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In 1965, Columbia Pictures selected four young men to star in a half-hour comedy show patterned after the Beatles’ 1964 film A Hard Day’s Night. The Monkees would feature the zany adventures of a struggling rock-and-roll band and serve as a promotional tool for professionally produced albums recorded by studio musicians and released under the Monkees name. After auditioning hundreds of actors and musicians, the producers selected the four Monkees Mickey Dolenz, David Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork for their personalities and screen chemistry rather than their musical talent.