The 78-year-old Los Angeles, California-born actor, and musician Micky Dolenz rose to fame as part of the rock group, The Monkees. The drummer and singer for the group, Dolenz was a star in the 1960s on both record and the small screen.
Videos by American Songwriter
With decades of experience in the industry, fans may wonder what Dolenz, who grew up in show business thanks to his parents, has to say about his life, career, his family, and the world at large. Here are the 15 best Dolenz quotes.
[RELATED: 5 Songs by The Monkees That Will Make You Nostalgic]
1. “When I look back on my life, I wonder how I survived—my mother said I had a guardian angel.”
2. “My influences were Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry.”
3. “I had piano lessons at five and started guitar at ten, but although music and acting was always around me, my parents never pressured me into it.”
4. “They were looking for actors—real actors—who could play instruments. There was a lot of improvisation and scene work involved in addition to the music. The auditions went on for a long time.”
5. “After high school I was going to be an architect. In fact, I was studying to be an architect when the audition for The Monkees came along.”
6. “Ever since I was a kid, I’ve had an enormous interest in the sciences—everything from quantum physics to anthropology.”
7. “I was an entertainer, ever since I was a kid.”
8. “I’ve never been one to chase awards or anything like that, to be honest.”
9. “My parents were both in show business. My father was an actor, my mom an actress, and both singers, dancers, and actors. They met in Los Angeles doing a play together and so I grew up in a show biz family.”
10. “What happened was, my parents after Circus Boy decided to take me out of show business for two years to go back to normal school. It was the smartest thing they ever did.”
11. “The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is not a public democratic organization; it’s a private club basically. It’s like a private golf club and they decide who they’re going to let in the club.”
12. “There was never any pressure on me to go into the business, but I was always aware of it. I’d go on the set with my father and he and my mother would always be singing.”
13. “No matter how tired I am, I can only sleep for four hours at a time.”
14. “When my Scientific American arrives every month, I read it cover to cover.”
15. “Many people have fond memories of The Monkees. I fondly remember it, too.”
Photo by Donald Kravitz/Getty Images
