Monkees A La Carte

Written by Gerald Gardner, Dee Caruso&Bernie Orenstein

Directed by James Frawley

Produced by Robert Rafelson&Bert Schneider

Songs: “I’m Not Your Stepping Stone”, “She” by Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart

Guest Appearances

                             Fuselli                            Harvey Lembeck

                             Rocco                                      Karl Lucas

                             Pop                                       Paul Deville

                             Red                                   Paul Sorenson

                             Flora                               Helene Winston

                             Paddy                                     Jon Kowal

                             Benny                                Mousy Garner

                             Policeman                          Don Kennedy

Premiered on November 21, 1966

Summary

The Monkees are eating a three feet long sub at Pop’s restaurant where they work when Fuselli, a gangster and his sidekick Rocco enter and begin pressuring Pop to sell him the place until he finally agrees and then throws him out.  Then they fire the guys and when Rocco starts shoving them about Davy stands up to him only to wind up punched in the jaw sending all of them reeling to the floor.

At their pad, the guys hold a meeting to determine whether to help Pop get his restaurant back and Mike votes in favor for everyone.  Then they show up at the place to get their jobs back as musicians but Fuselli is at first reluctant to rehire them until they offer to work for cheap.  He doesn't hire them as musicians but as waiters, chefs, cooks, cigarette girls and check hat girls instead.  He then puts them to the test at first by having Peter carry a tray containing a lot of dishes into the kitchen without breaking them which he successfully although he later breaks them in the kitchen.  After they're hired, Fuselli in an attempt to intimidate the guys out of going to the police, demonstrates to them how the handle people they don’t like and sends Rocco to slap Peter.  Then Micky retaliates by trying to show Fuselli how they handle people they don’t like and winds up slapping Peter too.  Fuselli sends them off to work and the foursome romp around as chefs and waiters to the tune of “I’m Not Your Stepping Stone” but decide to get outside help and head to the police station. 

The police inspector offers to help them and explains that the only members of the syndicate they caught were all four members of the Purple Flower Gang and tells the guys they have to get the goods on the hoods warning them of the dangers.  Back at the restaurant, Davy tries to get Fuselli’s fingerprints by powdering up a glass of liquor which he hands to the gangster but he takes the glass with his other hand that has a glove on.  Next, Micky records Fuselli’s conversation with Rocco and calls the other guys over to listen but when he plays it back he inadvertently recorded himself calling the guys over for Fuselli’s conversation.  Then Mike tries to blow up large safe in the office with dynamite but ends up blowing up the desk and to hide their actions they quickly make the safe look like a desk. 

Later Fuselli who is planning a meeting with all members of the syndicate, orders the foursome to wait on tables.  When the members arrive, they all introduce themselves as Red O’ Leary(band robbery/protection), Big Flora(fraud/extortion), Paddy The Fix(drugs/diamond smuggling) and Benny The Book(bookmaking/ numbers) and soon the meeting begins as Fuselli orders the Monkees out of the room.  The guys soon come up with an idea and enter the meeting disguised as the Purple Flower Gang.  When Big Flora questions them about wearing white carnations, Micky replies “You know how hard it is to get purple flowers, baby?”.  But Peter nearly messes it up when he insists on being served food and Fuselli calls out to the waiters for services, but the guys cover themselves by insisting on checking the food first and go into the kitchen where they select Peter to get help from the police and he manages to get past Rocco with a toy gun that pops up a sign saying “I Go”.  He then heads off  to the Police Headquarters where the police mistakes him as a Purple Flower gang member and interrogates him.  Meanwhile, Fuselli starts dividing up the crime operations among the mobsters by using a board containing a large map of the city while the remaining trio takes turns running in and out of the kitchen quick changing from gangsters to waiters and back to gangsters to serve the others. 

After he’s finished, Mike and Davy complain about the splits being unfair and take over and using black paint divide the operations in a tic tack toe form in which Mike wins while Micky starts whispering in the others ears about a double-cross angering up the mobsters. Then all chaos is loose as the rowdy crowd ends up tearing up the map and draw out their guns leading to a violent gunfight while Mike, Micky and Davy hide under the table.  During the gunfight, Micky manages to stop it briefly when he lures out pretty girl in full view to smile and exit. (The director wanted to get pretty girl the scene).  Micky tries to urge each member to make peace but the all end up killing each other, while Mike and Davy are under the table continuing their game of tic tac toe until Davy wins.  By the end of the gunfight, Fuselli is the only one left alive until Benny The Book barely alive shoots him just before he slumps over.  Peter soon arrives with the police and seeing all the dead members of the syndicate they arrests the guys thinking they’re the Purple Flower Gang. 

A another rendition of “I’m Not Your Stepping Stone” concludes while showing many romps of the Monkees ending with them pacing in their jail cell.  When Pop returns and tells the boys to play like the use to the guys end with a musical number of “She”.

Trivia Notes

The late actor Dort Clark who played the cop appears in two more

episodes playing a cop, “The Picture Frame” and “The Monkees At The Wheel”

The late actor Harvey Lembeck(Fuselli) was best known to fans as

Cpl. Rocco Barbella in “The Phil Silvers Show” and as Baron Eric Van Zipper

in the Frankie Avalon& Annette Funicello’s beach movie flicks.  He's also the

father of actor Michael Lembeck who's best remembered as Mike on CBS's

comedy sitcom "One Day At A Time".  Annette Funicello also appeared in the Monkees’ film “Head”.

Actor Karl Lukas(Rocco) also appeared on “The Phil Silvers Show”

as Prv. Stash Kadowski.

Late actress Helene Winston(Big Flora) also appeared in the Monkees

episode "Monkees On The Line".

The now late actor Paul "Mousie" Garner(Benny The Book) known as the

"Grand Old Man of Vaudeville" was the only vaudeville performer to still

perform into the 21st Century.  One of his acts included briefly replacing

Shemp Howard of the Three Stooges when he was unable to perform.  He

would later form the New Three Stooges with former Stooge Joe DeRita and

Frank Mitchell which didn't last very long.