"Alias Smith and Jones" (1971) TV series 1971-1973

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Creator:

Glen A. Larson

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3

Release Date:

21 January 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Western

Plot:

Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry, two of the most wanted outlaws in the history of the West, are popular...

Plot Keywords:

Wild West | Star Died During Filming | Satire | Character Name In Title

Cast

Ben Murphy	...	Jed 'Kid' Curry (Thaddeus Jones) (50 episodes, 1971-1973)
Roger Davis	...	Narrator / ... (49 episodes, 1971-1973)
Pete Duel	...	Hannibal Heyes (Joshua Smith) / ... (33 episodes, 1971-1972)

Runtime:

60 min (50 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company:

Universal TV

Trivia:

The tragic death of series star Pete Duel on December 31, 1971 was not acknowledged by ABC when the next episode aired as scheduled on Thursday January 6, 1972.

Quotes:

[while Curry buys stagecoach tickets, Heyes scribbles the text of a telegram to Sheriff Trevors]
Jed 'Kid' Curry: Let me see that.
Hannibal Heyes: You can't read my writing!
Jed 'Kid' Curry: Can you?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Hercules Unchained (#5.8)" (1992)

Could Pete Duel Have Saved the TV Western?

I'll always wonder: had he lived, could Pete Duel have rescued the TV Western from oblivion? Gunsmoke and Bonanza, the hoary old legends of the genre, already were teetering on their ancient last legs, with but a few more seasons to be squeezed out of them, when, out of the blue, as I remember it, came Alias Smith and Jones, whose fresh and jokey episodes became pretty wildly popular, especially with young people (that would be the likes of *me*, as I was 16 at the time). Alas, as others have already noted, Pete Duel committed suicide just as the series was hitting its stride. (The story of Duel's death made headlines across the country in a way contemporary viewers of TV dramas cannot imagine.) Roger Davis came in as a replacement and the series slid right downhill immediately thereafter--although I did like the episodes with Michele Lee. At any rate, about the only TV Western afterward to generate anything similar to Alias Smith and Jones' excitement was Kung Fu. Sidenote: James Garner's marvelous, and utterly forgotten series, Nichols, should have been the next great Western after Alias . . .

What made Alias Smith and Jones tick? I always thought it was a sleek updating of what had already been a semi-comic TV Western success a few years earlier, Maverick. In fact, you can spot touches of the Bret Maverick characterization in both Heyes and Curry, along with some similar story lines and plot developments. Not to mention the lifting of the "five pat hands" trick, which Bret Maverick employed more than once. All of which should not be too much of a surprise, however, as Roy Huggins was instrumental to both series.

Otherwise, watch out for the handful of episodes with Slim Pickens. "Exit from Wickenburg", the one where Slim works as the crooked bartender of a saloon/casino, is a masterpiece. It just wouldn't be a proper 1960s Western without Slim popping up every now and then.

What a pity that Pete Duel succumbed to his demons. What a loss for network TV, the Western, and the many fans of Alias Smith and Jones. Who knows what could have been . . . .