Alias Smith and Jones - Hannibal Heyes and Jed Curry decide to seek amnesty from their past in order to have a fighting chance in their future. To gain their goal they must remain model citizens for a year. However, staying out of trouble isn't as easy as it sounds. The Root Of It - A young woman hires the two ex-outlaws to recover a stolen letter. However, they are unaware that the letter contains a map leading to a buried payroll and will involve them with a con-artist and even worse - the law. Wrong Train to Brimstone - Heyes and Curry find themselves posing as private agents hired to thwart a robbery supposedly engineered by them and their Devil's Hole Gang. viewer's comments: -A fascinating history "Alias Smith And Jones" is actually a reworking of an earlier pilot/movie, called "The Young Country," about con artists in the Old West. It starred Roger Davis AND Pete Duel and was quite good. If it has ever been shown anywhere since its or- iginal ABC network airings(I assume they reran it once)it got by me. Apparently an ABC executive said "Not bad, but make it more like "Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid'" and a Universal studio exec added, "Here's a sort of Paul Newman look-a-like we've got under contract you can use, so lose one of those guys." So Ben Murphy replaced Davis in the second pilot and the rest is history. If you doubt me, note that in "Country" Joan Hackett plays a character called Clementine Hale, the same name given to Sally Field's two-time guest role in the "AS&J" series. It is a shame that Roger Davis is thought of as the guy that flopped as Duel's replacement, because he was very effective in the original. - One of the Best westerns ever produced! I have watched this movie many times over the years and I can tell you it is very good. Makes you laugh. makes you root for the 2 guys who are trying to go straight. Pete Duel is terrific and I have always been sad to know he is no longer with us. I cried for days after his death, so much so that my parents were worried as to my fate. They watched me like a hawk but I would of never did as he did. I still love him and watch all of his old movies and tv stuff either it be on tv land or the video tape I have of Alias Smith and Jones. I never could accept Roger Davis as his replacement, I tried to watch really I did but it wasn't the same without Pete. I was always reminded of why Roger was there instead of him. Thank you, Pete, for the time you did give us. - Fun Action This 1970 ABC movie was very well received and done in the Butch Cassidy/Sundance Kid vein. The Pete Duel/Ben Murphy chemistry was excellent as they built strong scenes together. Their characters, Hannibal Heyes (Duel) and Jed Curry (Murphy) were trying to go crime free. The governor would grant them amnesty if they could do it for one year. The bad deal is they would still be wanted by the law. They could be killed, but could not kill. It was interesting to see how they would talk their way out of numerous situations (some which were very funny). This was so well received that they made it into a series which featured frequent guest star Sally Field as Clementine Hale. Sally Field and Pete Duel had starred in "Gidget" together. Around New Years 1972, midway through their second season, Pete Duel lost his long time battle with depression and took his own life. ABC promptly replaced him with the show's narrator, Roger Davis. Even though Davis did an excellent job as Heyes, viewers had a hard time making the mental switch without thinking about the Pete Duel tragedy. ABC renewed the series for a Third Season (1972-73), however it was canceled in February of 1973. When TNT or TVLand air the reruns of Alias Smith & Jones, whether it is the Duel/Murphy or Davis/Murphy chemistry, it is worth watching. cast: Pete Duel .... Hannibal Heyes (Joshua Smith) (1971-1972) Ben Murphy .... Jed 'Kid' Curry (Thaddeus Jones) Roger Davis .... Narrator (1971-1972)/Hannibal Heyes (Joshua Smith) (1972-1973) J.D. Cannon .... Harry Briscoe Ralph Story .... Narrator (1972-1973) Sally Field .... Clementine. 169 minutes
