By the end of the year, The Monkees were touring to hysterical crowds. By November 5 it was Number 1, followed a week later by their self-titled debut album. September 26’s anti-greed toymaking parable Monkee vs Machine pushed the single again. On September 17 it reached Number 43 after September 19’s haunted house/inheritance caper Monkee See, Monkee Die, it rose to Number 26. The group’s jangling debut single Last Train To Clarksville had entered the charts at 67 two days earlier, and as the show became established over the coming weeks, it started to motor. The comedic action involved a struggling young band of amiable loons rescuing Princess Bettina of Harmonica from her evil uncle Otto, with goofy gags, costume changes, songs and sponsorship from Kellogg’s Corn Flakes. Hmmm…Īnd so viewers tuned into the first episode of The Monkees, entitled Royal Flush. Or how about this new music and comedy show on NBC called The Monkees? TV Week’s preview had compared it to the Marx Brothers doing A Hard Day’s Night. As 7.30pm approached this autumn Monday evening, the young American entertainment-seeker had a choice: listen to the radio (The Supremes were Number 1 with You Can’t Hurry Love) or watch the third season of daffy castaway sitcom Gilligan’s Island start on CBS.
