When I look back on my life, I wonder how I survived - my mother said I had a guardian angel.
Micky Dolenz
Ever since I was a kid, I've had an enormous interest in the sciences - everything from quantum physics to anthropology.
Many people have fond memories of 'The Monkees.' I fondly remember it, too.
I am extremely lucky; I've never been ill - although about 20 years ago I broke my right arm hang gliding.
The thing is, I'm not a prolific songwriter.
I was an entertainer, ever since I was a kid.
I'm now learning how to distinguish when I'm acting and when I'm not acting - offstage as well as onstage.
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.
And singing is a physical thing - your vocal cords are these muscles.
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.
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.
My influences were Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry.
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.
I've never been one to chase awards or anything like that, to be honest.
The Rock and 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.
In 1962 I was 17, so I was definitely watching the dance shows on television.
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.
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.
No matter how tired I am, I can only sleep for four hours at a time.
Writing is a great love of mine.
When my 'Scientific American' arrives every month, I read it cover to cover.
