Geoffrey Deuel Dies: ‘Chisum’ Actor Who Played Billy The Kid Was 81

Geoffrey Deuel, best known for portraying famed outlaw Billy the Kid in the 1970 John Wayne vehicle Chisum, died Dec. 22 at age 81, per an official obituary.

The news was additionally confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter by wife Jacqueline Deuel. The performer, younger brother to Peter Duel (who became known for portraying Hannibal Heyes/Joshua Smith on the popular ABC Western Alias Smith and Jones prior to his suicide), died in hospice care in Florida following a battle with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

“He and Peter were very close,” Jacqueline Deuel told THR. “They really loved each other and took care of each other.”

Deuel, who was born Jan. 17, 1943, mostly appeared on television in a variety of series stretching from the late ’60s to mid-’70s. Among those credits are The Monkees, The Invaders, The F.B.I., The Manhunter, Medical Center, Barnaby Jones, Mannix, Adam-12, The Mod Squad, Mission: Impossible, The Streets of San Francisco, Ironside, Cannon, The Young and the Restless, To Rome With Love and more.

Born in Lockport, New York to a doctor father and nurse mother, he was raised in nearby Penfield. After attending Penfield High School, Ithaca College and Syracuse University, Deuel followed in his brother’s footsteps, beginning his career in Hollywood in 1965. The following year, he appeared in an episode of ABC’s 12 O’Clock High. Deuel and Duel, who was three years his senior, worked alongside one another on a 1971 episode of NBC’s The Name of the Game.

In the 1980s, Deuel acted in plays in Tampa, Fla. and returned to higher education to earn a master’s degree from the University of South Florida. Thereafter, he became a substitute teacher.

He is survived by his wife — whom he married in 2017 after four decades together — and younger sister Pamela.