The Monkees singer Peter Tork’s death was confirmed on Thursday, February 21, but even though the musician battled a rare form of tongue cancer over the past decade, his sister did not reveal the cause of his death.
Now fans are questioning if the music icon and recovering alcoholic, who succumbed at age 77, fell off the wagon in the years leading up to his passing — and perhaps drank himself to death!
Click through the gallery below for more details!
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Before his passing, The Monkees singer Peter Tork admitted he was a big boozer in the 1980s! “I’m an alcoholic, and that means once I pick up the first drink — something gets triggered and I have no resistance,” he told Daily Mail in 2015. “So the answer is not to drink at all.”
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He admitted he wasn’t the nicest while hooked on booze! “I was awful when I was drinking — snarling at people,” Tork confessed.
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Tork’s inappropriate behavior while drinking led him to ditch the habit in the 1980s. “In June 1980, I began the process of recovery,” he said. “I was unable to go any further on my own strength and I gave up.”
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But him quitting wasn’t all positive. In fact, it destroyed his relationship with the group! He once claimed he was booted from The Monkees in a nasty battle over the others’ drinking. “I gave them 30 days’ notice, but then they dumped me. Thank God, I don’t need The Monkees anymore,” he told The National ENQUIRER in a previous interview.
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Photo credit: MEGA
“I’m a recovering alcoholic and haven’t had a drink in several years,” he added to The ENQUIRER. “I’m not against people drinking — just when they get mean and abusive."
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A source revealed to us at the time, “Tork is a staunch Alcoholics Anonymous abstainer with a hard-line attitude about drinking. He was furious with Davy for his drinking, which Peter believed interfered with their tour and The Monkees music.” They added, “Micky and Davy couldn’t have a glass of beer without Peter calling them drunks.”
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Photo credit: MEGA
Now one question remains — did Tork start drinking again before his death?! Only time will tell...
Before his passing, The Monkees singer Peter Tork admitted he was a big boozer in the 1980s! “I’m an alcoholic, and that means once I pick up the first drink — something gets triggered and I have no resistance,” he told Daily Mail in 2015. “So the answer is not to drink at all.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
He admitted he wasn’t the nicest while hooked on booze! “I was awful when I was drinking — snarling at people,” Tork confessed.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Tork’s inappropriate behavior while drinking led him to ditch the habit in the 1980s. “In June 1980, I began the process of recovery,” he said. “I was unable to go any further on my own strength and I gave up.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
But him quitting wasn’t all positive. In fact, it destroyed his relationship with the group! He once claimed he was booted from The Monkees in a nasty battle over the others’ drinking. “I gave them 30 days’ notice, but then they dumped me. Thank God, I don’t need The Monkees anymore,” he told The National ENQUIRER in a previous interview.
Photo credit: Getty Images
“I’m a recovering alcoholic and haven’t had a drink in several years,” he added to The ENQUIRER. “I’m not against people drinking — just when they get mean and abusive."
A source revealed to us at the time, “Tork is a staunch Alcoholics Anonymous abstainer with a hard-line attitude about drinking. He was furious with Davy for his drinking, which Peter believed interfered with their tour and The Monkees music.” They added, “Micky and Davy couldn’t have a glass of beer without Peter calling them drunks.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
Now one question remains — did Tork start drinking again before his death?! Only time will tell...
