Pee-wee Herman Star Paul Reubens Dead at 70

(*70*)

Paul Reubens, the actor finest recognized for portraying Pee-wee Herman, died on Sunday at the age of 70 after a non-public, yearslong battle with most cancers.

“Please accept my apology for not going public with what I’ve been facing the last six years,” Reubens shared in a posthumous Instagram publish on Monday. “I 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.”

Reubens moreover “asked that any expressions of sympathy be made in honor of his late parents, Judy and Milton Rubenfeld, to Stand Up to Cancer or organizations involved in dementia and Alzheimer’s care, support and research.”

In the caption for the publish, Reubens’ property added, “Last night we said farewell to Paul Reubens, an iconic American actor, comedian, writer and producer whose beloved character Pee-wee Herman delighted generations of children and adults with his positivity, whimsy and belief in the importance of kindness. Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit. A gifted and prolific talent, he will forever live in the comedy pantheon and in our hearts as a treasured friend and man of remarkable character and generosity of spirit.”

Born on Aug. 27, 1952, Reubens joined the Los Angeles-based improvisational and sketch comedy troupe the Groundlings within the ’70s. It was there that he developed his Pee-wee Herman character. The character made his stage debut in 1980’s The Pee-wee Herman Show, which loved a five-month sold-out run and spawned an HBO particular. The Tim Burton-directed Pee-wee’s Big Adventure adopted in 1985 and reworked Reubens’ character right into a family identify. A sequel, Big Top Pee-wee, arrived in 1988, and the CBS youngsters’s present Pee-wee’s Playhouse aired from 1986-90.

Reubens’ profession and public fame took a tumble in July 1991 when he was arrested in Sarasota, Florida, for masturbating whereas watching a pornographic movie at an grownup movie show. Several celebrities got here to his protection, at the same time as retailers like Toys-R-Us eliminated Pee-wee Herman toys from their cabinets. Reubens retreated from the general public eye for a lot of the last decade, though he did obtain an Emmy nomination for his recurring position in Murphy Brown from 1995-97.

The actor started taking over bigger roles once more within the late ’90s and early ’00s, showing within the 1999 superhero comedy Mystery Men and the 2001 crime drama Blow, which starred Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz. He appeared in numerous different initiatives all through the following twenty years, together with Reno 911!, 30 Rock, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Tron: Uprising, Mosaic and Legends of Tomorrow.

Reubens revived the Pee-wee Herman stage present in 2010, with the manufacturing opening on Broadway that November. Another TV film, The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway, got here out the next 12 months and earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Special. In 2016, Netflix launched Pee-wee’s Big Holiday, a standalone sequel to Big Top Pee-wee and the final movie to star Reubens as his most well-known character, to largely constructive opinions.

Through all of it, Reubens sought to unfold pleasure and positivity together with his charmingly off-kilter character. “Part of me thinks, ‘Wow, it’d be fun to make something super edgy.'” he advised Bust in 2016. “But that’s not me. Left to my own devices, I turn out stuff that’s positive, uplifting and a little corny. I mean, I’m a comedian — I’m trying to make everybody happy. So at the end of the day, if you don’t like corny, then I’m not your guy.”