When Micky Dolenz auditioned for The Monkees back in 1965, he was just a 20-year-old with a love for music and a knack for entertaining. He had no idea that a newspaper ad calling for “insane boys” with “the courage to work” would change his life forever. 60 years later, he’s still doing what he loves.
Now 80, Dolenz is the last living Monkee, following the deaths of Davy Jones, Peter Tork, and Michael Nesmith. But he is representing the Monkees well as the last man standing. This summer, he’s on a national tour, singing the songs that made the world sing along, like “I’m a Believer” and “Last Train to Clarksville.”
Micky Dolenz struggled to find his place after The Monkees
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After The Monkees, Dolenz switched gears. He moved to England and got into directing and producing, including a stint on stage in The Point, a musical by Harry Nilsson. Though he’d once been the star of a ‘50s show called Circus Boy, the industry didn’t make it easy. “I went to one audition after The Monkees, and they said, ‘What are you doing here? We don’t need any drummers!’” he recalls.
But he’d grown up around typecasting. His father had been a romantic hero in old Hollywood films and faced the same thing. “I heard the word before I could walk,” Dolenz says. So he adjusted, found other ways to be creative, and kept going.
Micky Dolenz is mixing music and memories on his tour
Now, Dolenz is mixing music and memories in his Songs & Stories tour. He talks about late-night hangs with John Lennon and Harry Nilsson, watching The Beatles record Sgt. Pepper’s, and even introducing Lennon to the Moog synthesizer. The Troubadour was once his second home, a place where legends like Elton John and Joni Mitchell played and partied. One of his favorite sayings comes from those wild nights: “I was there… and I’m told I had a good time.”
At his surprise 80th birthday bash, they renamed the Valley Relics Museum in Van Nuys the Pleasant Valley Relics Museum, a reference to Pleasant Valley Sunday. “It was supposed to be a quiet dinner,” he laughs. “Next thing I know, we’re going the wrong way, and I said, ‘Oh no… something’s up!’” There was good music, old friends, and even a signature drink: the “Micky D.”