Peter Tork Saw The Monkees Film ‘Head’ Almost 80 Times Before Realizing What Bothered Him About It
Despite starring in The Monkees‘ first and only feature film, Head, in 1968, Peter Tork still didn’t understand its premise. He admits he had to watch the edgy movie upwards of 80 times before he realized what bothered him about it.
Peter Tork admits it took almost 80 viewings of ‘Head’ before he got it
The 1968 film Head was a watershed moment in The Monkees’ career. The film depicted a series of vignettes amounting to a loosely interpretive message by the band signaling the end of their pop star personas.
The film included scenes of Micky Dolenz, Mike Nesmith, Peter Tork, and Davy Jones chanting, “Hey hey, we are the Monkees, you know we like to please/A manufactured image, with no philosophies” over a series of TV screens playing first clips from the film.
These were interspersed with concert footage [the infamous ‘Circle Sky’ sequence] and Vietnam clips. Added was a series of moments where they tried to depict how fake their television personas were.
The strange overall concept of Head didn’t generate box office success for The Monkees’ final project as a quartet. It was a flop, making a whopping $16,000 back on its original $750,000 budget.
However, Tork appeared confused by the film he helped create. He he had to watch it almost 80 times before it began to make sense, reported The Guardian.
“Most people are dazzled by the psychedelia, and that’s fine, but for me, finally, the movie’s point is The Monkees never get out,” Tork said in an interview with The Guardian. “Which is to say, [director] Bob Rafelson’s view of life is you never get out of the black box you’re in. There’s no escape.”
What would Peter Tork change about the ending of ‘Head?’
At the end of Head, The Monkees band members jump into the ocean to be free. However, as the film ends, they are subsequently imprisoned in a big black box that reappears throughout the film, from which they try desperately to escape.
In the same Guardian interview, Tork said, in retrospect, there is one thing he would change regarding Head‘s finale if given a chance. He would have given The Monkees a fighting chance.
“There might have been a scene where we get out,” Tork reveals. “We jump in the water and get away.”
Peter Tork ultimately left The Monkees behind after the release of ‘Head’
Peter Tork left the band behind shortly after The Monkees television series was canceled. In a 1969 interview with Tiger Beat Magazine, republished by Cool Cherry Cream, he explained he wanted to leave the series after season one.
“I wanted to leave the group when the first season ended, but they convinced me not to. I didn’t care about all the things happening and the acclaim, and I hated the work. It was tough work, and I didn’t like it. I wanted to record all my life,” Peter admitted.
Tork would ultimately reunite with Dolenz and Jones in the 1980s. They piggybacked on the success of MTV’s reruns of the original Monkees series.
With Nesmith on board, the band reunited for a handful of shows. Subsequently, Tork, Jones, and Dolenz continued to tour until the early 2000s. In 2012, Tork, Dolenz, and Nesmith toured a series of concerts in England and the United States. He last performed Monkees tunes during dates with Dolenz in 2019.
Peter Tork died at his Connecticut home on February 21, 2019, eight days after his 77th birthday. The cause of death was adenoid cystic carcinoma, a rare, slow-growing form of head and neck cancer.
