"The Monkees" (1966) TV series 1966-1968

Writers:

Dee Caruso (writer) (21 episodes)
Gerald Gardner (writer) (21 episodes)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

12 September 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Music

Plot:

The misadventures of a struggling rock band.

Plot Keywords:

The Monkees | Famous Opening Theme | Unemployment | Struggling Music Group | Actor Playing Himself

Awards:

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

 (Series Cast Summary - 4 of 54)

Davy Jones	...	Davy / ... (58 episodes, 1966-1968)
Micky Dolenz	...	Micky / ... (58 episodes, 1966-1968)
Peter Tork	...	Peter / ... (58 episodes, 1966-1968)
Michael Nesmith	...	Mike / ... (57 episodes, 1966-1968)

Runtime:

30 min (58 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Sunset Gower Studios - 1438 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Trivia:

After their six-week improvisational acting course with director James Frawley, the boys rehearsed and recorded as a band during the spring and early summer of 1966 with instruments rented for them by Screen Gems; among the songs they "tracked" was Michael Nesmith's "The Girl I Knew Somewhere," and Nesmith has said "about a hundred" tracks from these sessions were made. This musical gestation was quashed when Don Kirshner was retained as music supervisor.

Goofs:

Continuity: In a number of second-season episodes, Micky's hairstyle changes back and forth from a straight hairdo to a curly "permed" look. This was due to the fact that second-season episodes were filmed at two different times, the spring of 1967 (when a number of the actual episode storylines were filmed) and then later that fall (during which time all the song performances were filmed). During the summer break, Micky let his hair grow out. The difference is perhaps most notable in the episode "It's a Nice Place to Visit," when at one moment Micky is performing a song with his hair curled, and is then seen leaving the stage with his hair straight.

Quotes:

Davy: What's in the morning paper, Peter?
Peter: Oh, "Li'l Abner," "Peanuts"... Oh, say, this is funny!
[laughs]
Peter: This big guy hits the little guy with a club, and the little guy hits the big guy in the jaw!
[laughs some more]
Davy: What comic strip is that?
Peter: What, comic strip? This is the editorial page.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Hey, Hey We're the Monkees (1997) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Daily Nightly

My Favorite Memory

To be honest, I was never a big Beatle fan, but if they were more like Mikey, Davy, Peter and Michael, I could have tolerated them. First off, I loved the Monkees more for their slipshod, improvisational, Benny Hill comedy than their music. They seemed to barely stick to a script as they just had fun, and a lot of their guest stars seemed to share the fun. Some of whom were John Hoyt and the timeless Marla Martel. Most of the music was great, but I loved their comedy routines best. Mickey was the funniest with Michael as his straight man. Peter, the shy one, was funny when he did the dumb guy thing who got his buddies in trouble, but Davy also did the same thing as the cute one with girls chasing him down. My favorite episodes are the ones with the reading of the will, the mad scientist and the fairy tell. I didn't mind much that they weren't allowed to play their instruments, but I was shocked to hear in recent years they smoked pott. I thought they would have known better, but then looking at ""Head," I guess they know now.