From the New York Daily News
Musician-songwriter Bobby Hart, half of a composer duo who penned the Monkees’ theme song and many of the group’s mega-hits, has died.
He was 86.
His friend and co-author, Glenn Ballantyne, said Hart died at home in Los Angeles, amid a health decline that began after he broke his hip last year.
Hart and collaborator Tommy Boyce each had numerous music credits to their name when they were tapped to help create a television show promoted by Don Kirchner....
And we all know what TV show that was....
From Wikipedia:
Sidney Thomas "Tommy" Boyce (September 29, 1939 – November 23, 1994) and Bobby Hart (born Robert Luke Harshman; February 18, 1939 – September 10, 2025) were an American duo of singer-songwriters. In addition to three top-40 hits as artists, the duo is well known for its songwriting for the Monkees.
In late 1965, they wrote, produced and performed the soundtrack of the pilot for 'The Monkees', including singing lead vocals (which were later replaced, once the show was cast).
In 1966, despite some conflicts with Don Kirshner, who was the show's musical supervisor, they were retained in essentially the same role. It was Boyce and Hart who wrote, produced and recorded, accompanied by their backing band, the Candy Store Prophets, backing tracks for a large portion of the first season of 'The Monkees', and the band's accompanying debut album.
The duo also wrote the theme song of the daytime soap 'Days of Our Lives'.
The duo also performed "I'll Blow You a Kiss in the Wind" on the television show 'Bewitched', in one of several TV series appearances that included guest spots on 'The Flying Nun' and 'I Dream of Jeannie' ("Jeannie the Hip Hippie" performing "Girl, I'm Out To Get You").
All of these shows were produced by Screen Gems, the television subsidiary of Columbia Pictures. Each of the three sitcom guest appearances featured their music, including two unreleased covers they performed on 'The Flying Nun'.
The televersions of Boyce & Hart differ from their real lives. Basically, Jeannie created their new lives as musicians. (Pre-Jeannie Bobby was working in a record store, while Pre-Jeannie Tommy was a waiter in a coffee shop.)
Here are the credits which qualified Boyce & Hart for membership in the TVXOHOF as members of the League of Themselves:
JEANNIE, THE HIP HIPPIE (1967)
Jeannie blinks up a music group when Dr. Bellows' wife assigns the job to Tony.
Tony prepares to go on a camping trip with Jeannie. Unfortunately, Doctor Bellows, who also was due to go on vacation, is forced to cancel because he must find a musical group to perform at a charity bazaar that Amanda is in charge of and because of this he forces Tony to cancel his vacation as well and orders him to help him find a group.
Not wanting Tony to miss his vacation, Jeannie helps him by getting four non-musicians, including a couple of guys named Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, and turning them into musicians. In fact, Jeannie is so successful in turning them into a group that they wind up getting an audition with Phil Spector.
SERENA STOPS THE SHOW (1970)
Serena zaps away Boyce and Hart's popularity so that they will play the Cosmo Cotillion in the witchy realm. Unfortunately Darrin had just talked his client into using this 'hot' group in a television special.
Darrin, with Larry's enthusiastic approval, has managed in a lucrative verbal deal for a new client, Breeze Shampoo, to sponsor an upcoming television special featuring rock music duo Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart - Boyce & Hart.
With that connection, Serena, who is the Chair of the Entertainment Committee for the Cosmos Cotillion, wants Boyce & Hart not only to perform at the Cotillion, but sing a song she wrote, "I'll Blow You a Kiss in the Wind", at it.
Using her witchcraft, Serena is able to muscle her way in to see the duo and their manager, Chick Cashman. Because Serena doesn't get everything she wants in her negotiation with Cashman, Serena, again using witchcraft, thinks she has a way to get everything she wants in the deal, without a care that her plan will basically render Darrin's agreement with Breeze Shampoo worthless, (that attitude partly due to Darrin denigrating her song.)
Finding out what Serena did, Samantha has to try and convince Serena to reverse her spell to save Darrin's job and the deal with Breeze.
WHEN GENERATIONS GAP (1970)
Sister Bertrille gets into a fender bender, caused by her running a red light. She can't really remember what happened, and is willing to accept responsibility for the accident if it was her fault. However, Alfonso T. Gomez, a witness, states that it was not Sister Bertrille's fault. The occupants of the other car are hippies, namely Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart of the singing group, The Paper Balloon, who happen to be appearing at Carlos' casino.
Sister Bertrille just wants to forget the incident, but it becomes a big media story about subversive hippies against an innocent nun, a story which ruins business at the Paper Balloon's show at Carlos' casino. When Boyce and Hart jog the sister's memory, she does realize it was the station wagon's loose brakes that caused her to run the red light.
She goes to Gomez to double check what happened. He admits it was her fault. The reason for his false story being the fact that the convent could use the insurance money from that of rich, spoiled hippies; Gomez' negative feelings about hippies stem from the fact that his son is one.
Even after Sister Bertrille and Gomez go to the newspaper to recant his eyewitness account, the television news reports that the spoiled rich hippies bought off Gomez. Finally, Sister Bertrille sees only one way for the public opinion to sway in favor of Boyce and Hart: they need to do a benefit concert with proceeds going to the convent.
O'Bservation:
All episode summaries are from the IMDb.
"Good night and may God bless" to you both....
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