MovieChat Forums > Alias Smith and Jones (1971) Discussion > Why was ROGER DAVIS chosen as replacemen...

Why was ROGER DAVIS chosen as replacement anyway?

posted 10 years ago by PERRO315
12 replies | jump to latest

...I know that he started as the show's narrator, and had already appeared in one episode (as an obviously completely unrelated character), yet, I've often wondered, if producers were going to replace Duel, wouldn't there have been about a hundred better actors to have chosen, other than Davis?! Was it maybe the pressure of getting out episodes led to decisions based solely on time constraints, and Davis was a somewhat "known quantity" who could probably be available to step in at a moment's notice?

[–] SpacemanBob 10 years ago

Being the narrator, having been in an episode (in fact he was killed by Kid Curry, ironically) points to being in a hurry, as you said. I believe they were shooting the day after Pete passed. Davis was otherwise an odd choice, he did not look the part at all.

[–] MeganCraft 10 years ago

...I know that he started as the show's narrator, and had already appeared in one episode (as an obviously completely unrelated character), yet, I've often wondered, if producers were going to replace Duel, wouldn't there have been about a hundred better actors to have chosen, other than Davis?! Was it maybe the pressure of getting out episodes led to decisions based solely on time constraints, and Davis was a somewhat "known quantity" who could probably be available to step in at a moment's notice?

I can't really answer your question, but it likely Davis had already audition for the role, but didn't get selected as the producer's final choice. When Duel's death suddenly stopped production, they simply selected Davis because he had already worked with them before, and they liked him.

I think if such a thing happened today, it would have been handled a lot differently. The first season would have ended several episodes short, and returned in the fall with a different actor or had Hannibal Hayes written out and another outlaw character replacing him. Something like Hayes went back east and suddenly another former partner in crime teams up with Kid Curry.

[–] activista 10 years ago

I've been watching some of the Davis episodes, and in all fairness, he wasn't that bad---he was actually pretty good-looking when his character wasn't pissed off or scowling at something, and I liked the few episodes I've seen him in so far. Plus he had the tough look and the toughness required for the role, and he was convincing as a hard outlaw---the thing is, though, he had genuinely creepy eyes that probably got him typecast as a villain most of the time anyway (in fact,that's what I like about the show---even the good-looking young dudes had this tough,weather-beaten,world-weary look about them that complemented the Western look of the show,including Duel.) I say that because the ones in today's shows looked like pretty-boy models compared to them---just my opinion,though.

[–] happipuppi13 10 years ago

Read this from Wikipedia. It IS legit-
amate,but I did edit a bit for easier reading.) :

============================================================================

In the early morning hours of Friday, December 31, 1971, series star Pete Duel died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the age of 31. He was reportedly suffering from depression and had been drinking heavily when he shot himself. Upon learning of Duel's death, executive producer Jo Swerling, Jr. initially wanted to end the series but ABC refused.[4] Swerling later stated:

ABC said, "No way!" They said, "You have a contract to deliver this show to us, and you will continue to deliver the show as best you can on schedule or we will sue you." Hearing those words, Universal didn't hesitate for a second to instruct us to stay in production. We were already a little bit behind the eight ball on airdates. So we contacted everybody, including Ben [Murphy], and told them to come back in. The entire company was reassembled and back in production by one o'clock that day shooting scenes that did not involve Peter - only twelve hours after his death.[5]

Series writer, director and producer Roy Huggins contacted (by phone) actor Roger Davis. Davis had appeared in episode #19 "Smiler With a Gun" & provided narration for the series.

This on the day of Duel's death to fill the role of Hannibal Heyes. Davis was fitted for costumes the following day, and began re-shooting scenes Duel had previously completed for an unfinished episode the following Monday. According to Swerling, the decision to continue production so soon after Duel's death was heavily criticized in the press at the time.

Happipuppi :
You'll note,Davis never wore Duel's
black hat. That would've been further insulting.

Love rules & hate's for fools.
(MR.) happipuppi13 *arf,man!*

[–] milesahead1 10 years ago

I agree totally about the character of Hayes being written out as a means of continuing the show.

I've always felt that most of the audience would have accepted Davis playing another (but similar) character. In fact, some of the later episodes were extremely well written, but Duel's tragic death cast a shadow over the proceedings and Davis was in an almost untenable position.

[–] oh_oh_oh_yeach 10 years ago

he was a narrator of the show.statred with duel in young country before smith and jones at the right place right time.

[–] activista 10 years ago

@milesahead1

Sadly, COZI TV quit showing ALIAS SMITH AND JONES a couple of months back, for whatever the reason---glad I taped every episode I could. And yeah, Davis was an untenable position, like you said, having to literally step into the show to replace one of its most popular cast members at the last minute, but, in all fairness, he pretty much helped save the show so it could be put into syndication--so he deserves some credit for that. One of my favorite episode with him is the one called "The Town That Corrupted Hadleyberg" (I probably got the name wrong somewhat) where he and Heyes find a bag of money tossed to them off a train, and what happens when they try to return it. They both end up working out a way to give the money back, and straighten out a situation, and Davis really shined in this episode, and also showed a nicer side to his character. Really enjoyed it, too---I love the show anyway.

[–] milesahead1 9 years ago

@activista

Can't believe it's been so long since I visited this page! I agree about enjoying the show, even with Davis in the Hayes' role. I find though, that after watching the Pete Duel episodes, I need to leave it a couple of months before I can watch the Davis episodes. Then, based on their own merits, the individual episodes are still very entertaining.

I just wish the producers had used a little bit of imagination! Kid Curry could have begun that next episode looking around town for Hayes. Not finding him would have set up a mystery. Davis could then have arrived (perhaps at the very end of that episode; as you point out, he had scary eyes and could appear quite threatening, so it could have been a cliff hanger ending). In part 2, he could've handed over a letter from Hayes, explaining why he had had to leave before he had a chance to speak to Curry (who perhaps had been out of town to buy horses from a nearby ranch, etc, which would have been explained in part 1).In the letter, Hayes could have introduced Davis's character as his cousin, and that he had sent him to keep Curry company.

I think that a scenario similar to this would have worked much better than simply placing Davis in the role of Hayes. I suspect, too, that Ben Murphy might have found that easier to accept - I think I've read somewhere that he admitted that he wasn't too welcoming towards Davis and he later regretted it.

Oh well, we'll never know, but sometimes I find the decisions of TV executives to be perplexing.

[–] Destinata (2597) a year ago

I lived through the original airing of the series. We were devastated by the news of Pete's death and how he'd died. We were stunned to see the show in the line up again. We were insulted by their expecting us to accept Davis in the role Pete Duel had created. As soon as I saw Davis and realized the swindle they were pulling -- that's what it felt like; no, worse than a swindle, a slap in the face -- I turned off the TV.

Writing Pete out would have felt wrong, but understandable -- TV's a business, and that would be a way to let the show go on. Just throwing another actor into the role devalued the contribution Pete made to the show. And that wasn't the usual way it was done. Usually, they would have written Pete out of the show, perhaps even after having a special that had regular actors and his co-star, Ben Murphy, recount memories and give tributes to Pete as a man and a talent. The way Roy Huggins handled it was actually shocking for that time.

[–] Huge_Ack_Man 9 years ago

There's a scene in the first episode with Davis and after Davis delivers a line and right before the scene is cut you can see Murphy briefly give off a look as if to say "man this isn't going to work".

And it didn't.

If don't read the newspaper you are uninformed. If you do...you are misinformed---Mark Twain

[–] Destinata (2597) a year ago

Chances are, you'll never see this, but Roy Huggins -- the producer of this show and the fellow who wrote most of them under the name John Thomas James -- had Davis as his original choice to play Hannibal Hayes. Davis was skiing when Huggins gave him the call to come in and take over the role. He hadn't heard that Pete Duel had killed himself. Duel was, in fact, a friend of Davis's. Small world.

So while a voice actor was doing the dubbing that Pete expected to come in and finish -- if you listen to Pete's dialogue carefully in "The Men Who Corrupted Hadleyburg" you can hear the voice change as the other voice actor comes in -- Davis was learning his lines to take over a role that originally was supposed to be his. Everyone on the set was shattered by Pete's death. Especially the stunt man who'd given Pete that gun he used, not on the burglar working the neighborhood he lived in, but on himself.

Now, HOW Davis was initially edged out by Pete for that role I can't remember. Pete and Davis were up for many of the same roles at Universal. They even played in a TV movie together. For my money, Davis has a sinister look and sound about him, but in that TV movie (the name of it escapes me) Pete offered to play the bad guy -- and knocked it out of the park. Pete Duel, was, by everyone's estimation, a natural. Will Geer told him that he had everything that Paul Newman had. Duel didn't believe him. He should have.

All this is on the Internet. I found it all trying to understand why Pete shot himself.

[–] April-151-CT (10210) a year ago

Pete's brother Geoffrey would've been the perfect choice as they were the spitting image of one another. Maybe that would have been too out of line back then? Too disrespectful maybe? I don't know. But over the years I've always thought that he would have been the perfect replacement.