Some Like It Lukewarm (aka The Band Contest)
Written by Joel Kane & Stanley Z. Cherry
Directed by James Frawley
Produced by Ward Sylvester
Songs: “The Door Into Summer” by Chip Douglas & Bill Martin, “She Hangs Out” by
Jeff Barry
Guest Appearances
Jerry Blavat Himself
Daphne Deana Martin
Maxine Sharon Cintron
Pierre Rod Rduelson
Janitor Bill McKinney
Premiered on March 4, 1968
Summary
Mike, Davy and Micky show up at the KXIW radio station to enter a Rockathon contest in which the prize is $500 as Mike coaches the others to act like they don’t need the money although they do. DJ, Jerry Blavat who is also the MC he tells them that the contest is for mixed groups only and that they need a girl in their group to enter so they decide one of them has be dress up as woman.
Later with all four of them, they decide on a volunteer basis who should dress as a woman and they all select Davy. Davy is reluctant, convinced that he couldn’t pull it off just as he falls into the Janitor’s room and comes out with a mop on his head which convinces the flirty janitor. Back at the pad, the guys help Davy dress up in drag and to help him act like a woman, Peter has a book on how to act like a feminine female. Soon they give teach him how to walk using a rope between his ankles and a frying pans attached to each hip and a great big book on top of his head. Later they try to enter the contest but Davy insists that it will never work and they’ll find out he isn’t girl. Elsewhere, Daphne, a member of four girl group the West Minstrel Abbies disguised as a guy, tells her band mates that they’ll bound to find out she’s not guy. At the contest, the Monkees watch on as the West Minstrel Abbies consisting of Harmony, Melody, Caphophone and William McCochran (Daphne in disguise) perform a very speedy rendition of “Last Train To Clarksville” and score a 98.6 on the Applause-0-meter. Next, the Monkees are up and they do their performance of “The Door Into Summer” as they foil Davy’s every attempt to fleeing the stage while Jerry starts becoming smitten with “Miss Jones”. The Monkees also score a 98.6 too, so Jerry announces they both groups will return to for a rematch. At the pad, the Monkees won’t let Davy get out of his drag getup just in case someone from the station shows up and in seconds there’s a knock on the door from Jerry with roses for Miss Jones. While the others hide,Jerry makes a pass at “Miss Jones” asking him out and offering to help him win if plays his cards right but Davy nicely refuses and sends him away just before he kisses Davy’s hand.
Later, the guys decide to go out but Davy refuses since he’ll have to remain dressed as a woman so they others offer to bring him back a tuna sandwich. Elsewhere, the West Minstrel Abbies also decide to go out but Daphne also refuses since she’ll have to remain disguised as a guy so they offer brin her back the same thing. Both Davy and Daphne however, don’t want to spend a Saturday night home alone and decide to go out somewhere that no one goes and both end up at the Some Little Out of The Way Place Where Nobody Goes café, the Southside Branch out of their drag outfits. When they ended up seated at the same table, they become starry-eyed as it’s love at first sight but when Mike, Micky and Peter show up, Davy hurries off leaving behind a high heel shoe which Daphne picks up. Back at the pad, Davy rushes into the bed under the covers and pretends to be sleep just as the others arrive back. He fakes waking up and nearly gives himself away by inadvertently naming the place where they ate. Then he discovers that one of his high heels is missing. The next day, the Monkees prepare for their rematch in the dressing room at the station where Davy nearly slips up again about Daphne when questioned him about his missing high heel but he covers up quickly. Davy heads out where he spots the smitten Jerry and to avoid him, he winds up in the West Minstrel Abbies dressing room and confronts Daphne again. He quickly realizes that she doesn’t recognize him dressed in drag and tries to leave but she grills him about his missing high heel which looks like the one she has. Then Davy takes off his wig and confesses and then Daphne confesses about her disguise too as both realize that their deceit is wrong. Later, Davy confesses all to Jerry who angrily disqualifies them but Davy explains that they are and mixed group and to show him, the Monkees perform “She Hangs Out” with the West Minstrel Abbies all dressed in black miniskirts as back up dancers which impresses Jerry.
This episode ends with Davy chatting with his old friend, musician Charlie Smalls about soul music and singing a song they wrote together called “A Girl Named Love”. Click____ here for transcripts.
Trivia Notes
This episode featured the beginning of the planned format of featuring a special guest
star each week for a third season but NBC cancelled the series during its second
season so the plans were axed for good.
The last three episodes would also air a famous musician.
Actress Deanna Martin (Daphne), the daughter of the late Dean Martin landed a part
in this episode at Davy’s request whom she started dating around that time.
An unused scene of this episode has entering the contest as The Rotten Breaks because
three chimps and a baboon have already entered the contest as the Monkeys.
Actor Bill Mckinney (Janitor) would later star in several films with actor Clint Eastwood
including “Thunderbolt And Lightfoot” (1974) with former Monkee guest star Vic Tayback, “Any Which Way But Loose” (1978) and its sequel “Any Which Way You Can” (1980).
Davy and the late Charlie Smalls’ song they wrote together “A Girl Named Love” was
originally going to be part of a medley with another song “The Girl I Left Behind” and
included on the Monkees album “The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees” but it was never
released on the album until it aired on a bonus track on Rhino’s September 1994 reissue CD of “The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees”. Smalls would later write some of the songs for the Broadway musical and later feature film version of “The Wiz” winning
a 1975 Broadway Tony Award for Best Music Score.
