I acknowledge immense debt to the griots [tribal poets] of Africa -- where today it is rightly said that when a griot dies, it is as if a library has burned to the ground.
Source: We must honor our Ancestors, in Ebony, Aug 1986.
-- Alex Haley, (Aug 11 1921-1992), US novelist, journalist; His historical fiction, Roots, 1976, depicted the struggles of American blacks and became the most-watched dramatic show in TV history.