To mark the 35th anniversary of the iconic television series Roots Oprah Winfrey will host a special show reuniting the surviving members of the cast. The reunion special, entitled Roots: 35 Years Later, will be broadcast on the Oprah Winfrey owned U.S network OWN and will feature the cast sharing their personal memories of working on the historic series and how the show exposed the horrors of slavery.
“Over the years the cast has dwindled, but I was grateful that many of us are still here to account for this spectacular event. What Oprah is doing should be commended because ‘Roots’ meant so much to people all over the world,” stated Cicely Tyson, who played Binta Kinte in the series, via a statement released via OWN.
Cicely Tyson will appear alongside costars Leslie Uggams, LeVar Burton (Kizzy), John Amos (adult Kunta Kinte/Toby), Louis Gossett Jr. (Fiddler) and Ben Vereen (George “Chicken” Moore) on the special tribute show.
“Roots: 35 Years Later” will air on OWN on January 16th (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day).
[via essence]
