Exclusive!
A new TiGER BEAT monthly column from us to you… by Davy, Peter, Mike, & Micky
Each month in TiGER BEAT the Monkees tell all about themselves and their lives… in their own words!
Exclusive!
Davy talking: Permalink
This month I’m going to talk about my three favorite things in the world: (1) People; (2) Horses; (3) Acting.
People are my favorite things because each one of them is an individual and each one of them is a challenge. You never know what to expect from anyone. Since becoming a Monkee, people do treat me differently, but I’ve discovered that if I just be myself, soon they drop their reserve and really let loose.
I’ve met many stars in Hollywood since our TV show has been on the air. One thing I’ve noticed about them is that the bigger and more important they are, the less likely they are to be conceited. The stars who are on top are the most natural. Only the ones who are struggling to gain some recognition seem to be phony in any way.
Girls who like the Monkees sometimes wait outside the studio gates for us at night. When we’ve had a bad day, it’s tough to stop and talk and sign autographs, but I always try to do this no matter what. Sometimes it’s impossible, but every time I meet a new fan, it seems worth it, no matter what the effort. The one thing that makes me feel bad is that I can’t possibly grant every fan a special request. If I did this, I’d never even get any sleep because signing special autographs and calling different ones on the phone would take all my time. One thing I can say though is that I try to do as much for my fans as I can. They certainly have done enough for me.
Horses mean a lot to me because I think it was on a horse that I first found out how exciting life really was. Suddenly I was racing along with the wind blowing my hair and everything popping up at me in bright, beautiful colors with a strong animal’s body under me. It was fast and exciting, just like life is.
Acting, of course, is my life. Without it, I’d be lost. Ever since I was small I’ve been acting. People ask me if I’m unhappy about being a Monkee because I only get to play one role all the time. The answer to this is no, because every week I get into another situation which makes it a challenge. Naturally, if and when the Monkees ever stop being a group, I’ll go back to acting. But really I’ve never been away.
Love David Jones
Micky talking: Permalink
I’m tired of talking about myself I and what I think so this time around I’m sounding off about Peter Tork.
Peter Tork doesn’t like to be interviewed and he doesn’t care anything about publicity, so all you fans keep asking the rest of us questions about Peter. The first thing that comes to my mind about him is that he’s a person that you can’t sum up in any quick statement.
I’ve only known him for a little over two years, but I couldn’t begin to tell you all the many sides to him. Generally I’d say he’s a deeply serious person with an outside approach to life that’s happy and kind of kooky. He isn’t really like the Peter you see on TV. He’s not at all dumb or unaware. In fact, he’s just the opposite. Bright and very aware.
Musically, I’d say that Peter’s talents are tremendously versatile. When he gets the chance to do a solo number on a concert tour, he turns on completely. So does the audience. Anyone can see that Peter has a true contact with the audience.
His sense of humor is outasite. He has a slow wit that creeps up on you and sort of explodes when you least expect it. He sees humor in situations where no humor really exists. But to Peter it does.
He’s quiet about his personal affairs. You could never get Peter to tell you whether he likes a certain girl or not. He thinks his private business is private and that’s the way it stays.
Peter does get angry sometimes and he can have a pretty sharp tongue. But when this happens, there’s always a good reason for it. You’ll never catch him being temperamental.
He’s interested in off-beat things like strange cultures and unusual musical instruments. In order to keep up with Peter, you’d have to discover all the new things before he does. This, I think, would be pretty impossible.
All in all, as you can gather, I think Peter Tork’s a pretty groovy person.
Peace
Micky Dolenz
Mike talking: Permalink
I guess you all heard about me having my tonsils out last May. Well, it was really quite an experience and it made me realize how important it is to stay healthy.
After being so active for so many months, it came as quite a shock to me to have to lay in that hospital bed and do nothing. This got me to thinking about how many people all over the world have to do this. Then, when I felt a little better, I started listening to my record player and watching some television. Without these two inventions, life would have been really grim in that hospital.
But what I’m getting at is that I’m glad to be well again and I’m concerned about people who aren’t well. In a way I hope by being a Monkee and trying to entertain people, I can make it easier for any one who’s bedridden. Micky also feels this way because at one time, he couldn’t be as active as he is now because of being on crutches. Thanks to all of you who sent me get well cards. I wish I could have answered all of them personally.
As you know, we’re touring now and it really is the highlight of my life so far. There are so many little things that happen along the way that I wish I had time to keep a diary to tell you about them. One thing I would like to mention is the warmth of the fans. They don’t seem to be so wild as on our first tours. Instead they’re happy, friendly, enthusiastic and encouraging. This makes life even more fun because we can tell by their reactions that our music really means something to them. I only wish we could meet all of you personally on our personal appearances.
Love
“Honest”
Mike Nesmith
Peter talking: Permalink
Well, since Micky talked about me this month, I guess you think I should talk about Micky. Well, I’m not going to. Instead I’m going to talk about the Monkees as a group!
Since we haven’t been a group for too long, there’s been a lot of talk about us getting to the top too quickly. Well, it’s true. Success came quickly for us as a group, but I would like to tell you that each of us worked many years on our own before we joined the Monkees. These years weren’t always easy, but they did prepare us for what lay ahead.
I can honestly say that we never have any serious disagreements. Sometimes, we get overtired at a recording session and argue about different songs we’re going to sing, but when it comes to personalities, we don’t have any trouble at all. In fact as we get to know each other better I think we get along much better.
You’d think being together so much would be hard to take, but it isn’t. It seems that as each day passes there’s a little more to find out about each other.
On the set we don’t spend too much time together unless we’re in front of the cameras. When a special guest comes on the set then we all get together and meet them, but usually we go into our own dressing rooms and do what we want to do.
Sometimes after work we do go to each other’s houses, but that’s not usual. I think this keeps us on a more even basis, too. When we do get together socially, then it’s more fun. We get to see the new things at each other’s houses and things like that.
If we ever do break up as a singing group you can be sure that we’ll never break up as good friends. I don’t think I could find any finer friends than Micky, Davy, and Mike.
Peter Tork
