Paul Reubens has almost disappeared over the years into the Pee Wee Herman legend, but he’s made an astounding comeback throughout the evolution of his career. A lot of people these days know him for only a couple of reasons, one that he was and still is Pee Wee Herman, and the other, that he was arrested after performing a lewd act in a theater. That’s not the greatest legacy that one would think could be possible for a man that created one of the most popular shows for children back in the day, but at the very least he’s made an effort to clear his name and become once again the actor that people knew him as so long ago.
In fact you could say, with all honesty, that Reubens has really stepped up his game in the last couple of decades, especially when it comes to keeping his name clean and making sure that there are no more trumped up charges that can sully the kind of work he’s done for so long. Some might think that he still has a creepy look to him that doesn’t scream “let me entertain your child” but in all truthfulness when the lot of us were growing up Pee Wee Herman was one of the funniest of the bunch that was on TV and in movies and managed to entertain a lot of us in ways that go beyond mere laughter and fun. He was somewhat educational and did have some moral values in his show, and even the movies managed to put a few good lessons in there as well.
But if you really want to see the evolution of Paul Reubens then just take a look below.
The Blues Brothers
He didn’t have a huge part in this movie and it was there and gone before you knew it. But anyone going back to watch this film again would surely recognize him without a doubt. He plays a rather stuffy waiter that has only one line, but it’s still enough that he’s there since this movie is an absolute classic. Bit parts like these were what helped him to keep advancing in his career so that he could eventually land something much bigger.
Pee Wee’s Big Adventure
This was his shining moment, his time in the sun and the spotlight that he’d needed since coming onto the scene. A lot of folks thought that this film was just plain silly and not at all realistic in its delivery, but that was the point. Despite a few adult elements laced throughout the movie the film was meant for kids, and it was as ridiculous as it could be for the kids. Growing up with Pee Wee Herman meant you got the chance to be silly, out of control occasionally, and could enjoy every moment of it. So yes looking at it now as an adult you can easily see how strange and over the top this is, but to kids back in the day this was comedy gold.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
So this movie wasn’t that great, it still managed to produce a show that people flocked to en masse and even stated was better than the movie. There’s still a debate over that among the fans, but Paul’s role in this film was something that was kind of comical and in a way offset the serious tone that it was supposed to take. You can’t deny that he’s got a certain kind of comedic charm to him that constantly borders on the serious and funny lines.
WWE
At one point the WWE thought it would be a great idea to have a continual change in the lineup when it came to who would be the GM for the night. There were so many guest stars on the show that it seemed as though it would never end. But on one night in particular Pee Wee Herman was allowed to make his presence felt, and of course someone like The Miz had to impose his will and make it known that he was the star and blah, blah, blah. The best part was when Pee Wee brought the Big Show out and lo and behold the Miz had to take on the Big Show immediately following the announcement made by the anonymous RAW GM. Now that was priceless.
Gotham
This is where his evolution has taken him, and it’s not the worst location he could have ended up in to be honest. As a part of the show he was the father of Oswald Cobblepot, aka the Penguin. It’s too bad though that he was killed off eventually, he was given a good part to play. Reubens has certainly come a long way from his beginnings and has shown that he can endure.
If nothing else, Pee Wee should be remembered for a long, long time.
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