Everyone Thinks George Barris Built the Monkeemobile… But He Didn’t

Dean Jeffries built two of them in four weeks in 1966 — working from a pair of 1966 Pontiac GTO convertibles supplied by Pontiac's own marketing machine. George Barris bought one of the originals, altered it, promoted it for decades, and sold it at Barrett-Jackson for $360,000. Then he commissioned his own replica — built by Dick Dean, the same fabricator who had helped Jeffries construct the originals. This episode traces every Monkeemobile that exists — the two originals, the Barris-commissioned Dick Dean replica (identifiable by yellow headlight trim and tan seats, and visible in the Sisters of Mercy 'Black Planet' video), the Eric Sharp tribute car built from Jeffries's own molds, and the concours-grade 45th Anniversary car built under Jeffries's direct supervision in 2011, one of his last major projects before his death in 2013. It's a story about fabrication, credit, and the economics of perceived authorship — and why the distinction between 'built it' and 'showed up with it' matters more than you think. CHAPTERS: 0:00 – Hook: The Credit Problem 1:30 – The Origin: Dean Jeffries and the 1966 Build 3:30 – What Barris Actually Did With Car #2 5:30 – The Dick Dean Replica 7:30 – The Eric Sharp Car and the Parts Provenance 9:00 – Dean Jeffries's Last Monkeemobile: The 45th Anniversary 11:00 – Why Attribution Matters Beyond One Car 13:00 – Where the Cars Are Now SERIES PLAYLIST: George Barris Documentary Series — Batmobile | Munster Koach | DRAG-U-LA | Beverly Hillbillies Truck | Monkeemobile Replicas Subscribe for forensic-level automotive history. No myths. No nostalgia fog. Just the real story. #Monkeemobile #GeorgeBarris #DeanJeffries #DickDean #PontiacGTO #TheMonkees #CustomCars #TVCars #BarrisKustoms #MonkeemobileReplica #ClassicTVCars #1966GTO #HollywoodCustomCars #AutomotiveHistory #CarDocumentary #SistersOfMercy #BlackPlanet #BarrettJackson #CustomCarHistory #RockNRollCars