Paul Reubens Paul Reubens Paul Reubens (; né Rubenfeld; born August 27, 1952) is an American actor, writer, film producer, game show host, and comedian, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s and started his career as an improvisational comedian and stage actor. In 1982, Reubens put up a show about a character he had been developing for years. The show was called "The Pee-wee Herman Show" and it ran for five sold-out months with HBO producing a successful special about it. Pee-wee became an instant cult figure and for the
Paul Reubens next decade, Reubens would be completely committed to his character, doing all of his public appearances and interviews as Pee-wee. In 1985 "Pee-wee's Big Adventure", directed by the then-unknown Tim Burton, was a financial and critical success, and soon developed into a cult film. "Big Top Pee-wee", 1988's sequel, was less successful than its predecessor. Between 1986 and 1990, Reubens starred as Pee-wee in the CBS Saturday-morning children's program "Pee-wee's Playhouse". Thereafter, Reubens decided to take a sabbatical from Pee-wee. In July 1991, Reubens was arrested for indecent exposure in an adult theater in Sarasota, Florida. The arrest set off