Ken Foote Remembers Peter Tork
(CBS 11) - I can't tell you how sad I am to hear of the death of musician and former Monkees member Peter Tork.
Tork's death was announced on his official Facebook page Thursday, attributed to his friends, family and colleagues.
He was 77.
My first memories of him and the Monkees band were in the fall of 1966 when their TV show started. It premiered on the NBC Television Network on Monday, September 12, 1966. At that time, all three major networks started their schedule at 7:30pm ET/6:30pm CT. Locally it was on WBAP-TV Channel 5 (now KXAS NBC5). It aired up against Gilligan's Island on CBS and Iron Horse (a western) on ABC. As a pre-teen in that day, this show was appointment television! Between producer Don Kirshner, Columbia/Screen Gems Television, and Top 40 radio playing their songs, these guys were just plain cool on camera, yet it wasn't always easy off camera.
Tork and fellow Monkee Mike Nesmith were the only band members that had any musical experience, with Peter being the oldest member of the band.
Davy Jones and Mickey Dolenz both had acting backgrounds. When Kirshner and his staff were getting things going, these four were selected out of about 500 applicants, all of which had to audition to be in the show. Peter was the keyboardist although he did play guitar and wrote several of their songs. Peter also wrote the closing theme of the series during the second season called "For Pete's Sake."
The premise of the show was simple: a rock and roll quartet that oftentimes found themselves in strange situations, such as rescuing maidens, dealing with villains, and playing pranks on people. Nothing very serious! In addition, the group would perform their latest songs. Yet as time went on, there was more friction behind the scenes with the producers and among themselves. By the summer of 1968, the group broke up and NBC cancelled the show for the fall.
Between 1966-1968, the Monkees charted 12 times on the Billboard Top 40, six in the top 10, and 3 #1 hits. The group regrouped occasionally on anniversary dates, such as in 1986 for their 20th anniversary and later in 2011/2012 for their 45th anniversary. At the latter reunion, they paid tribute to Davy Jones who had passed away in February 2012.
Peter continued to record and perform for many years after the group broke up in 1968. He was married four times; at the time of his death, he was married to Pamela Grapes. He leaves four children.
All told, there are 58 episodes of The Monkees, one feature, and two specials. The final original episode of the series aired on March 25, 1968. Of the 58 episodes, only Peter and Mickey have their names as part of an episode title. Peter's was "The Devil & Peter Tork" from February 5, 1968. And this weekend you will have a chance to see this episode! This Sunday, February 24th from 4-5pm on KTXA 21.2, MeTV will pay a special tribute to Peter with two back- to- back episodes: "One Man Shy" followed by "The Devil & Peter Tork."
Thank you Peter for everything. Enjoy this clip from 1965 of his screen test before officially being selected as one of The Monkees.