The Spy Who Came In From The Cool
Written by Gerald Gardner&Dee Caruso
Directed by Robert Rafelson
Produced by Robert Rafelson&Bert Schneider
Songs: “The Kind of Girl I Could Love” by Michael Nesmith “I’m Not Your Stepping Stone” by Tommy Boyce&Bobby Hart “All The King’s Horses” by Michael Nesmith
“Saturday’s Child” by David Gates
Guest Appearances
Madame Olinsky Arlene Martel
Boris Jacques Aubuchon
Honeywell Don Penny
The Chief Booth Coleman
Midget Billy Curtis
Yakimoto Lee Kolima
Genie Arlene Charles
Premiered October 10, 1966
Summary
After a drive in the city in the Monkeemobile, Davy insists on buying a new pair of maracas at the nearby store. On their way there, Davy notices an ice cream man talking to a popsicle. At the music store which is really a front for enemy spies, Russian spy agent Madame Olinsky gives instructions to her sidekick Boris who just placed microfilm into one of a pair of red maracas. She tells him his contact will be a short man who will ask for a pair of red maracas and he’s to tell the man he’ll give him some for $6.00 where as the contact will reply he only has $0.50 and he’ll tell him there his. After noticing the ice cream man outside, she decides to exit through the secret door since the guy is a CIS agent (after all, he’s talking to a popsicle) and exits through a harp case. The guys enter the store where Davy asks for a pair of red maracas and Boris mistaking him as the contact repeats what Madame instructed and when Davy winds up answering correct Boris gives him the maracas and sends them through the secret door too. Then a midget shows up asking for the red maracas and Boris realizes his error.
Later at the discotheque, The Monkees are on stage performing “The Kind of Girl I Could Love” when Davy notices one the maracas has a microfilm inside and he puts it in his pocket. Madame and Boris arrive dressed as hippies and confronts the band at gunpoint after their performance demanding the microfilm which leaves Peter in tears. For a diversion, Mike introduces the agents as a famous folk singing duo “Honey and the Bear” who will sing a protest song. The agents are soon pushed on the stage where they reluctantly sing off key and Micky starts the crowd booing and hurling objects at them in which the foursome make their escape. At the CIS(Central Intelligence Service) headquarters, CIS operative Honeywell(the same guy talking to a popsicle dressed as an ice cream man) shows the chief a secret filming of each of the Monkees where he interviews them on different topics. First, with Mike and Peter outside questioning them about politics, then Micky at the door about responses to many faces and then Davy at a news stand where he winds up singing and dancing to the song “Swanee River” leading a chorus. The Monkees are called into the headquarters where the chief enlist their help in capturing the two agents warning them of the dangers. Back at the pad, the guys are very relunctant to participate in spy business but Micky explains nothing can go wrong since they’ve seen every spy movie. In a fantasy sequence, Micky as an instructor is teaching the others at a spy training school where first he briefs them on different gadgets. For Peter about cufflinks that has a hidden tape recorder inside, Davy, a tie pin that has a pill he takes when captured and Mike, a lighter that has a secret camera inside along with a tiny Japanese cameraman! And later teaching karate moves using Yakimoto, a large Japanese man with whom Micky demonstrates two karate chops on who then retaliates by using karate chops on Micky’s stick, pencil and a board while he’s briefing them on weapons.
Realizing they have to meet Honeywell in a half hour, they prepare to leave on their unicycles and arrive at the discotheque where the Agent Honeywell tells them of a secret microphone inside a lamp on a table. They are to get the Russian agents to make a confession in order to make an arrest. He then leads the guys to another room when a genie appears in a puff of smoke out of the lamp before Davy( wrong show!). In a another room, Honeywell shows them a tape recorder where he will be recording the confession. Madame and Boris then arrive while the guys are performing “I’m Not Your Stepping Stone” and after the song they all gather around the table where the agents ask for the microfilm in exchange for $380. But at first, the foursomes attempts to get a confession is ruined with a nod, accidently knocking the wire out, and loud laughing from a couple nearby. When they finally get their confession an impatient Madame pulls out a gun demanding the microfilm and Mike lures her out into the large crowd dancing to the song “All the King’s Horses”. Micky and Peter try to grab Boris who overpowers them leaving them sprawled on the floor out cold while Davy tries to contact Honeywell on the lamp. Then Madame lays Mike a karate chop knocking him out which is observed by the dancing crowd who think it's a new dance gives karate chops on their dancing partner knocking each other out. Madame grabs the microfilm from Mike’s pocket and flees with Honeywell in pursuit while Boris gets mobbed first by teenage girls dancing then by Davy jumping on his back while Peter grabs his leg and Micky tries to crash into him but he's finally subded by Mike. Honeywell comes back without Madame who escaped but at least they caught one of them.
Somewhere in Red China at a spy headquarters, Madame Olinsky presents the film to a group as containing America’s latest weapon that will change the course of modern warfare. As she starts showing the film, she’s shocked when the film turns out to be just a sequence to the song “Saturday’s Child” with the Monkees in their many silly capers and romps from on the beach in bathing suits to riding on camels, dressed in scuba diving outfits on lawn etc which leaves the humiliated Madame tied and gagged in a chair.
Trivia Notes:
This episode was a takeoff to the 1965 film “The Spy Who Came In From The Cold”
The Song “All The King’s Horses” was not credited in the end title’s song listing
The end credits has the song “Last Train To Clarksville” instead of “Saturday’s Child”
listed in the title song listings by mistake. On the June 19, 1967 repeat “Saturday’s
Child” is replaced with “Randy Scouse Git” by Micky Dolenz. During the CBS re-runs
on Sept. 26, 1970, April 3, 1971 and July 1, 1972 the song “All Alone In The Dark” was dubbed in.
Actress Arlene Martell(Madame Olinsky) appeared on a another Monkees episdode,
“The Monstrous Monkee Mash” during the second season. Some of her other roles
inculde a recurring role as the French spy Tiger in CBS "Hogan Heroses", as Mavis
McDonald on CBS Daytime Soap Opera "The Young And The Restless" as best re-
membered as Dr. Spock's Vulcan bride TPring on a episode of "Star Trek". She was also once married to daytime soap opera vet actor Jerry Douglass best remembered as John About on CBS soap opera "The Young and Restless".
Late actor Billy Curtis(Midget) played one of the munchkins in the MGM 1939
film "The Wizard of Oz".
Late actor Lee Kolima(Yakimoto) also appeared in the episode "The Devil and Peter
Tork" as Atilla the Hun during the second season.
The Monkees first album titled “The Monkees” was released on the same date this
episode aired.
