Alias Smith and Jones

Lever action style comedy. I must of been 6 or so when this aired. I knew these dudes are the heroes. Noble cowboys liven fancy free. A true American Western with TV cult status. I grew up thinking how cool would that be riding in the west saving the day. It hit a mark with the young people because of the style. My oldest sister was in high school and we both could watch it. While Gunsmoke was mom and dad's show this was ours. A fun hour of action, humor, and villains. The only show since then to capture what Kid Curry and Hannibal Heyes had is another cult favorite Firefly. The feel of it is the same. Briscoe County Jr is good but not like Smith and Jones. I can't wait for DVD set to come out on this TV classic. Worth watching any chance you get.

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.

"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 original 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.

I don't know what this TV western make so special. Of course the Pete Duel en Ben Murphy chemistry as already mentioned by other comments, is a fact. But could it be most episodes of this series are so exiting because the episodes have very good plots. good stories with adventure, special kind of humor and also tension. I consider most episodes to be of a higher quality than many western movies. Season 1 is available now in the Netherlands. I hope Universal will also release the other seasons.

Glen Larson really made something that will not age. There simply were outstanding TV series made like "The Prisoner" in the UK. Alias Smith & Jones is also one of them if you like the genre.

A great series back in the day. I watched it on Sunday afternoons (I think?) when I would otherwise have been intolerably bored. Smith & Jones gave me 30 minutes of humorous escapism and left me with a smile on my face. I remember the shock of Pete Duel's untimely death only too well. It was like losing a good friend. The memory of 'Alias Smith & Jones' washes over me like the first sunny day of springtime. I wonder if it would stand up if I actually watched it again. Nostalgia... it ain't what it used to be.