DIAL B for BLOG - THE WORLD'S GREATEST COMIC BLOGAZINE

Subtle hint...


THE MONKEEMOBILE Batman had the Batmobile -- the Monkees had The Monkeemobile! Custom car designer Dean Jeffries created the Monkeemobile out of a 1966 Pontiac GTO convertible. Jeffries pushed back the rear seat, giving the car a stretched-out appearance. He also tilted the windshield up, and added an old-fashioned touring top. Jeffries built two cars in three weeks, one for the TV episodes and another for the custom car circuit.

While the front end of the car was easily recognizable as a GTO, the rest was heavily customized. Among the modifications were a very tall split windshield, a third row of seats where the rear deck was, a T-bucket-type convertible top, large fender flares, exaggerated taillamps, and even a parachute. Pictured below are the Monkees in the TV Monkeemobile:

Monkeemobile designer Dean Jeffries recalls, "We put a 6-71 supercharger on the engine in the first car and solidly mounted the rear axle. We also put weights in the rear so it would wheelstand. It had too much power for the suspension and was a difficult car to drive, so we took off the blower and installed a dummy blower so it looked the same."

MPC sold more than seven million MPC Monkeemobile models, an amazing record that would stand for decades. It was finally broken by sales of (what else?) the "Dukes of Hazzard General Lee Dodge Charger."


There was also a pre-assembled toy Monkeemobile from CORGI-HUSKY, which came with figures of the Monkees. In comparison with today's ultra-detailed and realistic figures, these look like aumputee burn victims frozen in ridiculous but groovy poses!



The AMT reissue of the original MPC Monkeemobile model kit:

Mystery: What is the focus of the last page of DIAL B for BLOG's MONKEEMEN tribute?