From the Tiger Beat Archives, March 1967
EXCLUSIVE: Here’s your very own report on the intimate lives of your faves by their closest friend and constant companion.
About the author: David Price is Davy Jones’ personal stand-in. He works with the Monkees every day on the Screen Gems set, and he travels with them when they go on tour, taking charge of their equipment. David’s 22 years old and loves his work. Who wouldn’t! He’ll be keeping Tiger Beat readers tuned in to all the private activities of the Monkees:
Being close to the Monkees is truly the greatest experience of my life. Every day something unexpected happens, and it really keeps me on my toes. I guess the most exciting thing that’s happened is the Monkees’ tour, which just finished. Maybe some of you were lucky enough to see the show in person. Anyway, this month I’d like to tell you how the tour all came about and what happened behind the scenes in every city. Here goes:
One thing Davy, Micky, Mike, and Peter hoped to prove on this tour was that they really could put on a fabulous show. They also wanted to give their fans some real excitement. Before even beginning plans for the tour, each Monkee insisted that their part of the show must last at least a whole hour. They didn’t want their fans to pay as much as $5.00 for a ticket and then just be on stage for 18 minutes. They didn’t think this was fair. Above all else, they wanted to please their fans, and since I was at every show they put on, I think I can truthfully say that the Monkees came through in flying colors and put on an outlandish show that fans will be talking about for years to come.
Private Plane
We took a 10-passenger Learjet. It was a small plane and we were kind of crowded, but the instruments and the supporting acts for the show went on another plane, so there were just the Monkees, myself, David Pearl, Rick Klein (Micky’s stand-in), and the Monkees’ business managers on our plane. We also had a cute flight attendant who kept us filled with sandwiches. Davy especially liked talking to her.
Our first show was in Denver, Colorado, where it was 17 degrees. All the boys, except Micky, had heavy coats to protect them from the cold. So, when Davy and Mike saw that Micky had no coat, they ran out and bought him a groovy brown suede coat with a fur collar.
Hotel Activities
In Denver we stayed at the Hotel Cosmopolitan. In every town, each Monkee had his own private suite of rooms. The rest of us had rooms on the same floor of each hotel. In their spare time, Davy, Micky, Mike, and Peter played three games they created called: Wall Creeping (which is running down the halls making high-pitched noises with your hands creeping along the walls), Lil’ Abner (which is running down the hall in the middle of the night), and Hall Crawling (which is crawling down the hall in the middle of the night). Lucky for us that no other guests were ever on our floors!
Lobby Excitement
Down in the lobby, groups of girls waited around hoping to get a chance to meet one of the Monkees. Any of us who walked in with long hair was asked, ‘Where’s Davy?’ Finally, after the press conference in the hotel, Davy invited some fans up to his suite and signed autographs and talked with them for a while. There really wasn’t much time to get to meet too many fans, but all the boys tried to talk to as many as they could.
Show Time
The show was a big success, and as I told you before, the boys were really excited about performing in front of a live audience. At the very end of the show, when the boys were singing “Stepping Stone,” the fans broke up on the stage, and it took about 40 policemen to quiet them down. As soon as that number ended, the boys ran off stage and got into a waiting limousine. It took us straight to the airport.
Cars filled with fans followed us all the way to the airport, and when we got there, the plane had been delayed. We all went into the lobby and waited. Davy started taking down Christmas decorations that were hanging on the tree in the lobby and playing with them. When someone told the Monkees how many fans were outside and how cold it was, the boys invited them in. Davy, Peter, Mike, and Micky all signed autographs while they waited for the plane.
Memphis
The concert in Memphis was out-of-town. We stayed at the Sheraton Peabody Hotel where we had an entire floor to ourselves. When we arrived, Micky was hungry, as usual, even though it was the middle of the night. He went out alone to get something to eat. He was often recognized, but he enjoyed himself and liked talking to fans. All along the trip, Micky was reading a book called “It’s Happening,” which is all about the social conditions of youth. He’s really a big reader. On the plane, Peter and Mike usually played cards while Davy talked to the flight attendant.
Everywhere stayed, Mike phoned home to his wife, Phyllis. He’s very conscientious about everything and wanted to be sure his family was all right without him. He also worried about the sound system in each auditorium. He went down early to check everything out. Micky helped set up the drums at every show. The Monkees all want to make sure everything goes well for the audience. At this particular concert in Memphis, a girl jumped up on the stage and kissed Davy while he was singing his solo. Davy loved it, but the security guards didn’t exactly congratulate the girl. Another fan leaped up on the stage when Micky was doing his number. It was out of the ordinary.
Plane Battle
On the flight from Memphis to Louisville, a really funny thing happened. We had cherry tarts for dessert, and someone had the bright idea of throwing one at Davy. He took it right in the face, whipped cream and all, and then the fun began. Everyone started hurling cherry tarts back and forth, and it was really a blast.
Also on the plane we had piped in music, and the only tapes on the plane were old Guy Lombardo songs. In Memphis, Micky’s stand-in, Rick Klein, got an RCA Victor man to give us new tapes. He got Beatles, Dylan, Troggs, and Byrds tapes. The Monkees liked these songs much, much better than Guy Lombardo.
Peter kept busy on the flight by reading every magazine he could get his hands on. He likes to keep up with all the latest news.
None of the Monkees got to take many personal items of clothing with them, and they didn’t have a chance to buy anything in any of the towns where we stopped. But everywhere we played, the fans gave the Monkees gifts: cakes, dolls, rings, shoes, cameras, binoculars, and stuffed animals. They’d leave the gifts in the elevators of our hotels or throw them on stage. Davy, Peter, Mike, and Micky wanted to see every gift the fans gave them personally. It was my job to collect these presents and put them in a wardrobe bag. When we got into our hotel rooms, the boys would look at all of them. They were really pleased with everything they got. Unfortunately, they couldn’t keep all of the gifts, so after seeing them, the gifts were turned over to a children’s hospital.
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