Paul Reubens had a small part as a waiter in "The Blues Brothers". The character of "Pee-wee Herman" originated during a 1978 improvisation exercise with The Groundlings, where Reubens came up with the idea of a man who wanted to be a comic but was so inept at telling jokes that it was obvious to the audience that he would never make it. Fellow Groundling Phil Hartman would afterwards help Reubens develop the character while another Groundling, John Paragon, would help write the show. Despite having been compared to other famous characters, such as Hergé's Tintin and Collodi's Pinocchio, Reubens says that
Paul Reubens of responses to a Pee-wee telephone survey, in which callers supported Reubens by nine-to-one. Reubens, who for years would not give interviews or appear on talk shows, did make a subsequent public appearance as Pee-wee at the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards on September 5, where he asked the audience, "Heard any good jokes lately?" He received a standing ovation. Reubens then appeared as Pee-wee once in 1992, when he participated in a Grand Ole Opry tribute to Minnie Pearl. During the 1990s, Reubens kept a low profile, dedicating himself to writing and collecting a variety of things, "everything from