How Micky Dolenz is Carrying on the Legacy of the Monkees Following All Three Bandmates’ Deaths

HEY, HEY, he’s a Monkee! Micky Dolenz is the last one standing …and he’s still touring.

At age 80, Micky is carrying on for his three late bandmates, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork. Revealing he’s just “glad to be above ground,” Micky says, “When I look back on my life, I wonder how I survived — my mother said I had a guardian angel.”

The Monkees became an unlikely hit band: The four were cast to portray a fictional group for the 1965 NBC sitcom of the same name in hopes of capitalizing on the success of the Beatles.

Show producers originally planned on using the then-unknown band the Lovin’ Spoonful, but when the deal fell through, they focused on Davy, who was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance as the Artful Dodger in the musical Oliver! on Broadway.

Little did producers know that when they cast Micky (a guitarist who had to learn the drums), Peter (bass), and Michael (guitar) out of nearly 450 other applicants, that they had a group of talented musicians who were capable of forming a real-life band. Micky compares the Monkees’ transformation into a real band to Pinocchio becoming a real boy.

During their two-season run, The Monkees earned two Primetime Emmy Awards and the band launched a long string of hit songs, including “Daydream Believer,” “I’m a Believer,” “Last Train to Clarksville” and “Pleasant Valley Sunday.”

After the show was axed in 1968, the Monkees remained together for two years, recording two albums and touring. They broke up in 1970 but had several reunions.

Davy was the first to die, succumbing to a heart attack at age 66 on his Indiantown, Fla., horse ranch in 2012. Then Peter passed away in 2019 from cancer at 77 in his Willimantic, Conn., home. Finally, Michael was felled by heart failure following a quadruple bypass surgery at 78 in his Carmel Valley, Calif., home in 2021.

Today, Micky is touring and performing all the Monkees’ classic hits along with covers of other classic artists. He admits to dealing with the “typical aches and pains” of his eight decades, but insists he feels like “the Energizer Bunny.”

“The travel is tough, but the shows are easy,” Micky says. “That’s why they call it playing. It’s not just about looking back — it’s about celebrating the music with people who’ve made it part of their lives.”