Art For Monkee's Sake

Written by Coslough Johnson

Directed by Alex Singer

Produced by Robert Rafelson&Bert Schneider

Songs: "Randy Scouse Git" by Micky Dolenz, "Daydream Believer" by John Stewart

Guest Appearances

Duce                                 Monty Landis

Chuche                               Vic Tayback

Curator                                Arthur Male

Artist                                  Michael Bell

                

At the pad, Peter paints a picture of a door that looks so real that Micky crashes into it hurting his head.  Since Peter has taking up painting as a hobby, Mike suggests that he go to the museum to get real inspiration.  Peter takes his advice and at the museum he paints another door that too looks so real that Chuche, a guard crashes into it.  The angry guard is about to slug Peter when Duce, another guard intervenes.  Wanting to use Peter's talents for a scam, he flatters Peter and showing him a portrait he suggests that Peter paints it and he nearly does(literally).

Duce convinces Peter to paint a copy of the portrait and then tells his plan to Chuche of switching Peter's copy with the real portrait, selling it and then buying tickets to Europe. Peter does paint a copy but adds Mike's wool hat to the portrait as a finishing touch and to avoid the curator, the guards decide to hide Peter in the basement while he fixes the portrait.  Meanwhile the next morning, while having their breakfast with Mr. Schneider, their pet dummy the guys realize Peter still isn't back and have figured out that he's in trouble so head to the museum to rescue him.  In the basement, Peter fixes the portrait by painting over the wool hat until it is an exact copy of the real masterpiece.  Then Duce gets a call from the curator who tells them to be at their post so telling Peter that artist must suffer they tie and gag him to a chair.  The other three arrive at the museum and split up to search in different studios where Micky enters studio 3 only to be en-countered by a artist who paints with his hands and feet and Mike in studio 1 where Liberate gives a performance by smashing the piano with a silver mallet.  While the guards managed to switch the paintings, the guys check the basement and un gag Peter as they notice the portrait and praise his talents.  When Peter mentions that the portrait was painted by a brilliant man, they realize that the paintings were switched! 

After freeing Peter, they all return with the painting and try to tell the curator about the paintings being switched who doesn't listen to them. Then they try to warn the guards until Peter explains that the guards are the perpetrators.  They try to warn the curator again who doesn't notice Peter's signature on the portrait.  He then explains about an alarm that causes invisible beams which if penetrated will cause the assailant to be caged in sent to jail in five seconds and he demonstrates this by turning on the alarm in which he ends up caging himself.  Back at the pad, the guys decide to switch back the paintings and dressed in black, they prepare for their mission (mission ridiculous) arming themselves with a flashlight, blowtorch, X- ray glasses and three hot mustard on rye sandwiches!  Late that night, they clumsily break in from the roof and enter the building down a rope ladder.  Davy wearing the super duper X-ray glasses, manages to dodge the beams and gets the phony portrait but Peter left the real portrait on the roof and quickly climbs back up the rope ladder to retrieve it.  Then Chuche shows up and the guys unable to hide pretend to be statues and managed to fool Chuche who walks away.  After Peter climbs back down with the real portrait, Mike sends Micky and Peter to follow Chuche which they do without being seen while Mike switches the paintings back.  After the deed is done, they prepare to climb up the ladder but then Duce climbs down the ladder armed with a gun and Chuche corners them with a gun too.  Soon the guys flee in different directions and there's a mad chase to the song "Randy Scouse Git" as the guys fight off the two guards and the finger and foot artist and ends with the Monkees and the two guards all caged up. 

The next morning as the curator is showing the exhibits to a crowd of people, they stumble upon all six of them still in the cage now sound asleep.  Back at the pad, Peter tells the guys he's giving up painting for good and has found a new hobby in building things.  Then just as Micky sits in a chair that Peter had built, it immediately breaks sending Micky to the floor.  This episode ends with the guys performing "Daydream Believer" and Liberate completing his assault on the piano.

Trivia Notes

This was the second episode to be filmed for the second

season and the first one produced featuring actor Monte

Landis (Duce).

Actor Art Malet (Curator) also appeared as the mortician in the

Oscar-winning 1967 film “In The Heat Of The Night” as well as

numerous films and TV including appearing as Mr. Dawes Jr.

in Disney’s “Mary Poppins” and as Ryan in CBS primetime soap

“Dallas”.

Musician Liberate is one of the few musicians to cameo as

himself on the Monkees TV show.

The name of the painting Peter duplicates is Franz Hal’s “The

Laughing Cavalier” (1624).