What Drove Pete Duel to Suicide by Carol Harrison; Screen Life, May 1972 The tragic suicide of one of television's most promising young actors has brought tremendous grief to all of Hollywood. Pete's television credits seemed to be growing every day; he appeared on series such as Combat, 12 O'Clock High, The Fugitive, Ironside, The Virginian, The Name of the Game, Marcus Welby, M.D., The Young Lawyers, The Bold Ones, and ABC's Movie of the Week. He also lent his talents to the other facets of the industry, appearing in a motion picture (Wounded In Action) and co-starring in the road company ... Read More

by Earl Leaf; 'TEEN, April 1972 The last person to interview Peter Duel before his untimely death with his own gun was 'TEEN's bright-eyed swellebrity editor Maureen Donaldson, who spent a delightful afternoon with him at work and play. Pete didn't seem despondent or emotionally disturbed, she says, but after all, he was a very convincing actor with a finely-honed gift for pretending. Even his fiancee Dianne Ray didn't know how seriously disturbed he was. He had often sounded off in hot anger about the fatigue, frustrations, boredom, and pressures of working 12 hours a day on the Alias Smith & Jones ... Read More

Movieland and TV Time, April 1972 What happened to end the life of this fun loving, eager-to-get-ahead young man just when everything seemed to be going exactly right for him? What do you say about a 31-year old TV star who by all appearances "had it made" — but who reportedly died from a self-inflicted pistol wound? Especially when the man was your friend. Not because you were so special to deserve his friendship, rather because you were one of many he befriended — always in a very sincere way. He cared about people. He cared about animals. He cared about any ... Read More

by Joyce Wagner; TV Picture Life, April 1972 "Peter Duel, co-star of the ABC television series Alias Smith and Jones was found shot to death early today at his Hollywood Hills home" stated the Associated Press story quite matter-of-factly. "Detectives said Duel apparently died of a bullet wound in the head. The death is being listed as a possible homicide." Reading the wire story, which was carried in every major newspaper in the country, Peter Duel's death appeared to be just another Los Angeles police case. But was it? Had the young actor, indeed, been murdered by some unknown, mysterious intruder? Or, had ... Read More

by Margo Anderson; Photoplay, April 1972 On December 31, the young co-star of Alias Smith & Jones was found sprawled under the Christmas tree, blood pouring from his head. After the horror, came the questions... "I heard a shot and ran into the living room. It was like a nightmare." Ashen-faced Dianne Louise Ray, on the verge of collapse, forced out the details of her discovery to grim-faced Hollywood police. The body of Pete Duel had just been discovered. Near him lay a snub-nosed .38 caliber revolver. "That's Pete's gun," said Dianne, barely audible. "He came into the bedroom sometime after 1 a.m., ... Read More

by Richard Morris; Motion Picture, April 1972 Peter Ellstrom Duel died the same way he had acted — with passion and precision and in the shadow of his grim, stubborn judgment. He turned his back on a life that he'd found inadequate as an alternative to death. It was fitting — tragically fitting — that he'd gained fame as the star of a television series called Alias Smith & Jones, because Peter Duel was an alias in real life, too. In his 31 years on this earth, he had never been able to find himself. Changing his last name from Deuel ... Read More

by Chris Cross; Movie Stars, April 1972 "TV Star Peter Duel Kills Himself" screamed the headline of one New York newspaper on Friday, December 31. It was the kind of news shocker that knocked the war news right off the front pages of papers around the country. Because the first question everyone asked was, "Why did this successful, good-looking, rising young star suddenly decide to end it all?" Photo Caption: Peter appeared with Kim Darby in the movie 'Generation,' and it was rumored he fell in love with her and never recovered. To understand the answer, you have to understand the man. Yet, ... Read More

by Stephen Lewis; Movie World, April 1972 The driveway of the small wooden house blazed with colored Christmas lights that had been set out only a few days before. In their reflection, and the lights of the parked police cars, the girl stood still, her face numbed with shock and tragedy. Reporters held up cameras and shouted questions, but the girl couldn't answer. And as the stretcher was carried to the waiting ambulance, even the questions stopped — the coarse blanket that stretched over the lifeless body answered them all. The girl was Dianne Ray, and the body was that of Peter ... Read More

by J.R. Vega; Lecturas, April 21, 1972 One of the protagonists of Alias Smith & Jones was considered as one of the most valued actors in Hollywood. The young actor was found dead in his apartment with a gun in his hand. At the start the police suspected that it was a murder case, since Duel was happy, fortune smiled on him and he did not have any reason for taking his own life. But, apparently, they subsequently reached the conclusion that Pete committed suicide. Photo Caption: A close-up of Pete Duel, the joint star with Ben Murphy, in the series "Alias ... Read More

Photo Screen, April 1972 Pete Duel took his own life the morning of December 31, 1971. No one, not even Dianne Ray, the woman who loved him and who shared his last night of life with him, would ever know what finally drove the 31-year-old actor (star of ABC's Alias Smith and Jones series as well as many other TV features) to that final moment. Whatever life was for Pete, it was not worth living—anymore. Photo Caption: Pete Duel seemed happier than ever just before he took his life. Dianne Ray, his long-time friend, told her family that she was hoping ... Read More

Only We Have the Tragic Story! "He Cried for Help and No One Came!" TV Radio Show, April 1972 "He cried for help ... but nobody came," the man said. He shook his head and looked as if he was going to cry. Peter Duel's suicide had shaken everyone, but those who had worked with him and those who were close to him were especially shocked. It was too late to help him, but the post mortems go on. Peter Duel's cry had been long and continuous and to some people, annoying, but it was a cry for help that never came. Now, ... Read More