SEATTLE -- The body of Alex Haley, the author of 'Roots' who died this week of a heart attack, will be buried in his hometown of Henning, Tenn., associates of the late writer said Wednesday.
Haley's body was shipped Wednesday under the auspices of the U.S. Coast Guard from Seattle, where Haley kept a condominium and liked to spend time writing and relaxing, to Memphis on a direct flight, said theRev. Samuel B. McKinney, a close friend of the Haley family.
Haley's body will lie in state at the Greenwood Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, 3311 Kimball Ave., Memphis, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday, followed by a funeral service at the church from 10 a.m. to noon.
Following the service, there will be a procession from Memphis to Henning, where Haley was raised. A second memorial service will he held from 3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the New Hope CME Church in Henning, followed by an internment service at the Family Home Cemetary at 4 p.m.
Haley, whose works also included 'The Autobiography of Malcolm X,' collapsed late Sunday night at his condominum and was pronounced dead of a heart attack a few minutes after midnight at a local hospital.
Haley's 1976 book 'Roots: The Saga of an American Family' was made into the most successful television miniseries of all time.
He was born Aug. 11, 1921, in Ithaca, N.Y., but grew up in Henning in west Tennessee. He served as an enlisted man in the Coast Guard for 20 years and retired at the age of 37 to pursue a career in writing, including articles for Readers Digest and the first in-depth interview published by Playboy magazine.
Haley is survived by two brothers, George and Julius, a son, William, and two daughters. Both of Haley's marriages ended in divorce.
