Ever wondered what it's like to meet a Monkee? Read on for my own personal tales. Anyone who has their own tale they'd like to include, please email me at _mars_@geocities.com with it. Make sure it is not too long, that way I can include as many tales on this page as possible.
In May of 1997 the most fantastic thing happened. I met Peter Tork. I never thought this would happen, and definately not on the scale that it did, but sure enough, it happened. In February of '97 I met a girl named Miki on IRC. We became good friends fast and soon talked about meeting each other. Only one problem: she lives in Michigan and I live in British Columbia, Canada. Well, this past December I had travelled to Arizona for Christmas. The flight I was supposed to take home was downsized, and I offered to stay behind. Because I did, America West set me up in a hotel for the extra nights (including meals) and gave me a ticket good for a round-trip flight anywhere America West flies. That's how I got to Michigan.
This trip was a short one because I couldn't get that much time off work. I arrived in Michigan and the very next day was the Peter and James show my friend and I were going to. We stayed up all night that night, too excited to sleep. The next day there was a booksigning in a nearby town that we went to before the show.
Seeing Peter for the first time in real life was an amazing thing. For those of you who have met a famous person, you know the feeling. For those of you who haven't... I'll try and describe how I felt. We walked into the bookstore and went to the music area which was where Peter and James were putting on a little show. I stopped in the door way of the area and felt my knees weaken and my eyes mist up. There he was, sitting no more than ten feet away from me. Smiling, singing and happy... it was Peter Tork. The feeling is so hard to describe.. It's almost like I was hit with the notion.. someone slapped me and I nearly fell over as I realized it really was him, in the same room as me.
Ater the initial shock, I became my usual shy self. I turned to Miki and said, "Okay, we saw him. We can go now!" I was scared to actually meet him. Of course she wouldn't let me get away with that and pulled me into the already-forming line up.
The line seemed to take forever, but it was a pleasant wait. Miki had brought with her many groovy Monkee collectables, and had the interest of everyone around us. And of course she kept telling everyone where I was from and they were always surprised I had come so far to meet Peter.
When we finally were at the front of the line, I got Miki to go first. She asked Peter to sign a Monkees annual from England (the orange one that says "Where's Peter?"; he got a chuckle out of that one) then pulled out an old 60's teen magazine for him to sign. It had a huge pic of Peter on the front, and Micky's signature at one side. He looked at that and asked, "What's Micky doing signing my picture?" with a laugh. He signed it, but signed it kind of small. He looked at it, then signed it again, very large. He wrote "Small" near the little one and "Big" near the big one. It was very cute.
I'm sure I had a stupid grin on my face when I got there. I picked up a copy of "Hey Hey We're the Monkees" that was on the table and asked him to sign it to "Jennifer" (my real name). I think the real shock to the system was when we asked if we could have pictures. I stood beside Peter, rather awkwardly, and he put his arm around my waist and pulled me closer. I think that's when I died! Miki and I also got pictures with James and talked with him for a bit. Miki told him that I'd come from Vancouver, BC to be here and he was surprised. I told him it was because there were no dates near Vancouver and asked if he and Peter would ever come to BC. He said he wasn't sure.
That evening was the show. Miki and I had great seats, near the stage. It was a small place that had once been a church, but was now a small hall. The show was fantastic. If you've never heard Peter and James together, I suggest you buy "Two Man Band". It's an excellent CD, although nothing like really being there. They should make an Unplugged album.
After the show was another signing. This time they were selling cds and posters to sign. I had a postcard and Canadian teddy bear I'd brought for Peter. I gave them to him and I think he liked them. I went through James to buy "Stranger Things Have Happened", "Two Man Band" and the poster. He signed the "TMB" cd and poster, then poked Peter to get his attention to sign the cds and poster.
When that was done, it was nearly time to leave. Through out the whole night I'd known what I wanted to say to Peter, and I couldn't let the chance pass. Swallowing my shyness and waiting for the crowd to thin out a bit, I approached Peter. Of course, I forget exactly what I said to him, but it was something along the lines of how happy I was to be there and how happy I was to meet him. He said that he was happy to meet me too. I went to shake his hand (I had to touch him) and as I grasped his hand, he pulled me in for a hug! I was so surprised. It was the funniest thing, and I believe I melted. It was a gentle hug, not one of the bear hugs he's famous for. I was glad for that because I can't handle bear hugs. When he let go I had another stupid grin on my face as I wandered towards the group I was with, needing something to lean on before I fell over.
Later Miki told me she over heard Peter talking to a friend, pointing to me when I walked away from him. He said something along the lines of "See her? She came all the way from Vancouver Canada just to see me!"
When I'd regained my balance, we left. Outside Miki, Gwen and I did the Monkee walk to the van. Apparently Peter and James had stuck their heads out the door and saw us to that. How embarassing! But it was the best day ever.
If you've read my "What It's Like at a Monkees Concert" section, then you know about the two concerts I went to this summer (August, 1997). The one where I met Micky Dolenz at was in Merriville, Indiana. Miki and I were staying at the hotel that the Monkees were at and after the concert, we spent our time roaming around the floors, hoping for an encounter. We finally got one.
We were walking up the steps to the Khaki Lounge when we saw Micky walk by, followed by a crowd of fans. We watched as he made his way to the back of the lounge, away from view. Most of the followers left then and we made our way back there. It was packed back there, and we were forced (though far from unwilling) to stand very close to Micky. I had to lean against the bar he was sitting at to avoid falling over.
Miki talked to Micky, I couldn't. I wasn't anymore than two or three feet from him, and I couldn't move, let alone talk. Miki reminded Micky of their previous meeting, in January of 1997, and he remembered her and was glad to see her again. She handed him a videotape she'd made for him and explained it was some more "Circus Boy" episodes she'd found. He doesn't have copies of the show, and was very glad to get the tape. After giving him the tape, she explained to him the webpage her and I were creating for "Circus Boy" and asked him if we could make it the official page. He was tickled by the idea and said we could. We gave him our joint email address, then left him. We didn't want to harrass him for pictures or autographs (though I truly wish I had of). My knees felt weak and when we were far enough away from him, I was in a state of shock.
The next morning Miki and I ran into him again before breakfast, but this time we didn't talk to him. He was on his way to meet some friends for breakfast. Later that morning, though, we ran into him yet again, this time in a small elevator. At first, when we entered the elevator, he tensed, thinking it was going to be autograph hounds. But then he looked at us and recognized us from the night before, so he smiled. We didn't talk, but it was another shock to my system, being in a small elevator that close to Micky Dolenz (of course Miki made sure I was standing close to him). It was an amazing trip, and a great encounter with Micky.
After the Merriville, IN concert, Miki and I went to Chicago, IL because Davy was doing a booksigning there and it wasn't very far away. The place was absolutely packed. It seemed like forever before we got up to see him. It was a very quick time, but it was well worth it. I got Davy to sign my "Headquarters" album and "Hey Hey We're The Monkees" book, the ones Peter had signed in May. I got two pictures with him and that was it. He was very nice. They had him sitting on a platform, so I didn't get to see how short he really is. He looked good, though a bit tired, and oh it was his voice...
When it got a bit quieter, Miki and I went through the line again. This time I had Davy sign a book I'd just bought ("Mutant Monkees...etc") and then I got up the nerves to give him something. For the Teen Fan Club I had offered members to send me their one-line messages to the Monkees and I would put them into booklets to give to them at the concerts. I gave Davy his, explaining that I run the Monkees Teen Fan Club online. He thought that was cool and accepted the booklet. I gave him the other three booklets and asked him if there was any way to get them to the other guys. He said, "Thanks! I'll give 'em to the guys tonight!" I was very happy and he seemed genuinely interested. It was fun to walk around Chicago and amazing to meet Davy. After the first time going through the line, I was in that state of shock and my knees went weak again. It was a lot of fun to meet him and the other fans.