Remembering Paul Reubens, Comedian Best Known as Pee-wee Herman

Paul Reubens, the 70-year-old actor, comedian, writer, and producer, died Sunday in Los Angeles. He was best known for creating and portraying the 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.

As Andrew Dalton wrote in the Times of Israel,

The character with his too-tight gray suit, white chunky loafers and red bow tie was best known for the film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” and the TV series “Pee-wee’s Playhouse.”

Herman created Pee-wee when he was part of the Los Angeles improv group, The Groundlings, in the late 1970s. The live “Pee-wee Herman Show” debuted at a Los Angeles theater in 1981 and was a success with both kids during matinees and adults at a midnight show. HBO would air the show as a special.

Reubens was born to Jewish parents, Judy and Milton Rubenfeld, in 1952. His father fought in World War II as a pilot for the Royal Air Force and the US Army, and later was one of the five founding pilots of the Israel Air Force during the Israeli War of Independence in 1948.

In 2006, Reubens appeared on the Conan O'Brien show, talked about his childhood tea parties and accepted a challenge to try to fit into his iconic Pee-wee tight fitting gray suit.

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