I’m in a Monkees kind of mood this week. Now I never saw the Monkees on TV till they hit the rerun circuit on Saturday mornings. As result of only seeing them on reruns I never saw the original opening or the commercials that they made for there sponsors. Also, I never got to really know which ones were season one or season two episodes. With this DVD I can see that season one was really the best yet more traditional season. While the records surpassed the TV show in popularity, the Monkees were designed to first and foremost be a TV show. Produced in 1965, years before the Monterey Pop Festival and the summer of love, the show was made more like Leave it to Beaver or at least it seemed compared to season Two.
Season one had more structure and guidance. As a result the production and writing were better. Sure the guys were off doing appearances and concerts as the band they were slowly becoming but they were living the life of television stars. It was during the summer hiatus from the show that things changed. Suddenly they were free to do what they wanted to do. All they had to do was show up on time at the recording studio or at the concert. When they got back season two started the same but quickly the chain of command changed and you had to wonder who was in control. The guys even said that they were uncontrollable. A special room was created for them with four lights. One light for each Monkee. If Davy was wanted on the set then his light would come on and so on for the others. The show was still funny but the structure was gone. Another more visual way that showed the change in attidude to the audience was there apperance. Look at the two photos above. In season one in the promo shot for the series they are dressed in suits and ties. While they rarely if ever dressed this way on the show this image was more presentable to parents who were in charge of what their children could watch. During their second season they were dressing more like the bottom photo. They were trying to keep up with the times and look more mod. Also the change in clothes for me undermind any belivability that the show had. The were still playing a struggling band but wearing what then were expensive cloths. Well not Micky as you can see his wardrobe of choice was a tablecloth worn as a poncho. Between the show, concerts and recording for the albums there was chaos. In interviews they even said that they were starting doing scripts for the show that they originally turned down as not good enough for season one. The Monkees had some of their friends come on the show so that they may transition the series into a variety show. However, NBC didn’t want that they still wanted a sit-com. Unable to agree the series was canceled. They did have plans to do a series of specials for NBC but only one, Thirty Three and a Third Revolutions Per Monkee, was produced. It was so bad that NBC scheduled it against the Oscar awards. When Nesmith was asked what he watched on TV that night he said like everyone else I watched the Oscars. It is included as an extra on one of these sets with commentary by Micky Dolenz. I remember at one point Micky asked the viewer if anyone was bored besides him. It did give at least one beautiful song. A soulful rendition of I’m A Believer by Micky. The music had changed so much that I almost didn’t know the song. Anyway this set was a wonderful buy for season one and a wonderful Christmas gift from my wife when she gave me season two. Even if you have only heard their music and never saw the show you should get this DVD collection.
Season one had more structure and guidance. As a result the production and writing were better. Sure the guys were off doing appearances and concerts as the band they were slowly becoming but they were living the life of television stars. It was during the summer hiatus from the show that things changed. Suddenly they were free to do what they wanted to do. All they had to do was show up on time at the recording studio or at the concert. When they got back season two started the same but quickly the chain of command changed and you had to wonder who was in control. The guys even said that they were uncontrollable. A special room was created for them with four lights. One light for each Monkee. If Davy was wanted on the set then his light would come on and so on for the others. The show was still funny but the structure was gone. Another more visual way that showed the change in attidude to the audience was there apperance. Look at the two photos above. In season one in the promo shot for the series they are dressed in suits and ties. While they rarely if ever dressed this way on the show this image was more presentable to parents who were in charge of what their children could watch. During their second season they were dressing more like the bottom photo. They were trying to keep up with the times and look more mod. Also the change in clothes for me undermind any belivability that the show had. The were still playing a struggling band but wearing what then were expensive cloths. Well not Micky as you can see his wardrobe of choice was a tablecloth worn as a poncho. Between the show, concerts and recording for the albums there was chaos. In interviews they even said that they were starting doing scripts for the show that they originally turned down as not good enough for season one. The Monkees had some of their friends come on the show so that they may transition the series into a variety show. However, NBC didn’t want that they still wanted a sit-com. Unable to agree the series was canceled. They did have plans to do a series of specials for NBC but only one, Thirty Three and a Third Revolutions Per Monkee, was produced. It was so bad that NBC scheduled it against the Oscar awards. When Nesmith was asked what he watched on TV that night he said like everyone else I watched the Oscars. It is included as an extra on one of these sets with commentary by Micky Dolenz. I remember at one point Micky asked the viewer if anyone was bored besides him. It did give at least one beautiful song. A soulful rendition of I’m A Believer by Micky. The music had changed so much that I almost didn’t know the song. Anyway this set was a wonderful buy for season one and a wonderful Christmas gift from my wife when she gave me season two. Even if you have only heard their music and never saw the show you should get this DVD collection.
In the end the series gave its fans good memories of innocent fun. It also created a family. The stars became like brothers off screen as well as on. David once said that when he was cast on the show he found 3 brothers he never knew he had. In a commentary on one of the episodes Mike laughs as he says "There's Micky and that tablecloth of his." He sounded like a brother or very close cousin watching a home movie and not a former co-worker. From what I remember Peter was harshly fired from the group by Micky and David during their last tour. However, when Micky was a DJ in New York they aired a conversation between Peter and Micky. Peter and some of his friends drove a car to New York just to hear Micky's show. Micky seemed happy to hear from Pete. He said to Peter "You mean you drove up here just to drive around town to listen to my show?" Peter replied "Well actually we're parked."
It doesn't sound like they can stay mad at each other does it? I have recently heard they are all mad at each other again and refused to ever work together again. Don't bet on it. Family members have fueds but over time wounds heal and you do get back together again. You have to because underneath it all you really do love each other.
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