Monkeemobile
Encyclopedia
Pontiac GTO
The Pontiac GTO is an automobile built by Pontiac Division of General Motors in the United States from 1964 to 1974, and by GM subsidiary Holden in Australia from 2004 to 2006. It is considered an innovative, and now classic muscle car of the 1960s and 1970s...
that was designed and built by designer Dean Jeffries
Dean Jeffries
Dean Jeffries is an American custom vehicle designer, fabricator, stuntman and stunt coordinator for motion pictures and television programs based in Los Angeles, California....
for The Monkees
The Monkees
The Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
, a pop-rock band and television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
. The car features a tilted forward split two-piece windshield
Windshield
The windshield or windscreen of an aircraft, car, bus, motorbike or tram is the front window. Modern windshields are generally made of laminated safety glass, a type of treated glass, which consists of two curved sheets of glass with a plastic layer laminated between them for safety, and are glued...
, a touring car T-bucket-type convertible
Convertible
A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...
top, modified rear quarter panels and front fenders, exaggerated tail lamps, set of four bucket seats with an extra third row bench where the rear deck should have been, and a parachute
Parachute
A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag, or in the case of ram-air parachutes, aerodynamic lift. Parachutes are usually made out of light, strong cloth, originally silk, now most commonly nylon...
. The front grille
Grille
A grille or grill is an opening of several slits side by side in a wall or metal sheet or other barrier, usually to let air or water enter and/or leave but keep larger objects including people and animals in or out.-Spelling:In the United States, "grille" is used to differentiate the automotive...
sported the GTO emblem.
Origin
The Monkeemobile's origins began in 1966 when Dean JeffriesDean Jeffries
Dean Jeffries is an American custom vehicle designer, fabricator, stuntman and stunt coordinator for motion pictures and television programs based in Los Angeles, California....
was asked to design and build a car for a new TV show called "The Monkees". Jeffries, under contract with Model Products Corporation (MPC) at the time, told CEO George Toteff about the project. A make of vehicle had not yet been chosen for the project. Mr. Toteff then told his friend Jim Wangers of these developments. Mr. Wangers was working with Pontiac promotion and advertising at the time and saw the show as a huge promotional opportunity for Pontiac. After making the deal, Jim Wangers supplied two base 389 4-barrel 1966 GTO convertibles with automatic-transmissions to be converted into Monkeemobiles. MPC was in turn given exclusive rights to market a model kit of the Monkeemobile. They would end up selling over 7 million copies of these kits.
The car
Two cars were contracted to be built: One as a main TV car, to be used on the television program, and one as a promotional show car, to tour hot rod and car shows around the United States. Both cars would be built in the span of four weeks. The first version originally sported a 6-71 superchargedSupercharger
A supercharger is an air compressor used for forced induction of an internal combustion engine.The greater mass flow-rate provides more oxygen to support combustion than would be available in a naturally aspirated engine, which allows more fuel to be burned and more work to be done per cycle,...
engine, a solid mounted rear axle (no springs) and extra rear end weight. This was to enable the car to "pop wheelie
Wheelie
In vehicle acrobatics, a wheelie is a vehicle maneuver in which the front wheel or wheels come off the ground due to extreme torque being applied to the rear wheel or wheels. Wheelies are usually associated with bicycles and motorcycles, but can be done with other vehicles such as cars, especially...
s." Because the car had too much power and was difficult to drive, the original blower set up was removed and a dummy blower was fitted. The second car was used as a touring car for auto shows and promotional events. Both would be used on The Monkees
The Monkees (TV series)
The Monkees is an American situation comedy that aired on NBC from September 1966 to March 1968. The series follows the adventures of four young men trying to make a name for themselves as rock 'n roll singers. The show introduced a number of innovative new-wave film techniques to series...
TV series, one during the first season and both throughout the second season.
Several notable differences between the two cars exist, such as the size of the door logo and the styling of the fan belt cover and blower lines, which can be used to tell the difference between the two cars. It should also be noted that there are numerous replicas created over the years, none of which were made by the original cars' creator, Dean Jeffries
Dean Jeffries
Dean Jeffries is an American custom vehicle designer, fabricator, stuntman and stunt coordinator for motion pictures and television programs based in Los Angeles, California....
. Such replicas also have a number of distinctive visual differences unique to each car.
Later years
After the television show ended, both cars were offered back to Dean Jeffries for $1,000 each, who had right of first refusalRight of first refusal
Right of first refusal is a contractual right that gives its holder the option to enter a business transaction with the owner of something, according to specified terms, before the owner is entitled to enter into that transaction with a third party...
. He declined to purchase the cars because he felt he could build new ones cheaper.
The "TV car" (aka car # 1) followed the Monkees on tour only to be left in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1968. It later resurfaced in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
as a hotel courtesy car. To this day, there is still no hard information on how the car made its way to Puerto Rico, and it was sold at government auction in 1992 for $5,000 when the hotel went out of business. Though basically as it was built, the car did get some restoration work done when bought, and it was used as the example for the Ertl Company
Ertl Company
The Ertl Company is an American toy company best known for its die-cast metal alloy collectible replicas of farm equipment and vehicles. The company is based in Dyersville, Iowa, home of the National Farm Toy Museum...
1:18 scale
1:18 scale
1:18 scale diecast replicas are diecast replicas in 1:18 scale or 1/18th the size of the real vehicle. Most popular in this category are 1:18 scale diecast automobile replicas - usually made out of zinc alloy with plastic parts...
die-cast toy
Die-cast toy
The term die-cast toy here refers to any toy or collectible model produced by using the die casting method. The toys are made of metal, with plastic, rubber or glass details. Wholly plastic toys are made by a similar process of injection moulding, but the two are rarely confused...
, The Monkees 1997 TV reunion show, "Hey, Hey, It's the Monkees
Hey, Hey, It's the Monkees
"Hey, Hey, It's the Monkees" was a one-hour comedy special televised on the ABC Network on Monday February 17, 1997. It featured all four of the original Monkees. Michael Nesmith wrote and directed the program. The real now middle-aged Monkees make fun of plots of their own earlier TV series...
" and the 2001 "Cars & Guitars Of Rock N Roll" display at the Petersen Automotive Museum
Petersen Automotive Museum
The Petersen Automotive Museum is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile neighborhood of Los Angeles. One of the world's largest automotive museums, the Petersen Automotive Museum is a non profit organization specializing in the education and history of the...
. It is now in the hands of a private collector in New York state
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
The "show car" (aka car #2) was purchased by custom car
Custom car
A custom car is a passenger vehicle that has been modified in either of the following two ways. First, a custom car may be altered to improve its performance, often by altering or replacing the engine and transmission. Second, a custom car may be a personal "styling" statement, making the car look...
designer, George Barris
George Barris (auto customizer)
George Barris is a designer of custom cars.-Early history:George and his brother Sam were born in Chicago in the 1920s. After the deaths of their parents, they moved to Roseville, California as children to live with relatives. Both were good students, interested in drama, music, and design...
. This car would be the most visible during the years. It would go through many cosmetic changes and a failed auction attempt in 1983. Barris later went on to use and display the car for promotions at many large and small events. In 2006 the car would go through a major restoration. Even though it would become a beautiful 100 point show car, many changes and upgrades were made. In January 2008, Barris, through Barrett-Jackson
Barrett-Jackson
Established in 1971 and headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction provides products and services to classic and collector car owners, collectors and automotive enthusiasts...
in Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...
, auctioned the car which sold for $360,000. It now resides in the hands of a private collector in southeastern Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
.
Barris also had Dick Dean, who had helped Jeffries build the two originals, make a third copy. A Monkeemobile has been used by other rock bands such as The Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy are an English rock band that formed in 1980. After achieving early underground fame in UK, the band had their commercial breakthrough in mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasing new recorded output in protest against their record company...
("Black Planet" video) and The Missing Links (a Monkees tribute band).
A second replica or tribute car has recently been built by a long time associate of Dean Jeffries. This new Monkeemobile now resides in Florida.