Of the 13 episodes in the can prior to the Sept 12 premiere, "Royal Flush" was chosen for the debut, no doubt to capitalize on the growing fan base of Davy Jones, who had already released the Colpix LP "David Jones" in 1965 (Colgems merged the now defunct Colpix with Screen Gems). Third in production (June 7-10), second since the pilot was picked up, and very similar to the pilot, Davy helping out a girl in trouble, the twist being that Bettina (Katherine Walsh) is a foreign princess, whose archduke uncle Otto (Theo Marcuse) seeks to usurp the throne for himself. The laughs just aren't that frequent, though Vincent Beck's henchman Sigmund remains consistently amusing. Apart from teen idol Davy, the other Monkees aren't allowed much to do, but Michael Nesmith quickly establishes himself as droll and laconic, Micky Dolenz the versatile clown, and Peter Tork the Harpo-inspired, smiling sad sack with a warmth that was never in doubt. Sad to say, the principal actors were destined to die tragically within four years of this broadcast: Theo Marcuse, very busy character villain (THRILLER, BATMAN, STAR TREK), was killed in a car crash in Nov 1967, while pretty Katherine Walsh was murdered in London in Oct 1970, an apparently unsolved homicide. Ceil Cabot steals her scenes as the chambermaid, and returned in "Success Story." The very first song heard on the series (not counting the regular theme) is at least sung by Davy, "This Just Doesn't Seem to Be My Day" (recorded July 5), composed by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, followed by Micky's "Take a Giant Step" (recorded July 9), B-side to the debut single "Last Train to Clarksville" (issued Aug 16, a full month before), composed by the husband and wife team Gerry Goffin and Carole King. Both tracks featured on the debut LP THE MONKEES, produced by Boyce and Hart, but not released until Oct 10.