"Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry wanted to include a younger cast member to appeal to teenage audiences. With a second season of "Star Trek" to be produced, Roddenberry interviewed Walter Koenig on the recommendation of director Joseph Pevney. After casting Koenig, Roddenberry wrote a letter to Mikhail Zimyanin, editor of "Pravda", informing him of the introduction of a Russian character, and an NBC press release announcing the character at the time stated that it was in response to a "Pravda" article, condemning the show for having no Russian characters. The existence of such a Pravda article is disputed. Roddenberry also acknowledged that the character was in response to the popularity of The Monkees' Davy Jones. Koenig always denied the "Russian origin" story and affirmed that his character was added in response to the popularity of The Monkees, and the character's hairstyle and appearance are a direct reference to this. Roddenberry had previously mentioned, in a memo to his casting director, a desire to have someone reminiscent of one of The Beatles or Monkees on the show.