by Harry Edgington; The Sun, January 1, 1972
My friend Pete Duel — Hannibal Hayes in the BBC series Alias Smith and Jones — died under his Christmas tree yesterday, a bullet in his head. The tragedy happened in Pete’s Hollywood home… and I’ll always wonder if I could have saved him. Because as he died, I slept in my home just twenty yards away.
Pete was 31, successful and bitter. He hated working on the Smith and Jones series, but it gave him his big break. He was on the brink of international stardom when a bullet, apparently fired by himself, ended his life.
It was Pete’s girlfriend, 29-year-old Dianne Ray, who phoned the police in “an emotional and agitated state.” She said she was in a bedroom and Pete had just been watching himself in a Smith and Jones episode on TV. Then she heard the shot. She ran downstairs and found Pete sprawled under the Christmas tree.
Could I have saved him? I’m not sure. In fact I’ll never know. But I had known Pete for six months. We were neighbours and close friends. When we met he always complained about the company making the series. He said they were inhuman, working their actors like horses. He said the show was “junk and I hope it gets scrapped.” His biggest fear was that the company would continue it for another year and “I’ll be lumbered with it.”
Pete complained that they had to work every day. He was on the set, playing opposite Ben Murphy’s Kid Curry on Christmas Eve. His death leaves a nagging doubt in my mind. For late last night as I drove into my garage. I saw the lights on in his tree shrouded house. I was going to pop in for a chat — but decided it was too late. I made a note to call on him today. I knew about Pete’s drinking problem — he had been convicted twice for drunk driving, the last time in June when he was put on probation for two years — and was also prone to depression. A police spokesman said later that Pete had been drinking heavily before he died. Perhaps I could have saved Pete’s life. If only I had dropped in for a chat.
You are blaming yourself because you didn’t drop in for a drink. I really don’t think it would have mattered, because if he were that determined, yes you would have saved him that night, but he would have done it another night.
i absolutely loved alias smith and jones and pete duel was my favorite of the three actors who starred in it. i was heartbroken when i heard he committed suicide. i am delighted though that they are running the series again on insp. i hope it continues. God bless
When I was just a young child from Germany I watched Alias Smith and Jones and had a crush on Pete, when the show cancelled I was so sad. This year I binged watched The Virginian and discovered that Pete appeared on it a couple times. I was happily surprised . I recognized him and checked if the show was on demand. Yes it is and today as a matter of fact. I checked his name on Wikipedia and learned he killed himself it brought tears to my eyes. I feel bad for his friends and family may he R.I.P.
I remember the total shock when I heard he had died, and the greater shock when they said he committed suicide. I loved the show. It was great fun and they both played it to a T. I’m so sorry for the unknown burden that drove him to take his life. Asking if you could have made a difference stems from the desire to understand what drove him to such ends, and could you have changed things. There’s no way to truly know.
Funny thing Pete was a good actor, after
his death I ran into a Metro 3 Fairchild pilot that looked and acted like Pete Duel.
I never got his name, but he had the same
type of expressions, moves and voice. I
told him he reminded me of Pete Duel he seemed to know. I gave him a clear description of the controls for the
Garrett TPE 331 engines and he was pleased. He gave that great Pete Duel
smile and was gone. If a double of Pete
exists this was one. This occurred about
thirty years ago well after Pete’s death.
Pete’s sister a Christian talked about her
Brother who would of gone far as a great
actor. RIP with our Savior Pete Duel