Posted on 12/14/2009 5:40:33 AM PST by billorites
The star may be Pee-wee, but his new live stage show is absolutely huge.
"The Pee-wee Herman Show," opening next month in downtown Los Angeles at Club Nokia theater, cost millions to mount. It boasts 11 actors, 20 puppets and marks the show's first production since 1982.
So, why now?
"Well, you know, I really want to make a movie version of 'The Playhouse,' my Saturday morning kid show," Paul Reubens said in an interview earlier this week in which he stayed in his exuberant Pee-wee persona.
"This seemed like a great way to do it: Reintroduce it, get back out there, introduce Pee-wee to the new generation that didn't know about it."
An impulsive, sometimes naughty child living a fantastical world, the Pee-wee character first made a big splash with the live "The Pee-wee Herman Show," which debuted at Groundlings theater in Los Angeles in 1981. An HBO broadcast of the show spread the Pee-wee gospel across the country later that year, and a 1985 Tim Burton-directed feature film, "Pee-wee's Big Adventure," was an acclaimed and popular success.
Then came the television series "Pee-wee's Playhouse" (1986-91), which ran for five seasons, earned 22 Emmys and attracted not only children but adults to Saturday-morning television.
Pee-wee was shelved after Reubens' July 1991 arrest for indecent exposure in an adult-movie house in Sarasota, Fla., resulting in a small fine. Reubens, now 57, continued to act, playing characters other than Pee-wee, scoring successes as the Penguin's father in "Batman Returns" (1992) and a 1995 Emmy nomination for a recurring guest role on "Murphy Brown." But Pee-wee would ultimately rise again.
"Well, I went back and forth between wanting to do it and not wanting to do (the new stage show)," Reubens said. "I had a producer that was calling me every two months for two years. And every two months, I would change my mind. And then, finally, one day I woke up and decided, 'This is it, I'm coming back.'"
As with the original stage show, the new production spins around Pee-wee's desire to fly. The menagerie of "Playhouse" characters is back, as are some of the original cast members, including Lynne Stewart as Miss Yvonne, John Moody as Mailman Mike and John Paragon as Jambi the Genie.
"I think I am grateful for my friends," Reubens said. "I am grateful for my fans. I am grateful that people still support me. I am grateful that people are going to buy tickets to come see my fabulous, fantastic, unbelievably incredible show at Club Nokia. ... I hope people have tickets and that is pretty much what I am thankful for."
"The Pee-wee Herman Show" is scheduled to run for a limited four-week engagement, Jan. 12- Feb. 7.
Yes indeed - how many other random joes have been "observed" touching themselves in an adult theater and followed outside to be apprehended? Bad idea for PW to put himself at risk but 2 things that surprised me 1) Adult theater showing hetero porn 2) why entire theater wasn't arrested along with him.
If you look at his mug shot at smoking gun you can barely recognize him. This was a set-up.
The new normal
Said no such thing. Considering what we have in a school czar, Pee Wee’s outward behavior is pretty benign. He is after all a human, with fewer evident odd proclivities than a great deal of folks in the entertainment industry.
We obviously live in an age of ever increasing sleaze courtesy of ease of access, the new normal you spoke of, and public school. I didn’t learn anything but reading writing and arithmetic in public school.
I dare say it is now the place to learn everything but, and not necessarily from the teachers, but from the close association with the diverse population of children going on 30 that one might never allow ones children to associate with if one knew, or cared.
Pee Wee was funny.
He got caught whacking off which is also funny.
Funny all around.
No offense, but no way am I boycotting a product because they hire someone who has had an affair (or ten).
I’m not saying I support what Tiger does in any way, shape or form. Just that I’m not boycotting a company because of it.
I popped in the Pee Wee tape and said that it was a new tape we had developed and were going to show it to their employees. I said they could stay and help critique it or leave when they wanted. After about 10 minutes everyone left but one person.
I later hired her to replace me as academy administrator. She asked me if I had hired her because she stayed and watched Pee Wee. I had forgotten about it. LOL!
Two of my children (ages 30 and 32)will see it with me. My wife can't stand him, so I'm sending her to Iowa.
Until, my wife pointed out the suggestive things embedded into the program and just bad (not good lessons for children) content that was included. She reminded me that the little ones can pick up much more than we realize.Another, "you were right" moment. The kids weren't allowed to watch Pee Wee for these reasons.
Pee Wee’s Playhouse was an adult oriented children’s show.
And, btw, I do not agree with the way he was treated. I think a harsh warning would have sufficed.
Then you really haven’t much INTEGRITY, imho.....sorry, Newbie.
Oooohhhhh. You called me newbie. Wow, that REALLY makes your argument.
What a brilliant mind! LOL
I said you have no INTEGRITY.....and all you can come back with is that??
And too bad Pushing Daisies got whacked by the writers strike - by the time they got it back on the air the show just didnt have the charm of its first season. Reubens looked to become a regular on that show.
Well your opinion on that was erroneous, therefore it was a meaningless statement. You don’t know, you just spouted off because ...maybe you can’t have someone disagree with you? Not my problem. See my tagline. It’s made just for people like you.
As I said....Newbie.
Sure I am. Newbie since ‘06, like it says on my homepage.
His demise was a great example of people using an individual’s individual sleaziness as blowup doll upon which to spurt their moral outrage and feel so very wonderfully self-justified.
When the HBO special got high ratings, Tim Burton made the movie "Pee Wee's Big Adventure." BTW, great scene from the movie here. The Burton movie cleaned up a bunch of the PG-13 stuff from the night club act and kids loved it. Herman ended up being a real kid's show star. The stuff in his night club act was actually pretty tame compared to modern fare like Robot Chicken or South Park. Reubens was busted for something that for most people would be embarrassing, but not a career ender. Hugh Grant, Robert Downey, Charlie Sheen, and quite a few others have survived far worse conduct. Being a kid's TV star, though, it destroyed him.
When you stand me up between Tiger Woods and Pee Wee I come off looking pretty good.
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