Friday, July 23, 2004... "a day which will live in infamy."
Earlier that week, I was down at the ACTV studio, editing an upcoming edition of our nighttime Horror hosted movie program "The Bone Jangler." The staff had gotten word that Monkees singer/songwriter/drummer Micky Dolenz, who was scheduled to perform at the City Of Aurora's Downtown Alive! festival that Friday night, had no place to rehearse with his band. The band was to have rehearsed at the historic Paramount Theatre (also known as the Paramount Arts Center) on Friday afternoon. Micky hadn't played with these guys in about 6 months, as he was busy appearing as "Zoser" in Elton John's "Aida" on Broadway. It seemed that Micky's need for rehearsal time had been forgotten, and, the Paramount had booked some kind of children's beauty pageant for that afternoon. No one knew what to do... except for The Bone Jangler, naturally.
I suggested that, being as ACTV had a studio, complete with microphones, mixing board, etc., Micky and his band should rehearse there. I normally didn't edit at the ACTV studio on Fridays, but, I was scheduled to do just that on that afternoon. Being a huge Monkees fan, and, knowing that I'd be of great help to both Micky, and the City Of Aurora, I had no problem giving up my editing time.
That Friday afternoon, I made my way to ACTV, where I was one of only a handful of people allowed entry to the facility. When I arrived, Micky's band was there, as was his sister Coco. I ended up hanging out in the break room with Coco, where we discussed Micky, The Monkees, music in general, and, what Enchantress Nocturna & I do on TV. Before long, Micky arrived. He was really friendly, and greeted me with that famous grin. Coco and I continued to chat in the break room, while Micky checked in on his band. About 10 minutes later, Micky returned, and, he thanked me profusely for having been the one to suggest using the facility as a rehearsal spot. He asked what I did down there, and, his sister Coco eagerly told him. Micky smiled real big, and, asked me for more details, such as what our "schtick" or angle" was. When I told him that we play it straight, and didn't do any silly puns, or jokes, or pratfalls, etc., and aimed the show primarily at an adult audience, and that it was kind of a naughty show, he totally "got it" and asked for more details. Ending that conversation, and, preparing to rehearse, he said, "You know, when we were in our heyday, every community across the country had a show like that. What you're doing is a very honorable thing, man. Congratulations. I hope you can turn that into something big on the commercial level." I asked him if, after the rehearsal, I could get a promo, or bump, from him. Micky smiled, and said, "Sure, man. I don't see why not. That'd be cool!"
Next, Micky, Coco, and I moved into the TV studio itself, "our" studio, and the band began to rehearse. Micky was playing the acoustic guitar, and, after a while, he repeatedly stopped the band, and asked if they were playing in the right key. Being a musician, and a Monkees fan, I spoke up, and, said, "No. It's in C." Micky played the song in C, and, from then on, whenever they had a question about what key a particular song was in, Micky would ask me, and say, "You heard the man." After the rehearsal, Micky taped a quick bump for the show, and headed to his hotel.
That night, Nocturna brought a voodoo plant to give to gardening aficionado Micky. Some staffer took the plant, and assured us that he'd receive it, although they wondered if he'd be able to take it with him on the plane back to New York. Nocturna & I enjoyed Micky's concert that night, with our friends Count and Countess Gregula. Unfortunately, Nocturna never got the chance to meet Micky. However, I'll never forget that day.
