`ROOTS' SAGA AUTHOR ALEX HALEY DEAD AT 70

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, February 11, 1992                   TAG: 9202110119
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A1   EDITION: METRO   
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: SEATTLE                                LENGTH: Short
`ROOTS' SAGA AUTHOR ALEX HALEY DEAD AT 70
Alex Haley, the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer whose book "Roots" told the story of the black experience in America and inspired people of all races to search for their ancestors, died Monday. He was 70.
Haley, whose other works included "The Autobiography of Malcolm X," died of a heart attack at Swedish Hospital, said hospital spokeswoman Jane Anne Wilder.
Haley had been scheduled to speak today at the Bangor Naval Submarine Base near Bremerton, said Liz Beauton of the base's human resources department.
Survivors include Haley's third wife, My, and a son, Bill.
Haley won the 1977 Pulitzer Prize for "Roots: The Saga of an American Family," the gripping story of his family's monumental journey from Africa to American slavery and ultimately to freedom.
A result of 12 years of research, the book blended fact and imagined detail in tracing Haley's family back six generations to Kunta Kinte, who was kidnapped from Gambia, West Africa, in 1767 and Haley shipped to this country as a slave.
The book sold 6 million hardcover copies and has been translated into at least 37 languages. The ABC television miniseries adapted from the book drew 130 million viewers over seven nights in January 1977, then the largest program audience ever.
Haley's warmhearted and rich descriptions of his ancestors' lives set off a wave of interest in genealogy, lasting long after the book faded from best-seller lists.
"His importance will be lasting. It wasn't 15 minutes in the sunlight; It'll last forever," said U.S. Education Secretary Lamar Alexander.
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by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB