1977's "Roots," based on Alex Haley's 1976 novel of the same name, begins with the story of Kunta Kinte, a Mandinka man of the 18th century who is captured by slavers, shipped across the Atlantic, and sold to a Virginia plantation owner. He fails to escape, but he does father children who carry on his struggle for freedom. They live long enough to experience emancipation, the Civil War, the rise of the Ku Klux Klan, and everything that follows. This truly is, as the subtitle of Haley's novel puts it, the "saga of an American family."
If you didn't know any better, you'd probably think such a production couldn't have been possible until the 21st century. Miniseries hadn't yet made much of a splash when "Roots" premiered, after all. Moreover, it's easy to assume such deep subject matter was reserved for movies of the era. But no: "Roots" debuted in the '70s, and was, in fact, a colossal hit, becoming the very first blockbuster miniseries.
Really, calling "Roots" a "hit" might be underselling it. Each new episode was an event — we're talking scheduled, essential viewing. The finale drew a groundbreaking 100 million viewers, which still puts it in the top five TV finales ever. The influence of "Roots" remains apparent in the entertainment landscape, especially in the continuing success of the miniseries format.
