Biography - Paul Reubens

Photo by Alan Light - from the Wiki article.

Okay. I admit it. I did not watch the convention coverage on Wednesday evening, August 27, 2008. Further I admit to not watching any of the convention coverage. Oh, I watched bits and pieces here and there but I neither saw nor heard anything that held my attention.

Instead, on Wednesday at least, I watched a bio program about Paul Reubens, somewhat better known as Pee-wee Herman.

I thought it was fitting in a way.

Pee-wee Herman was not a character I enjoyed back when the character was created in the mid 1980's.

Really I knew very little about Paul Reubens either except for the rather infamous episode of impropriety that ended the run of the Pee-wee Herman character. I knew rather little about that incident but I found out there was not much to know. At the time it seemed self-destructive to me and it does now as well.

I've noticed through the years that many people who gain notable fame and notoriety at some point do things that seem reckless and self-destructive. I don't really need to provide a list as most anyone can easily think of examples both from public persons and private friends.

I thought it was interesting that I was watching the episode on the actor's 56th birthday. Pretty good planning or a really nice coincidence I think. I suppose it was planning but then again one has to discount something because of the convention.

At any rate I found Reuben's biography to be extremely interesting and really gained an entirely new appreciation for his talent and creativity.

The program noted that there was a benefit of sorts to the event that killed the Pee-wee character. That was that Reuben's was able to go on and do other work and avoid the type casting that so many others have experienced after making distinctive characters come alive for us all.

And now, some 17 years after the incident, there may be a revival of the character.

Reubens was arrested again in 2002 on a child pornography charge which was later dropped. He claimed to be a collector of vintage erotica. I lean to believing Reubens actually.

I asked myself if it was possible that Reubens purposefully and deliberatley planned and executed the 1991 incident. It has a kind of "character role" feel to me. And Reubens does not seem self-destructive to me from what little I know. But then that little is very little indeed.

Reubens does remind me of Andy Kaufman in a way. There were things he did that were such elaborate jokes. Except I do think Kaufman was self-destructive.

At any rate I think Paul Reubens has a tremedous ability to create and portray characters.