The Devil And Peter Tork

Written by Gerald Gardner, Dee Caruso & Robert Kaufman

Directed by James Frawley

Produced by Robert Rafelson & Bert Schneider

Songs: “Salesman” by Craig Smith & “No Time” by Hank Cicalo

Guest Appearances

Mr. Zero                                                  Monty Landis

Roy Bean                                                      Billy Beck

Billy The Kid                                             Peter Canon

Blackbeard                                             Ted De Corsia

Atilla The Hun                                             Lee Kolima

Premiered on February 5, 1968

Summary

Peter looks through the window  Mr. Zero’s(the Devil) pawn shop and enters  calling for Mr. Zero.  While looking around, he comes across a golden harp and falls in love with it.  Although he doesn’t have any money, Peter insists he’ll give anything for the harp and Mr. Zero produces a contract for Peter to sign in exchange for the harp.  Peter signs the contract without reading it and Mr. Zero informs him he can play now and pay later.  Then Mr. Zero makes reservations over the phone for Peter’s soul which he has just purchased!

Back at the pad, the guys remind Peter that he can’t play the harp and tell him to get rid of since it takes up space.  Then Mr. Zero appears (literally) and tells Peter he can play the harp and when Peter does, he plays beautifully.  Mr. Zero dissappears and the others are surprished at how well he can play and decide to use the harp.  Soon Harry's Agency calls and books them as a harp act and they become an overnight success.  The following evening, the Monkees have a sack full letters from fans and offers from Chicago, London and New York City.  Just then Mr. Zero appears again to inform Peter about the contract he signed which reveals that Peter signed a contract with the Devil offering his soul.  To prove he’s the devil, Mr. Zero makes Micky’s chair break, Davy’s shirt disappear and a broom to appear in Mike’s hands which has them convinced.  He tries to collect Peter since his soul has to be handed over by midnight but since it’s only 8:00, Mike insists he give him his four hours and Mr. Zero agrees making everything back to normal before he disappears again.  The guys try to reassure Peter that there’s nothing to worry about but Peter is afraid and with sight of thunder and lighting a musical romp to the song “Salesman” begins as the Monkees arrive and hell where they dodge a horn and tailed Mr. Zero and his pretty demon girls with pitchforks.  When they arrive back in their pad, they realize the only thing worse then hell is saying it on television.

As midnight approaches, preparing to protect Peter from the devil, Micky has a stake to use on Mr. Zero but when he appears it turns into a feather.  Mr. Zero tries to collect Peter but don't give in so easily and Davy even offers his soul instead but there's now use.   Soon there’s a tug of war over Peter by Mr. Zero and Davy and Micky until Mike intervenes insisting that they can’t stop Mr. Zero if the contract is valid but he isn’t convinced it is and wants to prove it in court.  With a snap of Mr. Zero’s finger, they are all in hell in a courtroom where the Hanging Judge Roy Beans presides and twelve condemned men from Devil’s Island as the jury.  Mr. Zero presents his first witness, a gun-tooting Billy the Kid, with whom signed a contract with Mr. Zero in 1882 for his soul in exchange of becoming the most famous gunslinger.  When Mike attempts to cross examine him, he ends up being intimated by the outlaw and quickly backs off.  The next witness is Blackbeard, the pirate and Davy tries to cross examine him only to wind up getting sea sick when the pirate tells him about life on the sea.  The last witness is Atilla the Hun with whom Micky tries to cross examine which ends up being an argument in Mongolian and when Atilla tries to pounce on Micky, Mike stops him with words in Mongolian which he doesn’t understand. 

Finally, Mike calls his first witness Mr. Zero to the stand who rejects Davy’s offer to place his hand on the bible.  Mike cross examines Mr. Zero who claims he gave Peter the ability to play the harp for his soul.  However, Mike contradicts his claims giving a moving speech that it was Peter’s love for the harp not Mr. Zero that gave Peter the ability to play the harp since love is power.  Mr. Zero laughs at Mike’s claims and taking Peter’s ability away, he presents the hard and dares Peter to try to perform now.  Mike persuades Peter to play the harp reminding him that the power is in him and nobody can take that away.  Then Peter manages to play the song “I Wanna Be Free” beautifully moving the judge and the jury and he is found not quilty.  The guys rejoice as Mr. Zero disappears and the judge asks Peter if he knows “Melancholy Baby” as they guys become friendly with the jury.  This episode ends with the hip rendition of “No Time”.

Trivia Notes

This episode was based loosely on Stephen Vincent Benet’s 1938 novel

“The Devil And Daniel Webster” which became a 1941 Oscar winning RKO

film of the same title.

This was the fifth episode filmed for the second season which had been held

back from telecast by NBC due to its satirical jabs at Network censorship

regarding the word “Hell”.  There’s a cuckoo sound that dubs the word when

The Monkees say the word.

Although Peter can play about seven instruments, he can't play the harp

but was dubbed by another musician instead.

In the original storyline, there was an alternate ending which has Peter going

into a pawn shop this time eyeing a French horn and when the owner hands

him a contract to sign the other guys rush him out.

There were a couple of deleted scenes in which Mr. Zero pricks Peter’s finger

and makes him sign the contract in blood and the Monkees being forced to

dance until they drop during the “Salesman” musical romp.

In the musical romp “No Time” the scenes of the Monkees dancing hilariously

is used as a final clip in the Monkees second season opening sequence.