Excerpt from "Country Party Line" Column
by Bonnie Bucy
TV Radio Mirror, April 1972
Remember the left-handed card dealer you saw in the final episode of Alias Smith & Jones that starred the late Pete Duel? In case he looked familiar to you country music fans, it was Bill Anderson, making his first attempt at legit acting. He had filmed the scene with Duel only a few days before Duel died of a reportedly self-inflicted gunshot wound. Anderson said he was shocked to learn of the TV actor's death only a few days later. "I worked closely with Pete. It was my first effort at straight acting and he couldn't have been nicer," Anderson said. "He helped me an awful lot and I got the feeling if we had time, we could have really become good friends. We talked about the recording industry and the Nashville Sound and he said he hoped to visit Nashville some day. I'll remember Pete Duel as a real pro, although I only knew him one day. He gave me confidence and helped me to relax, when in truth, I don't guess he even had to give me the time of day."
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