LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥 Paul Reubens, the actor and comedian whose Pee-wee Herman character 鈥 an overgrown child with a tight gray suit and an unforgettable laugh 鈥 became a 1980s pop cultural phenomenon, has died at 70.
Reubens, who鈥檚 character delighted fans in the film 鈥淧ee-wee鈥檚 Big Adventure鈥 and on the TV series 鈥淧ee-wee鈥檚 Playhouse,鈥 died Sunday night after a six-year struggle with cancer that he kept private, his publicist said in a statement.
鈥淧lease accept my apology for not going public with what I鈥檝e been facing the last six years,鈥 Reubens said in a statement released Monday with the announcement of his death. 鈥淚 have always felt a huge amount of love and respect from my friends, fans and supporters. I have loved you all so much and enjoyed making art for you.鈥
Created for the stage, Pee-wee with his white chunky loafers and red bow tie would become a cultural constant in both adult and children's entertainment for much of the 1980s, though an indecent exposure arrest in 1991 would send the character into entertainment exile for years.
The staccato giggle that punctuated every sentence, catch phrases like 鈥淚 know you are but what am I鈥 and a tabletop dance to the Champs' song 鈥淭equila鈥 in a biker bar in 鈥淧ee-wee's Big Adventure鈥 were often imitated by fans, to the joy of some and the annoyance of others.
Reubens created Pee-wee when he was part of the Los Angeles improv group The Groundlings in the late 1970s. The live 鈥淧ee-wee Herman Show鈥 debuted at a Los Angeles theater in 1981 and was a success with both kids during matinees and adults at a midnight show.
The show closely resembled the format the Saturday morning TV 鈥淧ee-wee's Playhouse鈥 would follow years later, with Herman living in a wild and wacky home with a series of stock-character visitors, including one, Captain Karl, played by the late 鈥淪aturday Night Live鈥 star Phil Hartman.
HBO would air the show as a special.
Reubens took Pee-wee to the big screen with 1985鈥檚 鈥淧ee-wee鈥檚 Big Adventure,鈥 which takes the character outside for a nationwide escapade. The film, in which Pee-wee鈥檚 cherished bike is stolen, was said to be loosely based on Vittorio De Sica鈥檚 Italian neo-realist classic, 鈥淭he Bicycle Thief.鈥 Directed by Tim Burton and co-written by Hartman, the movie was a success, grossing $40 million, and continued to spawn a cult following for its oddball whimsy.
A sequel followed three years later in the less well-received 鈥淏ig Top Pee-wee,鈥 in which Pee-wee seeks to join a circus. Reubens鈥 character wouldn鈥檛 get another movie starring role until 2016鈥檚 Pee-wee鈥檚 Big Holiday,鈥 for Netflix. Judd Apatow produced Pee-wee鈥檚 big-screen revival.
His television series, 鈥淧ee-wee鈥檚 Playhouse,鈥 ran for five seasons, earned 22 Emmys and attracted not only children but adults to Saturday-morning TV.
Jimmy Kimmel posted on Instagram that 鈥淧aul Reubens was like no one else 鈥 a brilliant and original comedian who made kids and their parents laugh at the same time. He never forgot a birthday and shared his genuine delight for silliness with everyone he met.鈥
Both silly and subversive and championing nonconformity, the Pee-wee universe was a trippy place, populated by things like a talking armchair and a friendly pterodactyl.
Director Guillermo del Toro tweeted Monday that Reubens was 鈥渙ne of the patron saints of all misfitted, weird, maladjusted, wonderful, miraculous oddities.鈥
The act was a hit because it worked on multiple levels, even though Reubens insists that wasn鈥檛 the plan.
鈥淚t鈥檚 for kids,鈥 Reubens told The Associated Press in 2010. 鈥淧eople have tried to get me for years to go, 鈥業t wasn鈥檛 really for kids, right?鈥 Even the original show was for kids. I always censored myself to have it be kid-friendly.
鈥淭he whole thing has been just a gut feeling from the beginning," Reubens told the AP. "That鈥檚 all it ever is and I think always ever be. Much as people want me to dissect it and explain it, I can鈥檛. One, I don鈥檛 know, and two, I don鈥檛 want to know, and three, I feel like I鈥檒l hex myself if I know.鈥
Reubens' career was derailed when he was arrested for indecent exposure in an adult movie theater in Sarasota, Florida, the city where he grew up. He was handed a small fine but the damage was incalculable.
He became the frequent butt of late-night talk show jokes and the perception of Reubens immediately changed.
鈥淭he moment that I realized my name was going to be said in the same sentence as children and sex, that鈥檚 really intense," Reubens told NBC in 2004. "That鈥檚 something I knew from that very moment, whatever happens past that point, something鈥檚 out there in the air that is really bad.鈥
Reubens said he got plenty of offers to work, but told the AP that most of them wanted to take "advantage of the luridness of my situation"," and he didn't want to do them.
鈥淚t just changed,鈥 he said. "Everything changed.鈥
He did take advantage of one chance to poke fun at his tarnished image. Just weeks after his arrest, he would open the MTV Video Music Awards, walking on to the stage alone and saying, 鈥淗eard any good jokes lately?鈥 (Herman appearances on MTV had fueled Pee-wee鈥檚 popularity in the early 1980s.)
In 2001, Reubens was arrested and charged with misdemeanor possession of child pornography after police seized images from his computer and photography collection, but the allegation was reduced to an obscenity charge and he was given three years probation.
Born Paul Rubenfeld in Peekskill, New York, in 1952, the eldest of three kids, he grew up in Sarasota where his parents ran a lamp store and he put on comedy shows for neighbor kids.
After high school he sought to study acting. He spent a year at Boston University, and was then turned down by the Juilliard School and Carnegie-Mellon University. So he enrolled at the California Institute of the Arts. That would lead to appearances at local comedy clubs and theaters and joining the Groundlings.
鈥淧aul鈥檚 contributions to comedy and entertainment have left a lasting impact on the world, and he will be greatly missed by all in the Groundlings community,鈥 the group said in a statement.
After the 1991 arrest, he would spend the decade playing primarily non-Pee-wee characters, including roles in Burton鈥檚 1992 movie 鈥淏atman Returns,鈥 the 鈥淏uffy the Vampire Slayer鈥 film and a guest-star run on the TV series 鈥淢urphy Brown.鈥
He also appeared in the 1999 comedy film 鈥淢ystery Men" and Johnny Depp's 2001 drug-dealer drama 鈥淏low.鈥
Reubens 鈥 who never lost his boyish appearance even in his 60s, would slowly re-introduce Pee-wee, eventually doing a Broadway adaptation of 鈥淭he Pee-wee Herman Show鈥 in 2010, and the 2016 Netflix movie.
Reubens was beloved by his fellow comedians, and fans of Pee-wee spanned the culture.
鈥淗is surreal comedy and unrelenting kindness were a gift to us all,鈥 Conan O'Brien tweeted. 鈥淒amn, this hurts.鈥
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Associated Press Writer Alicia Rancilio and Film Writer Jake Coyle contributed to this report.
