reportedly, ABC-TV network executives feared that the depiction of the brutality of slavery would turn viewers off. But the immense advance promotion of the miniseries and subsequent word of mouth all but guaranteed significant viewership. And unexpectedly, it captivated the entire nation and made television history. Surprisingly, 85% of American households tuned in. That means 130 million Americans watched the epic program. For 8 consecutive nights, it riveted viewing audiences in the United States. The 12-hour television miniseries aired from January 23, 1977 to January 30, 1977 in the United States at 9:00 pm-11:00 pm, or 10:00 pm-11:00 pm. In the United Kingdom, the BBC aired the miniseries from April 8, 1977 to April 20, 1977. “Roots” introduced millions of viewers to actual African-American history and changed the way Americans thought about slavery and its effects on generations of African Americans.
48 years have passed since Roots captivated audiences. At the time it was the most-watched program in television history, and it also became one of the most honored. With an estimated reach of between 130 and 140 million viewers, the eight-episode miniseries was based on Alex Haley’s 1976 novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family, which was published in the fall of 1976, during America’s Bicentennial. The book was an overnight commercial and critical success, sold over 6 million copies, made the New York Times bestseller list, and won the Pulitzer Prize. This was groundbreaking television programming and must-see TV for millions of viewers. Especially African Americans for whom most of their family’s history had been erased. But images of our ancestors on our TV screens and the outstanding performances of the actors brought them into our homes, revealing the horrors of slavery as well as the extraordinary strength and resilience of our enslaved forebears. The cultural impact of Roots was immediate and profound, and millions of viewers became inspired to search for their own ancestors.
Of numerous emotionally powerful and disturbingly heartrending scenes performed by the talented group of actors, one unforgettable scene stands out. It takes place early on in the series where actors Louis Gossett Jr. and Levar Burton delivered one of the most gut-wrenching scenes ever filmed. As his character, “Fiddler”, an enslaved man assigned to teach mandatory servitude to young captive Kunta Kinte (LeVar Burton), Gossett as “Fiddler” witnesses the savage whipping by the slave master and how Kunta Kinte staunchly withstands the whipping, determined to keep his African name.
After the inhumane brutality has ceased, and while soothing the boy’s thirst and wounds with water, Fiddler embraces him in his arms and speaks these words:
“Don’t you care what that white man call you. You said Toby. What you care? You know who you be. Kunta. That’s who you always be. Kunta Kinte. There gone be a better day! You hear me? There gone be a better day!”
Many years later during an interview, Louis Gossett, Jr. revealed that he had adlibbed that portion of the dialog, which was not in the script. “It’s one of those epiphanies that actors get sometimes,” he said.
In 1977 when Award seasons began, Roots was at the top of every list for nominations, receiving 36 nominations and winning 9 Emmy Awards. Accepting his Outstanding Lead Actor Emmy, Louis Gossett Jr. spoke these poignant words: “I would like to thank all of my ‘roots,’” he said, “from the Gossetts that came from Africa to Georgia and South Carolina, all the way up to New York … my mother and father, whose spirit weaves around my head from day to day … my three brothers from Roots: LeVar Burton, John Amos, and the great Ben Vereen … producer, Stan Margulies, executive producer, and Mr. David Wolper … Thank you. Academy, thank you for your love.”
48 years later, Roots remains one of television’s landmark programs. One that forced this nation to finally have a national conversation about the horrors of slavery and its legacy, as well as face the fact that the seeds of the very founding of this country are rotten to the core. And considering the toxic and deeply troubling political climate we are currently in, we should harken back to Fiddler’s uplifting mantra to Kunta Kinte and actually believe that “There gone be another day!”
