"Playhouse" was designed as an educational yet entertaining and artistic show for children and, despite being greatly influenced by 1950s shows Reubens watched as a child like "The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show", "The Mickey Mouse Club", "Captain Kangaroo" and "Howdy Doody", it quickly acquired a dual audience of kids and grownups. Reubens, always trying to make Pee-wee a positive role model, created a consciously moral show, one that would teach children the ethics of reciprocity. Reubens believed that children liked the "Playhouse" because it was fast-paced, colorful and "never talked them down"; while parents liked the "Playhouse" because it reminded them of the past.