Samantha Juste
Encyclopedia
Samantha Juste became known on British television in the mid-1960s as the “disc girl” on the BBC
’s Top of the Pops
. In 1968 she married Micky Dolenz
of the Monkees. Their daughter is the actress Ami Dolenz
.
, Lancashire
, England. Her mother Phyllis was a dressmaker and Sandra studied textile and dress design at Rochdale
College of Art .
Sandra was tall, blonde-haired, and long-legged. She became a teenage model, taking the name “Samantha Juste”.
(1917–2005). It was first broadcast from a converted church
in Rusholme, Manchester on 1 January 1964. Samantha Juste was assistant to Cecil Korer, the programme's assistant producer.
After taking over from Denise Sampey, who performed the role for the first few programmes, Juste’s function for 3½ years was to sit alongside the host (initially disc jockey
s Jimmy Savile
, David Jacobs
, Alan Freeman
and Pete Murray), to place records on a turntable and apply the needle as the artist was about to perform. Simon Dee
, who first introduced the show in 1966, recalled that “I got my introduction right [and] didn’t get too distracted by the luscious Samantha Juste, my lovely co-host”.
Some viewers found Juste’s ritual, though obviously for effect, incongruous since the artists were there to perform; however, since they were miming, something about which the BBC made no secret, there was honesty about the procedure. Indeed, on one occasion, a record by the Swinging Blue Jeans
was played at the wrong speed.
's That's Nice, was issued in February 1966) and its subsidiary Go. The other was Jacki Bond
, a secretary with Strike, who, like Juste, had little musical experience.
Juste performed No One Needs My Love Today, written by Phil Phillips
, on Top of the Pops on 24 November 1966. This record was produced by Miki Dallon
, the backing music provided by an orchestra conducted by Ken Woodman, who had worked with Chris Andrews
and Sandie Shaw
and is best known for Town Talk, which became the theme tune of The Jimmy Young
Show when BBC Radio 1
opened in 1967. No One Needs My Love Today was not a hit, but it was featured as a climber by the offshore "pirate"
station Radio London
in the week beginning 20 November. One critic commented that "any vocal shortcomings on this single are outweighed by her charming delivery". Both No One Needs My Love Today and its "B" side, Pierre Tubbs
' If Trees Could Talk, were available on compilation discs and to download forty years later.
, by Neil Diamond
. The drummer Micky Dolenz (b. 1945) recalled (in the third person) that he spotted Juste as he passed a studio cafeteria:
During the show, Dolenz was "in another world ... He just keeps watching the girl in the green dress as she plays a record, smiles, flirts with the audience, and dances".
) and Dolenz began a relationship, prompting such headlines as "Samantha traps Monkee" and "Pops girl goes ape". Dolenz appears not to have realised that Juste was a celebrity and the publicity took him by surprise. "Monkeemania" was such that some of the Monkees' female fans resented Juste - "she even showed up one day with ink stains on the emerald green dress" - and Dolenz claimed the couple spent a week in her "trendy" London flat.
For much of 1967, Juste and Dolenz spent time together in England and California. Rick Klein, a friend of Dolenz and best man at his wedding, described a vacation with him in England during which Juste acted as "permanent guide", travelling with them to Stratford-upon-Avon
in a rented Triumph
car. Then, a few days later, savouring "Swinging" London
:
Juste wrote articles for the teenage magazine 16 about time with the Monkees. She gave up Top of the Pops and moved with Dolenz to California, where they lived in Laurel Canyon
in the Hollywood Hills. In June 1967, they attended the Monterey pop festival
, which ushered in the "Summer of Love
," Dolenz being photographed in an Indian headdress:
" (title from a recurring phrase in the BBC TV series, Till Death Us Do Part), was released. Reaching number two in the British charts, though not issued as a single in America, it was based on Dolenz's time in England: "The Beatles
, Samantha, the parties, the chemicals [i.e. drugs] ... It even has a reference to Mama Cass (Elliot of The Mamas & the Papas
) who was in London at the same time".
Despite a widespread assumption that he had Juste in mind, Dolenz has identified Mama Cass as the "wonderful lady" in the opening line:
However, whether or not Juste was the “girl in yellow dress” to whom it was easy to hum songs, she was, according to Dolenz, “the being known as Wonder Girl”:
in January, 1969.
of the Beatles dubbed Juste "Earth Mother" for her having made him a chip butty
(a french-fry sandwich) and eggs when he arrived after a "rip-roaring all-nighter." Their friend, the songwriter Harry Nilsson
, invited Dolenz and Juste to travel with him to Ireland
to lend credibility (in Dolenz's words, "Samantha maybe ... but me?") when he met the parents of a woman he thought he might marry. Juste's father, Leslie Slater, helped Dolenz to construct a studio used for "jam" sessions
by John Lennon
of the Beatles, Brian Wilson
of the Beach Boys and the Dolenz neighbor Vince Furnier, who became known as Alice Cooper
.
and, a few months later, attended Dolenz's own wedding in Calabasas to his third wife Donna Quinter.
, Mexico, in 1976. She worked in Ireland, where she taught design, but returned to California, where she and Ami Dolenz began an on-line jewellery business called Bluebell Boutique.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
’s Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
. In 1968 she married Micky Dolenz
Micky Dolenz
George Michael "Micky" Dolenz, Jr. is an American actor, musician, television director, radio personality and theater director, best known as a member of the 1960s made-for-television band The Monkees.-Biography:...
of the Monkees. Their daughter is the actress Ami Dolenz
Ami Dolenz
Ami Dolenz is an American television and film actress and producer.- Early life and career :Born in Burbank, California into a show business family, Dolenz is the daughter of Micky Dolenz of the 1960s group the Monkees, and British television presenter Samantha Juste...
.
Background and choice of name
Sandra Slater was born in ManchesterManchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, England. Her mother Phyllis was a dressmaker and Sandra studied textile and dress design at Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
College of Art .
Sandra was tall, blonde-haired, and long-legged. She became a teenage model, taking the name “Samantha Juste”.
Top of the Pops
Top of The Pops was a weekly half-hour programme of current popular music, conceived and produced by Johnnie StewartJohnnie Stewart
Lorn Alastair Stewart was a television producer who worked for the BBC, noted mostly for his role in creating the long-running music programme Top of the Pops.- Early life and career :...
(1917–2005). It was first broadcast from a converted church
Mancunian Films
Mancunian Films was a British motion picture production company organized in 1934.Founded by John E. Blakeley, the company originally produced films in London on extremely low budgets. Blakeley's first studio consisted of a single soundstage in a loft space above a taxi garage...
in Rusholme, Manchester on 1 January 1964. Samantha Juste was assistant to Cecil Korer, the programme's assistant producer.
After taking over from Denise Sampey, who performed the role for the first few programmes, Juste’s function for 3½ years was to sit alongside the host (initially disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
s Jimmy Savile
Jimmy Savile
Sir James Wilson Vincent Savile, OBE, KCSG was an English disc jockey, television presenter and media personality, best known for his BBC television show Jim'll Fix It, and for being the first and last presenter of the long-running BBC music chart show Top of the Pops...
, David Jacobs
David Jacobs (disc jockey)
David Lewis Jacobs CBE is a British actor and broadcaster who gained prominence as presenter of the peak-time BBC Television show Juke Box Jury and the BBC Radio 4 political forum, Any Questions?-Early career:...
, Alan Freeman
Alan Freeman
Alan Leslie "Fluff" Freeman, MBE was a British disc jockey and radio personality in the United Kingdom for 40 years.-Career:...
and Pete Murray), to place records on a turntable and apply the needle as the artist was about to perform. Simon Dee
Simon Dee
Cyril Nicholas Henty-Dodd , better known by his stage name Simon Dee, was a British television interviewer and radio disc jockey who hosted a twice-weekly BBC TV chat show, Dee Time in the late 1960s...
, who first introduced the show in 1966, recalled that “I got my introduction right [and] didn’t get too distracted by the luscious Samantha Juste, my lovely co-host”.
Some viewers found Juste’s ritual, though obviously for effect, incongruous since the artists were there to perform; however, since they were miming, something about which the BBC made no secret, there was honesty about the procedure. Indeed, on one occasion, a record by the Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans were a four piece 1960s British Merseybeat band, best known for their hit singles with the HMV label; "Hippy Hippy Shake", the follow-up, Little Richard's "Good Golly Miss Molly", and "You're No Good", a Clint Ballard song that provided a change of pace and furnished the...
was played at the wrong speed.
Recording career
Juste made a few records. She was one of two British women signed to Strike records (whose first single and only "hit", Neil ChristianNeil Christian
Neil Christian, born Christopher Tidmarsh had a solo hit single in 1966, when "That's Nice" , reached Number 16 in the UK Singles Chart. He remains, however, a one-hit wonder. Follow-up singles "Oops" and "Two at a Time" never reached the charts...
's That's Nice, was issued in February 1966) and its subsidiary Go. The other was Jacki Bond
Jacki Bond
Jacki Bond was a secretary working for Strike records in the mid 1960s who, though without previous musical experience, had a short recording career in 1965-7...
, a secretary with Strike, who, like Juste, had little musical experience.
Juste performed No One Needs My Love Today, written by Phil Phillips
Phil Phillips
Phil Phillips is an American singer and songwriter, best known for his 1959 hit, "Sea of Love".-Biography:...
, on Top of the Pops on 24 November 1966. This record was produced by Miki Dallon
Miki Dallon
Miki Dallon is an English musician, songwriter and producer . Miki's first published work was a Mickie Most b-side called "That’s Alright" on which Miki also played piano. One success of his was the song "Take A Heart" by The Sorrows...
, the backing music provided by an orchestra conducted by Ken Woodman, who had worked with Chris Andrews
Chris Andrews (singer)
Chris Andrews is a singer and successful songwriter whose musical career started in the 1960s.-Career:...
and Sandie Shaw
Sandie Shaw
Sandie Shaw is an English pop singer, who was one of the most successful British female singers of the 1960s. In 1967 she was the first UK act to win the Eurovision Song Contest...
and is best known for Town Talk, which became the theme tune of The Jimmy Young
Jimmy Young (disc jockey)
Sir Jimmy Young CBE was a British singer, disc jockey and radio interviewer.-Early life:...
Show when BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
opened in 1967. No One Needs My Love Today was not a hit, but it was featured as a climber by the offshore "pirate"
Pirate radio
Pirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. The term is most commonly used to describe illegal broadcasting for entertainment or political purposes, but is also sometimes used for illegal two-way radio operation...
station Radio London
Wonderful Radio London
Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 offshore commercial station that operated from 16 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
in the week beginning 20 November. One critic commented that "any vocal shortcomings on this single are outweighed by her charming delivery". Both No One Needs My Love Today and its "B" side, Pierre Tubbs
Pierre Tubbs
Pierre Tubbs is a British songwriter and music producer. One of his biggest successes is "Right Back Where We Started From" recorded by Maxine Nightingale. He also co-wrote the J.J...
' If Trees Could Talk, were available on compilation discs and to download forty years later.
Micky Dolenz and the Summer of Love
During Top of the Pops Juste met artists who contributed to the British rock boom of the mid 1960s. In January 1967 an American group called the Monkees, formed for an eponymous television series, reached the top of the British charts with I'm a BelieverI'm a Believer
"I'm a Believer" is a song composed by Neil Diamond and recorded by The Monkees in 1966 with the lead vocals by Micky Dolenz. The single, produced by Jeff Barry, hit the number one spot on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart for the week ending December 31, 1966 and remained there for seven weeks,...
, by Neil Diamond
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....
. The drummer Micky Dolenz (b. 1945) recalled (in the third person) that he spotted Juste as he passed a studio cafeteria:
She is tall, blond[e], beautiful, and wearing an emerald green outfit that ends up in a short skirt (very short) which tops off her unbelievably gorgeous legs ... She holds his glance briefly then looks quickly away with that haughty sophistication that only the British can do so well.
London and California
Juste (who had previously been linked to, among others, the singer Paul RyanPaul Ryan (singer)
Paul Ryan was an English singer, songwriter and record producer.Born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, Paul and his twin brother Barry were the sons of singer Marion Ryan, and had some success as a singing duo during the 1960s, known simply as "Paul & Barry Ryan"...
) and Dolenz began a relationship, prompting such headlines as "Samantha traps Monkee" and "Pops girl goes ape". Dolenz appears not to have realised that Juste was a celebrity and the publicity took him by surprise. "Monkeemania" was such that some of the Monkees' female fans resented Juste - "she even showed up one day with ink stains on the emerald green dress" - and Dolenz claimed the couple spent a week in her "trendy" London flat.
For much of 1967, Juste and Dolenz spent time together in England and California. Rick Klein, a friend of Dolenz and best man at his wedding, described a vacation with him in England during which Juste acted as "permanent guide", travelling with them to Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
in a rented Triumph
Triumph Motor Company
The Triumph Motor Company was a British car and motor manufacturing company. The Triumph marque is owned currently by BMW. The marque had its origins in 1885 when Siegfried Bettmann of Nuremberg initiated S. Bettmann & Co and started importing bicycles from Europe and selling them with his own...
car. Then, a few days later, savouring "Swinging" London
Swinging London
Swinging London is a catch-all term applied to the fashion and cultural scene that flourished in London, in the 1960s.It was a youth-oriented phenomenon that emphasised the new and modern. It was a period of optimism and hedonism, and a cultural revolution. One catalyst was the recovery of the...
:
Micky and I went to the Carlton Towers to see Samantha Juste in a fashion show and she looked outasite [sic]. After the show, we took off for Carnaby StreetCarnaby StreetCarnaby Street is a pedestrianised shopping street in London, United Kingdom, located in the Soho district, near Oxford Street and Regent Street. It is home to numerous fashion and lifestyle retailers, including a large number of independent fashion boutiques...
again and we went crazy buying clothes ... Micky really dug all the clothes at BibaBibaBiba was an iconic and popular London fashion store of the 1960s and 1970s. It was started and primarily run by the Polish-born Barbara Hulanicki with help of her husband Stephen Fitz-Simon.-Early years:...
's and Susan Lockes and practically bought out the stores. He also bought a dress for Samantha. It was the same dress that Sam wore in the fashion show and it looked fantastic on her.
Juste wrote articles for the teenage magazine 16 about time with the Monkees. She gave up Top of the Pops and moved with Dolenz to California, where they lived in Laurel Canyon
Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, California
Laurel Canyon is a canyon neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was first developed in the 1910s, and became a part of the city of Los Angeles in 1923 ....
in the Hollywood Hills. In June 1967, they attended the Monterey pop festival
Monterey Pop Festival
The Monterey International Pop Music Festival was a three-day concert event held June 16 to June 18, 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California...
, which ushered in the "Summer of Love
Summer of Love
The Summer of Love was a social phenomenon that occurred during the summer of 1967, when as many as 100,000 people converged on the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, creating a cultural and political rebellion...
," Dolenz being photographed in an Indian headdress:
Peter TorkPeter TorkPeter Tork is an American musician and actor, best known as a member of The Monkees.-Early life:Tork was born Peter Halsten Thorkelson in Washington, D.C.. Although he was born in 1942, many news articles report him as born in 1944 in New York City as this was the date and place given on early...
[of the Monkees] and Micky turned up at the pop fest in Monterey, Peter acting as one of the emcees [masters of ceremony], Micky wandering around the grounds dressed as an Indian with a lovely British [woman], Samantha Juste, at his side.
Randy Scouse Git
In the same month as Monterey, the Monkees’ recording of Dolenz’s song, "Randy Scouse GitRandy Scouse Git
"Randy Scouse Git" is a song written by Micky Dolenz in 1967, and recorded by The Monkees. It was the first song written by Micky Dolenz to be commercially released, and ended up a top 5 hit in the UK where it was retitled "Alternate Title" after the record company complained that the title was...
" (title from a recurring phrase in the BBC TV series, Till Death Us Do Part), was released. Reaching number two in the British charts, though not issued as a single in America, it was based on Dolenz's time in England: "The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Samantha, the parties, the chemicals [i.e. drugs] ... It even has a reference to Mama Cass (Elliot of The Mamas & the Papas
The Mamas & the Papas
The Mamas & the Papas were a Canadian/American vocal group of the 1960s . The group recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968 with a short reunion in 1971, releasing five albums and 11 Top 40 hit singles...
) who was in London at the same time".
Despite a widespread assumption that he had Juste in mind, Dolenz has identified Mama Cass as the "wonderful lady" in the opening line:
- She's a wonderful lady
- And she's mine all mine
- And there doesn't seem a way
- That she won't come and lose my mind.
However, whether or not Juste was the “girl in yellow dress” to whom it was easy to hum songs, she was, according to Dolenz, “the being known as Wonder Girl”:
- It's not easy tryin' to tell her
- That I shortly have to leave.
Married life
Juste and Dolenz were married in Laurel Canyon in July, 1968. Dolenz's stepfather, Dr. Robert Scott, officiated. The couple's daughter, Ami Bluebell Dolenz, who became an actress, was born in BurbankBurbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
in January, 1969.
Friends and celebrities
Dolenz recalled the order and sophistication that Juste brought to his home. They hosted parties attended by musicians and celebrities; Ringo StarrRingo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
of the Beatles dubbed Juste "Earth Mother" for her having made him a chip butty
Chip butty
A chip sandwich, chip barm, chip roll, chip butty, chip muffin, piece-n-chips or hot chip sandwich is a sandwich made with bread or bread roll and hot chips , often with some sort of sauce such as tomato sauce or brown sauce...
(a french-fry sandwich) and eggs when he arrived after a "rip-roaring all-nighter." Their friend, the songwriter Harry Nilsson
Harry Nilsson
Harry Edward Nilsson III was an American singer-songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson...
, invited Dolenz and Juste to travel with him to Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
to lend credibility (in Dolenz's words, "Samantha maybe ... but me?") when he met the parents of a woman he thought he might marry. Juste's father, Leslie Slater, helped Dolenz to construct a studio used for "jam" sessions
Jam Sessions
Jam Sessions is a guitar simulation software title and music game for the Nintendo DS based on the Japan-only title Sing & Play DS Guitar M-06 originally developed by Plato. It was brought to North America and Europe, courtesy of Ubisoft...
by John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
of the Beatles, Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
of the Beach Boys and the Dolenz neighbor Vince Furnier, who became known as Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
.
Divorce and afterwards
The Monkees had officially disbanded in 1971, and it is clear from Dolenz's own reminiscences that his self-indulgence took its toll on his marriage. Juste and Dolenz were divorced in 1975, Juste retaining custody of their daughter, although they were reconciled as friends by the early 1990s. In 2002 Juste was photographed with Dolenz at Ami's wedding in Beverly Hills to actor and martial artist Jerry TrimbleJerry Trimble
Jerry Foster Trimble, Jr. is an American actor, stuntman, writer, and World Champion.-Early life:At 15 Jerry was inspired by the late Bruce Lee and began studying the Korean art of Taekwon-Do. In six months he began teaching it. At 16 he earned the rank of first-degree black belt and became the...
and, a few months later, attended Dolenz's own wedding in Calabasas to his third wife Donna Quinter.
Business interests
While in California, Juste began her own fashion business, which she moved to AcapulcoAcapulco
Acapulco is a city, municipality and major sea port in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, southwest from Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semi-circular bay and has been a port since the early colonial period of Mexico’s history...
, Mexico, in 1976. She worked in Ireland, where she taught design, but returned to California, where she and Ami Dolenz began an on-line jewellery business called Bluebell Boutique.