Rumors… that the MONKEES are not friends any more… that they’re fighting… that they’re going to split… Now, the facts.
It’s happened again. History is repeating itself.
You saw it happen to the Beatles. When they became the biggest thing in pop, chins started wagging and gossip was rampant that they had started feuding. That they were jealous… That George wanted to leave… That they were fighting with manager Brian Epstein… That they were fed up and wanted to disband.
None of this was true.
Today we can see just how wrong the gossips were. The Beatles are still together—though they are not working and much—and they’re the best and truest of friends.
And now it’s the Monkees.
Now that their show is number one on the ratings and their records are selling like Pepsi on a desert island, the rumors have started flying from gossip columns.
Said one columnist: “Everyone is trying to hush is up, but there’s plenty of trouble on the Monkees set. The youngsters are reportedly squabbling among themselves over everything.” Another said: “Don’t be surprised if one of more of the fellows break away from the group. The only thing keeping them together is the tremendous amount of money they make together.”
That last statement is partially true. The four boys who answered that famous ad for the Monkees show are earning such a fantastic amount of money together that—as callous as it may seem—that would be fools to split at this time—and they know it!
“I’ll tell you something,” said Mike Nesmith, looking serious. “Us guys really hit it off well, and from the very beginning. You’d never know, watching us before the camera or making music together, that we came together from an ad in the paper.”
It is true that there is tension on the set of their TV tape sessions; there has to be. Four very different individuals who work so hard together do get tense with each other once in a while. Nerves get frayed and temperaments flare. And the persistent rumors emphasize that individual differences are what is shaking the top teen group.
Will they split? Only time will tell. Meanwhile, TL has been promised inside information on the Monkees rumors and next month we hope to tell you more.
It goes without saying that Monkee fans everywhere are hoping the gossip is untrue.
But the rumors have been so strong that we ourselves wonder…
