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Was going through my storage space today and came across the transcript of Peter Tork's Q&A at the 1982 Monkees Convention where he made his comments on John Lennon. Here's the transcript:

PETER TORK ON JOHN LENNON

(From the 1982 Monkees Convention)


When former Monkee Peter Tork made a special appearance at the 1982 Monkees Convention, he answered many questions from the fans in attendance, in which he discussed his career, his life and the people he had met in his life journey, including John Lennon. The last question he was asked before he went to sign autographs was what he was doing the night he heard John Lennon was killed:

Peter Tork: "I was watching the football game. A lot of people were watching. It was a playoff game, wasn't it? One of the semi-finals or final playoffs. Howard Cosell, he's talking, he says, "But, it's only a game", you know, and then he says, "Former Beatle". And, and I wept. It took about a day and a half for it to hit me. But, it was, (pause). It's, uh, you don't know what to say, you know? I've never been asked to give a funeral oration before.

But, somebody once said he was killed because he offered hope. Which McCartney didn't do, you know? McCartney would write songs and sing songs. And so does George and Ringo was an actor and a character. But John had a lot of ideas and gave a lot of hope.

And he struggled with his own life. It takes a special kind of a guy to avoid,...You see, when you're famous,....You wouldn't know this, but I know this! (Audience laughter). When you get famous in your life, it's awful easy to buy the company of people who will not tell you what you don't want to hear.

Now, I think this happened to Elvis. He did not want to hear, you know? That you can't live this way, that you're dying. That we love you too much to let this happen to you. He arranged for himself to be surrounded by people who would tell him exactly what he wanted to hear, and no more. And when that happens, what happens is that you start to feed your own mind. And, that's not the way the human (is) built to live. We're built to feed each others' minds. We're built to communicate. And, if you withdraw it, you surround yourself by a wall, you don't communicate any longer, and then, you're inbred. It's like an ingrown toe nail, it get worse and worse and worse. And then, at the end, Elvis was taking 60 some pills a day. Because, this is a way for him not to have to come to grips with the problems of living.

I've noticed in my life that there are two kinds of pain in this life; One is the pain of growing up, and the other is the pain of refusing to grow up. And, the pain of growing up changes, and there's wonderful rewards attached, and you get really high times attached to that, without drugs.

And, the pain of refusing to grow up is the same pain over and over and over again, and it never changes, and there's no reward. But, it seems sometimes easier to live without living, you know? You don't,...because life is tough. It's a hassel to live, you know? Life is a pain, sometimes.

And Lennon embraced the pain of his living. He struggled with issues like feminisim, and struggled with his own sexism, and struggled with his own political understanding. And strove to learn his own humanity. And, he worked like hell. And he worked hard. And he gave it all he had. And that's awful real. And, so, that's what made him special.

You know, when Elvis died, well, Elvis died, you know? It's too bad, it's the death of a legend. But, when Lennon died, a warrior went down. (Pause. Audience applause)

Thank you. I really want to thank you for helping me to get in touch with that. You know, I didn't tell about that for a long time. And I,...It's a big deal to me to have a chance to say some of that to some people. And, I think it helps us to remember what, you know, I mean,...All that,...Showbiz is very important in life. And people, that's why it continues. And Entertainment is critical to living. And, the point is living. And, it's a help to me to get in touch with my life.

I think that anybody who isn't struggling with their sexism, who isn't waging the war of life, is running from life. I mean, I don't,...There's no middle position in this issue. You either face life and embrace it for all the struggle involved, or you run from it. And I, I promote the living side because it's better to die a warrior than to live in a hole for 150 years.

There's much, much more joy, and I'm a witness to that. And my struggles in my life have been rewarding beyond all measure. And, I have you all to thank for that, a lot too. And, if you think that that's, uh, I might have chosen to end on a note of hilarity. But, it's a good note, and so, we'll call it at this point. And, um, the next issue on the agenda is that I'm going to go sit at the table and sign as many autographs as my little hand can hold. So,...(Applause) Thank you very much.