Charge Upheld Vs. Pee-Wee Herman Actor

The Associated Press ^ | FEBRUARY 22, 2003

[Willie Green]

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge refused to dismiss a misdemeanor charge accusing Pee-wee Herman actor Paul Reubens of possessing child pornography.

Defense attorney Blair Berk had argued that a state law enacted in 1989 does not apply to material produced prior to that year and that the one-year statute of limitations for a misdemeanor crime expired before Reubens was charged in November.

Assistant City Attorney Richard Kraft said he was pleased with Superior Court Judge Carol Rehm's Friday ruling. Berk said she may appeal.

Both sides were ordered to appear in Superior Court on Feb. 28 for scheduling of a trial date.

Reubens, best known for playing childlike character Pee-wee Herman, has pleaded innocent to one misdemeanor count of possessing material depicting children under 18 engaging in sexual conduct. The 50-year-old actor is free on $20,000 bail.

The charge, which carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $2,500 fine, resulted from a search of Reubens' home in November 2001. Police seized his art collection and personal computers.

Kraft has said police found a ``massive'' pornography collection consisting of photographs, magazines and hundreds of home videos and movies.

Reubens' representatives have said the actor owned a ``vast and valuable'' collection of erotica, including some items a century old. He never knowingly possessed child pornography and bought some of the items in his collection in large lots that he had not opened, according to his spokeswoman, Kelly Bush.

[apackof2]

Oh I see its all in the terminnology used. If its "erotica" its ok

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Say it isn't so, Pee Wee.

[apackof2]

Its been "so" for a loooooong time!

[JimRed]

Boys or girls?

[EggsAckley]

[OKSooner]

Everyone who was paying attention knew there was something perverse about "PeeWee" back when he was having his fifteen minutes.

[billorites]

I thought PeeWee's Playhouse was a great show and always enjoyed seeing him appear.

I recall PeeWee's first television appearance in character after he got caught "faxing the Pope" in that Florida movie theater.

He came out on stage to wild applause, turned to the audience and said,

"So, heard any good jokes lately?"

[ysoitanly]

Who cares? It's all a game of semantics - 'erotica' - right. Let this lisping has-been, no-talent hack play whack-a-mole all he wants in the privacy of his own home and end up working at a car wash somewhere if he can get the job.

[Rifleman]

This is not a trivial question. I don't know what Ruebens had and I have always disliked his work (well except the death scene from the Buffy movie) so I am no advocate for him...BUT if he is in the soup for possessing images like Parrish, Zorn, Bouguereau, Alma-Tadema, Sargent or similar, who certainly used some models who look under age by modern standards then I want to know about it so I can raise hell.

There are many images from great and lesser artists that some prosecuter eager to get his name in the paper could misrepresent as "child" porn in today's hysterical atmosphere. A bright line definition of this stuff is needed so idiot prosecutors don't bust people for bathtub pix of their toddlers and copies of Academic Realist paintings and such.

[rabidralph]

"faxing the Pope"

Forgive my ignorance, but I'm having a hard time figuring out how Pee Wee's behavior in the movie house equates to faxing the Pope. Can you explain it in polite terms?

[billorites]

"Can you explain it in polite terms?"

Uh, probably not.

It's a euphemism I learned in prep-school. Kinda akin to "hitchin to Heaven" or "menage a moi."