Former San Antonio College student Michael Nesmith of “The Monkees” turns 77

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) — Hey! Hey! It’s Michael Nesmith’s birthday.

The singer/songwriter/actor,  best known for being with the 1960’s pop group The Monkees was born in Houston on December 30, 1942.

Nesmith moved to Dallas with his mother, Bette Nesmith Graham, after his parents divorced.

It was while she was holding a clerical job that she invented the typewriter correction fluid that is now known ad “Liquid Paper”.

Michael Nesmith dropped out of Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas and in 1960, he enlisted in the United States Air Force.

Nesmith completed his basic training at San Antonio’s Lackland Air Force Base and returned to the Alamo City to attend classes at San Antonio College after his honorable discharge.

It was during his college years that he began performing and collaborating with fellow student John Kuehne. The duo won college’s talent award.

After leaving SAC, Nesmith moved to Los Angeles where he wrote songs and performed at folk music clubs until late 1965 when he auditioned for and landed a part in a new TV series called “The Monkees”.

The group went on to release several albums in the late 1960’s, often outselling The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.

While the show’s creators didn’t allow Nesmith and his fellow Monkees to have much creative input, some of Nesmith’s compositions ended up on their albums.

His songs were recorded by other artists as well. Linda Ronstadt scored her first hit in 1967 as a member of The Stone Poneys with the Nesmith’s “Different Drum”.

When The Monkees TV show ended, Nesmith ventured into producing movies and television programming.

Nesmith will return to San Antonio in 2020. He and Mikey Dolenz , the only other surviving Monkee, are reuniting for a tour and they will play at The Tobin Center on April 19.