Micky Dolenz, of The Monkees, Book Signing Event | veryfinebooks

Micky Dolenz, one of The Monkees, will be signing autographs.

• 1/24/09 12:30 PM at the Carquest World of Wheels Car Show – McCormick Place. Chicago, IL.

George Michael Dolenz, Jr. (born March 8, 1945) is an American actor, musician, television director and theatre director; he is best known for his role as the drummer/vocalist in the 1960s made-for-television band, The Monkees.

The Monkees

In 1965, Dolenz was cast in the television sitcom ‘The Monkees and became the drummer and lead vocalist for the band created for the show. He was not at that time a drummer and needed lessons even to be able to mime credibly. He wrote a few of the band’s songs as well as providing the lead vocals for such hits as “Last Train to Clarksville” and “I’m a Believer”. Towards the end of the series’ hectic two-year run, Dolenz directed and co-wrote what turned out to be the show’s final episode.

While in the UK on tour with the group, Dolenz met future wife Samantha Juste, the girl who pretended to put the records on the jukebox on the BBC’s “live” pop series, Top of the Pops. The couple had a daughter, Ami Dolenz, who was an actress in the 1980s, born in 1969. Dolenz and Juste divorced in 1975.

Post-Monkees

After the show ended and the band broke up, Dolenz hoped to continue a recording career, and released several singles on MGM Records (and its subsidiaries) in the early 1970s. He also continued performing, providing voice-overs for a number of Saturday-morning cartoon series including The Funky Phantom, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kids, Devlin and Wonder Wheels (from The Skatebirds). He also auditioned for the role of Fonzie on the series Happy Days, but lost out to Henry Winkler. Dolenz eventually reunited with fellow Monkee Davy Jones and Monkee songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart for an album called Dolenz, Jones, Boyce & Hart and a lengthy tour spanning 1975 and 1976, continuing with Jones on tour in 1977 and finishing up with a role (with Jones) in a stage production of the Harry Nilsson musical The Point! in London, playing the part of Arrow, Oblio’s (Jones) pet dog.

After the show’s run, he remained in England and began directing for the stage and television, as well as producing several of the shows he directed. In 1980, Dolenz produced and directed the sitcom Metal Mickey,[1] featuring a small metallic robot with the catch-phrase “boogie boogie”. Due to the similar nature of the character’s name and his own, causing chaos on set, it was at this time that Micky Dolenz officially changed his name to Michael Dolenz.

In the early 1980s, Dolenz directed a stage version of Bugsy Malone, the cast of which included a then-unknown 14-year-old Catherine Zeta-Jones.

From 1983 to 1984 he was responsible for creating and producing the UK children’s television show Luna.

In 1986, a screening of the entire Monkees television series by MTV led to renewed interest in the group, followed by a 20th Anniversary Tour, a greatest hits album and a brand new LP, Pool It! in 1987. The group’s original albums were reissued and all of them hit the record charts at the same time. The group also found chart success with a new recording, “That Was Then, This Is Now” hitting the Top 20 on Billboard in the U.S.

Since 1986, Dolenz has joined the other ex-Monkees for periodic reunion tours, with the last one in 2001, and has performed as a solo performer from time to time. He has continued to direct for television both in England and in the United States and had occasional acting gigs, including a role as the Mayor on the cable TV series Pacific Blue.

Dolenz has studied for a Bachelor of Arts degree with the Open University in England.

Songs written or co-written by Micky Dolenz

* “You and I” (Written by Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones)
* “Savin’ My Love for You” (Written by Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones)
* “Zilch” (Written by Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork)
* “Randy Scouse Git” (Written by Micky Dolenz)
* “Band 6″ (Written by Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork)

* “Just A Game” (Written by Micky Dolenz)* “Shorty Blackwell” (Written by Micky )
* “Little Girl”* (Written by Micky Dolenz)
* “Bye Bye Baby Bye Bye”* (Written by Micky Dolenz, Klein)
* “Mommy and Daddy” (Written Micky Dolenz)
* “Never Enough” (Written by Micky Dolenz)
* “Unlucky Stars” (Written by Micky Dolenz)

* “Regional Girl” (Written by Micky Dolenz)

* “It’s My Life” (Written by Micky Dolenz)
* “Midnight Train” (Written by Micky Dolenz)

* “Goin’ Down” (Written Mickey Dolenz, Davy Jones, Peter Tork, Diane Hilderbrand, Michael Nesmith)