This is a series I remember enjoying (though now am unable to recall any specifics about) during my pre-teen years when it aired.

Ben Murphy and Pete Duel wasn't it? I used to really enjoy this easy going series. So sad about Pete Duel - such a waste of life.

I especially remember Ben Murphy, as he remained popular on t.v. for quite some time.

Until just now reading your comment, Strange, and checking Pete Duel's TMDb profile page, I hadn't been aware that he committed suicide. Very sad.

Without Pete Duel (Hannibal Heyes, alias Joshua Smith) the show was never the same.

The recasting of the character Smith with actor Roger Davis was a mistake.

Two in fact. It wasn't only that this Smith was different, but the actor who played him now, had already appeared as the gunslinger Danny 'Smiler' Bilson in the episode "Smiler with a Gun (S2E04, 1971)".

Kid Curry (alias Thaddeus Jones) had killed him in that episode. So, it was strange to see Bilson reincarnated as his cousin Heyes.

It's unbelievable. Did the producers really expect that the viewers would just accept this, and that Curry didn't notice that his cousin was suddenly the spitting image of the man he'd killed?

Everytime I saw this new 'Smith', the way he talked and laughed, I just thought, "that's the villain Bilson!".

The producer should have at least chosen another actor.

I hadn't remembered that Roger Davis (who I readily remember from the wonderful Dark Shadows gothic daytime soap) filled Duel's slot after the suicide. As you said, wonder, pretty perplexing him being cast, after he'd already portrayed a character who was earlier killed on the series!

It would be interesting to catch some reruns sometime.

Some very good comments here, the main I disagree with is the one that says wish they had made more episodes, I watched it as a teenager with my Dad who grew up on the old Westerns and he loved this show and I did also, as it began the 2nd season it was still good, but both of us thought as it went on it was missing something from the 1st one, good but not quite as good, then when we heard the news of Pete Duel killing himself, I really took it hard as it was one of my favorite shows. And so did my Dad, and neither of us liked the replacement for Pete the voice of the show, I think we did finish that season and the next, but it was a struggle to do so without the original star who was excellent in his part, and we barely made it through the last season, we were glad it almost cut in half in the number of episodes. I agree with some comments above it was clearly a mistake casting Davis as Heyes, since was a bad guy in a previous episode and killed in it. But he was just completely wrong for the part, as I mentioned, I was a young teen and my Dad together agreed it really was a struggle to keep up with it, with Davis in the part, On December 31, 1971 the actor who played Hannibal Heyes in "Alias Smith and Jones" -- Pete Duel -- killed himself. The studio continued filming the episode that he had been working on, and hired - Roger Davis - to play the part. Davis had starred in other shows with Duel, and had narrated the show, there was not much of a break in between his death and the next episode with Davis, The Episode S2, Ep18 was Duel's last one, released on 27 Jan. 1972 The Men That Corrupted Hadleyburg, the 1st Episode with Davis was S2, Ep19 released 3 Feb. 1972 The Biggest Game in the West, barely 1 month after Duel's death, to me that was ridiculous to go back so soon and so uncaring, as fans we did not like that at all. Also a bit of info I found, Geoffrey Deuel played billy in chisum. he was the brother to the late, great actor/activist/poet pete duel/deuel who appeared on gidget with sally field and on alias smith and jones. his brother stated at that time that Pete did not commit suicide and his Girlfriend did not believe that either, they believe although depressed and upset at ratings and things going on in his life, he was living a good life and glad to be back with his old Girl friend, that he had been drinking, and playing around with a gun and that he accidently shot himself, even Police at 1st did not think suicide they believed from the evidence and info provided and found, it was possible murder, then upon further investigation they still did not rule it a complete suicide, and left open the possibility of an accident. Either way the greedy people making the show and the network should never have allowed it to continue at all, or at the very least so soon and with obviously the cheapest and closest person they could have hired. I would have taken time off until time to film the 3rd season and ended that one. Began the next year with some kind of special where maybe Heyes was killed, by only showing a body double from the back and or side, and then Curry finally getting his amnesty, something like that. Or if they had to continue, still take off until the next seasons time to film and to have taken the time to find a much more suitable actor to replace him and to have had a tribute and dedicated the season to him or anything but the way they did handle things, that's why season 3 only lasted 12 episodes.