Hollywood and entertainment hounds of all ages lost a truly magnetic artist this week in the form of Paul Reubens. The creator and star of the wacky comedy Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure and Pee-Wee’s Playhouse was a one-of-a-kind comedian and performer known for many roles even outside his hilarious man-child. And he wasn’t just celebrated for what he could bring to the stage and screen, but what he continued to deliver to fans once the cameras stopped rolling; or even when there weren’t any cameras around to begin with. Following his death at 70, a slew of fans, friends, and fawners have taken to social media to share heartwarming stories, and each one is a sharp reminder of just how unique the dude was.
Paul Reubens passed away after a bout with cancer that he'd kept almost entirely private, which spoke to the idea that many have shared that he was as selfless as a celeb could possibly be, and always seemed to be more interested in others' lives. Take this story from screenwriter Todd Spence, which alone could provke a renewed faith in humanity, if only everyone else in the world was also Reubens-esque. Spence intro'd the story by saying he used to work at Jimmy Kimmel Live!, where a good friend of his was in charge of keeping the green room prepped, and handling any guest requests as they came in. He continued on Twitter:
- @Todd_Spence: "So Paul shows up, nice as usual, extremely friendly to everyone, but hadn't met my friend before. Let's call him Jack. Jack is there if Paul needs anything at all, and Jack is a great guy anyway. Super nice and friendly, even to the mean guests. The two hit it off, just two nice people being around each other and I think Paul really appreciated Jack's kindness. Then something that usually doesn't happen, happened. Paul invited Jack to his house later in the week. So, Jack takes him up on it and goes to Paul Reubens house one afternoon. As Jack recounts the story to me, I'm on the edge of my seat. I'm wondering if anything bizarre happened obviously as this just normally doesn't happen. Jack continues: Paul greets him and invites him in. Paul shows Jack around him home, and the two eventually have sandwiches for lunch. And then. After a nice afternoon visit, Paul walks Jack to the door and Jack leaves. That's it. I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop, some strange detail to emerge... But no, that was the end of the story. The story of a kind man who honestly made friends wherever he went, happy to share a sandwich with a production assistant who made his life a little easier the night he went onto a talk show. Kindness when most can't even make eye contact. Maybe Paul was a lonely person looking for a friend to visit him, someone to host and spend time with, I don't know much about his personal life, but I do know that I've never heard a story quite like that one. I just thought to share and express how special Paul Reubens was.
Indeed, though one might expect such a story to end with something ostentatious — such as Reubens leading the friend on a country-wide trek to find a lost bike — it doesn't need to in order to still be a touching and meaningful tale. A nice conversation goes a long way, as the following two mini-anecdotes prove.
One of my closest friends was friends with Paul Reubens for over two decades, random meeting at barber shop in Sarasota FL amazing story.
@scoopmalinowski
From barbershops to weddings, it seems like Paul Reubens was always up for a conversation or two, and was equally willing to turn those convos into lasting friendships.
My Paul Story. I met him at a wedding, we talked a long while. He invited me over to watch the Emmy’s with him & his friend who was nominated. We ended up watching an episode of a new pilot his friend had produced. He sent me birthday & Christmas greeting every year since then.
@ianlamm
Another long and lovely story below from a father who used Pee-Wee Herman content to bond with his young daughter while going through a divorce, which then turned into a personal connection that meant the world, even though the actor sadly passed away before the daughter could meet him at an age where she'd actually appreciate it.
- @BeisbolCardBlog: In 2013, I was going through a nasty divorce and bitter custody battle. My ex-wife took our home, and I had to move into a motel temporarily. To make matters worse, she wouldn't let me see our daughter except once a weekend in exchange for "child support". During those weekends, I spent every waking minute taking my daughter all over Sarasota, never knowing when I'd be able to see her again. At nights, we'd binge on #PeeWeeHerman for months until she became the world's youngest Pee Wee fan. In 2014, with the divorce behind me and now having full custody of my daughter, I emailed Paul Reubens on Facebook of all things to thank him for making my childhood so much fun and for helping my daughter and I through hard times. Shockingly, he responded with an inspirational message and asked me for my phone number. Honestly, I was terrified, but I gave it to him. The next day, Paul called, and we talked for 10 minutes about the divorce, my job, my daughter, and of course, his amazing work. He asked me to save his number and to call him next month as he was going out of town for a few weeks. A month later, I gave him a call, and amazingly, Paul Reubens invited us to his mother's home in Sarasota. He met my daughter, who was only 3 and showed us props from his show and movies and even fed us juice and snacks by his private lake where my daughter chased ducks. We didn't want to overstay our welcome so we left within the hour but I will never forget the day my daughter and I got to hang out with the person who showed us just how fun even the most mundane activities could be with a little imagination. Thank you, Paul. ❤️🙏❤️
Even when it didn't lead to life-long friendships sparked from mundane moments, Paul Reubens still had a way of making his mark on others' lives, as it goes with the story below:
I got to meet #PaulReubens on the set of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Mentioned that I had friends who had worked on his live show more than a decade earlier. He remembered them, and told me hilarious backstage stories about them. A real mensch. Gone too soon.
@NYisBLUE
Those working with and for Reubens on his projects were no doubt privy to his personality and behavior as much as anyone, and animator Michael Davis' story seen below is seemingly proof that the performer didn't consider himself to be above anyone else.
I was a storyboard artist on PEE WEE’S PLAYHOUSE. My favorite story is this. We were visualizing an episode. We ordered lunch. My meal did not arrive. Paul gave me his lunch and skipped eating. No star attitude. He was all about creating cool work.
@mpdavis007
Obviously there were a ton of celebrities paying their respects to Paul Reubens and his many roles, and even though those anecdotes aren't quite the same as casual tales from random public, I think it's worth sharing this message from Baywatch vet David Hasselhoff, who was roommates with the Pee-Wee actor in college.
Paul Reubens was a great, great friend. He gave me the muppets for my birthday and never forgot anyone’s birthday from our class. He was in my class at CalArts and room mates! He was always kind to me and to everyone. He will be missed. #paulreubens #peeweeherman
@DavidHasselhoff
Getting a Muppets-related gift from Paul Reubens would be almost too much. One can only hope that somewhere out there in the ethers, Reubens and Jim Henson are hanging out and being amazing.
Finally, here's a story from Gotham's Solomon Grundy actor Drew Powell that is kind of more about David Bowie than Paul Reubens, but still brings it all back around to the Pee-Wee star in the end.
- @thedrewpowell: One other #PaulReubens story which involves one of my favorite pics of all time(a thread). The amount of famous people that came to see the @peeweeherman show on Broadway was staggering. Everyone from #Prince to a young early @TheDailyShow @iamjohnoliver. Hell, one night #LouReed and @SalmanRushdie came together! Paul will always receive them in a special room and the rest of us cats would casually walk by and pick our heads in to see who was in there. One night @DavidBowieReal and #Iman were there with their kids. Of course I had to work my way in there. My wife who had just flown back to LA because she was heavily pregnant is a huge Billy fan, and I knew I needed to get a shot for her sake if nothing else! So I quickly made a sign, and as he was leaving, I asked David for a quick picture. Everyone else was too afraid to ask but I was like “my wife’s pregnant…help a brother out!” he obliged, although, as you can see in the picture maybe begrudgingly. Paul’s assistant at the time, Scott, snapped a picture and send it to me later that night. With the subject: “Look who photo bombed you!” 😂 And there it was…me, in a goofy hat with my goofy sign, David freakin Bowie, and #peeweeherman over his shoulder… A moment I won’t forget. #RIP to both icons….
The most recent widely released Pee-Wee content available is the Netflix feature Pee-Wee's Big Holiday, so here's hoping that gets even more eyeballs than before now that everyone is mourning the comedian's passing. And when watching, keep in mind that the director talked to CinemaBlend at the time about how aware Reubens was of just how different his Pee-Wee behavior needed to be when going from the stage to TV to film.
R.I.P. to one of the nicest, most dapper gents in Hollywood and beyond.
