Pee-wee's Playhouse

Pee-wee's Playhouse
Title card.
Format	Children's television series, Comedy
Created by	Paul Reubens
Starring	Paul Reubens Laurence Fishburne Lynne Marie Stewart Phil Hartman S. Epatha Merkerson John Paragon
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English and Spanish
No. of seasons	5
No. of episodes	45 (List of episodes)
Production
Location(s)	New York City (later relocated to Los Angeles)
Running time	ca. 23 min. / 30 Min. with commercials
Production company(s)	Binder Entertainment Broadcast Arts Productions Grosso-Jacobson Productions Pee-wee Pictures BRB Productions
Broadcast
Original channel	CBS
Picture format	NTSC (480i)
Audio format	Mono
Original run	September 13, 1986 – November 10, 1990
Chronology
Related shows	The Pee-wee Herman Show
External links
Official website

Pee-wee's Playhouse is a children's television program starring Paul Reubens as the child-like Pee-wee Herman. The show was developed from Reubens' popular stage show and the one-off TV special The Pee-wee Herman Show, produced for HBO, which was similar in style but featured much more "adult" humor.

Show creation and format

The Pee-wee Herman character was developed by Reubens into a live stage show entitled The Pee-wee Herman Show in 1980. It featured many characters that would go on to appear in Playhouse, including Captain Carl, Jambi the Genie, Miss Yvonne, Pterri the Pterodactyl and Clocky. While enjoying continuous popularity with the show, Reubens teamed with young director Tim Burton in 1985 to make the comedy film Pee-wee's Big Adventure. It became one of the year's surprise hits, costing a relatively modest $6 million to make but taking in $45 million at the box office.

After seeing the success of Pee-wee's Big Adventure, the CBS network approached Reubens with an ill-received cartoon series proposal.^[1] In 1986, CBS agreed to sign Reubens to act, produce and direct his own live-action Saturday morning children's program, Pee-wee's Playhouse, with a budget of $325,000 per episode, (comparable to that of a half-hour prime-time sitcom)^[2] and full creative control (although CBS did request a few minor changes over the years).^[3]

Rubens assembled a supporting troupe that included ex Groundlings and cast members from The Pee-wee Herman Show, including Phil Hartman, John Paragon, Lynne Marie Stewart, Laurence Fishburne and S. Epatha Merkerson. Production began in New York City in the summer of 1986 in a converted loft on Broadway, which one of the show's writers, George McGrath, described as a "sweatshop". Reubens moved the production to Los Angeles for season two in 1987, resulting in a new set and a more relaxed work atmosphere^[4]

Playhouse was designed as an educational yet entertaining and artistic show for children, and its conception was greatly influenced by 1950s shows Reubens had watched as a child, like The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show, The Mickey Mouse Club, Captain Kangaroo and Howdy Doody. The show quickly acquired a dual audience of kids and grownups.^[5][6][7] Reubens, always trying to make of Pee-wee a positive role model, sought to make a significantly moral show that would teach children the ethics of reciprocity.^[7] 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.^[7]

Cowboy Curtis (Laurence Fishburne) and Pee-wee on the 1990 episode "Camping Out"

Playhouse's premise was that host Pee-wee Herman lived in a fantastic house (situated in Puppetland) known as the Playhouse, which was filled with pop art, vintage toys, gadgets, talking furniture and appliances (e.g Magic Screen and Chairy) and puppet characters such as Conky The Robot, Pterry the baby pterodactyl and Jambi the Genie (John Paragon), a disembodied genie's head who lives in a jewelled box. The Playhouse was also visited by a regular cast of human characters including Miss Yvonne (Lynne Marie Stewart), Reba The Mail Lady (S. Epatha Merkerson), Captain Carl (Phil Hartman), Cowboy Curtis (Laurence Fishburne) and a small group of children, The Playhouse Gang.

Although primarily a live-action show, each episode included segments featuring puppetry, video animation and prepared sequences using Chroma-key and stock footage (e.g. when Pee-wee jumps into the Magic Screen) as well as inserted clay animation sequences (some made by Peter Lord and Nick Park, creators of Wallace & Gromit) and excerpts from cartoons from the "Golden Age of American animation", usually presented by the character "The King of Cartoons".^[1] Each episode also featured specially written soundtrack music by noted rock/pop musicians such as Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo), Todd Rundgren and Mitchell Froom. The show's theme song was performed by Cyndi Lauper, although she is credited under the pseudonym "Ellen Shaw".

Each episode usually contained a running gag particular to that episode, and/or a specific event or dilemma that would send Pee-wee into an emotional frenzy. The show had many recurring gags, themes, and devices -- for example at the beginning of each episode, viewers were told the day's "secret word" (often issued by Conky the Robot) and were instructed to "scream real loud" every time a character on the show said the word.

CBS and Reubens mutually agreed to end the show in 1991 after 5 seasons and 45 episodes.^[8] In July 1991, Reubens was arrested for allegedly exposing himself in a Sarasota, Florida adult movie theater, causing CBS to immediately stop airing Playhouse re-runs.^[9]

The art of the playhouse

The creative design of the show was concocted by a slew of artists including Gary Panter (the art director), Craig Bartlett, Richard Goleszowski, Gregory Harrison, Ric Heitzman, Phil Trumbo, and Wayne White. The first day of production, right as Panter began reading the scripts to find out where everything would be situated, set workers hurriedly asked him, 'Where's the plans? All the carpenters are standing here ready to build everything.' Panter responded, "you just have to give us 15 minutes to design this thing!"^[10] When asked about the styles that went into the set design, Panter said, "This was like the hippie dream...It was a show made by artists...We put art history all over the show. It's really like...I think Mike Kelley said, and it's right, that it's kind of like the Googie style - it's like those LA types of coffee shops and stuff but kind of psychedelic, over-the-top."^[11] Several different artistic filmmaking styles and techniques were featured on the program including chroma key, stop-motion animation, and claymation designed by Aardman Animations).

Soundtracks

The music for the show was provided by a diverse set of musicians, including Mark Mothersbaugh, The Residents, Todd Rundgren, Danny Elfman (who provided the score for both of the Pee-wee movies), Mitchell Froom, Van Dyke Parks, George Clinton and Dweezil Zappa.

Mothersbaugh, who later went on to become a fixture in composing music for children's shows like Rugrats, joined the show on hiatus from recording with Devo^[12]:

The opening prelude theme is an interpretation of Les Baxter's "Quiet Village". The theme song, which originally followed the prelude, was performed by Cyndi Lauper (credited as Ellen Shaw).

Cast and crew

Many now-well-known TV and film actors appeared on the show, including Sandra Bernhard, Laurence Fishburne, Phil Hartman, Steve James, Natasha Lyonne, S. Epatha Merkerson, Jimmy Smits, and Lynne Stewart. Future heavy metal musician and filmmaker Rob Zombie was also a production assistant and future filmmaker John Singleton was also a security guard.

Human characters

Puppet and object characters

Cameos

Recurring gags, themes and devices

Characteristic of the show were its gags and other humor bits that occurred regularly. Some of them included:

• Secret Word: At the beginning of each show, viewers were told the day's "Secret Word" and were instructed to "scream real loud" every time a character on the show said the word, which was given to Pee-wee by Conky. Immediately after receiving the Secret Word, Pee-wee would try to demonstrate the usage of the word by usually trying to trick someone in the playhouse into saying it, usually followed by Pee-wee accidentally saying the word himself. The word was always used continuously throughout the episode, and Pee-wee always said it right before he got onto his scooter at the end of the show.

• Connect the Dots: Most episodes would involve Pee-wee leaping into Magic Screen, tossing a number of dots from his pocket, and playing a connect-the-dots game with them, accompanied by his singing "Connect the dots - laa la la laa" several times. (This is similar to the principal element of the 1950s TV show Winky Dink and You, where the viewer followed a moving dot with a crayon, drawing a shape on a vinyl sheet covering the screen.) He would then interact with the object the dots had formed in a cartoon environment, until some kind of disaster occurred, and then leaping out of the screen and landing safely on Chairry, who would usually proclaim, "Gotcha!". However, on at least one occasion, Pee-wee landed on the floor, and Chairry exclaimed "Safe!" and held her arms out like a baseball umpire.

• Role Playing: Pee-wee often claimed the Playhouse and everything in it to be his, and he often played the role of an authority figure to prove his point — exaggerating the role to an extreme scale (as a judge, a boss and a librarian, to name a few). During these games, he gave everyone else "inferior" positions in each game. The tables were eventually turned once and for all in the final episode, when Miss Yvonne said "How could you even think of selling the Playhouse without first consulting us?! It belongs to all of us! You just remember that, Pee-wee, it's all our Playhouse!"

• "Marry It" Joke: Pee-wee or another character would say that he or she loved something, to which someone else would reply, "Then why don't you marry me/him/her/it?". In the "Pajama Party" episode, Pee-wee finally did marry a bowl of fruit salad in a formal ceremony.

• Gifts: Every time Pee-wee was given a gift, he never gave someone time to explain what the gift was upon showing him the box or bag; he usually simply told the giver(s) to "fork it over".

• Snack Time: Most episodes had a recipe segment called "Snack Time," in which Pee-wee taught kids how to make a simple dish for themselves; although, in early episodes, Snack Time was a short segment involving one character teasing another character with food. The segment often began with Pee-wee opening the refrigerator and catching the food off-guard, dancing and having a good time in a claymation kind of animation, exposing the secret life of the fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator. The food items quickly settled down once they realized they had been caught. Snacks ranged from French toast to ice pops to something as simple as a banana or even a glass of water.

• Eating gag: When Pee-wee ate or tasted something, typically during Snack Time, he often exclaimed enjoyment by saying, "Mmm, (object)-y!". For example, he would say "Mmm, lemony!" when tasting something with a lemon flavor. This gag was later used on The Simpsons by Homer and by Johnny Bravo in the Cartoon Network cartoon of the same name. An example of the joke being used during other situations was an innuendo, where Pee-wee was describing the bust that Dirty Dog made for Miss Yvonne in the episode Playhouse in Outer Space; he said "Mmmm, busty!" and laughed.

• Foil and Rubber Band Balls: Occasionally during the first season, someone would give Pee-wee a piece of aluminum foil, at which point he would exclaim, "Let's see how big my foil ball is today!" The ball was rolled out, and Pee-wee attached the new piece in sheer delight. Pee-wee stopped using the foil ball in the second season, citing the fact that it became too big to keep in the playhouse. He donated it to the foil museum. It was replaced by a ball comprised almost entirely of rubber bands in the second season; the gag was continued by someone occasionally giving Pee-wee a rubber band (at which point he would exclaim "Wow! A rubber band for my rubber band ball!" before putting it on).

• Can I? Gag: When ever someone in the playhouse asked Pee-wee a question that started with "Can I...", he would respond with, "I don't know, can you?" Usually following this, the person would ask the question again with "May I..." in front.

• Beg Me, On occasion, when someone asked Pee-wee if they could do something, he normally said no, followed by him saying Beg me.

• Picturephone and Picturephone calls: A videophone called "Picturephone" was a prominent feature on the show, remaining virtually unchanged throughout the series, except for the phone's ringing and interior. A large photo booth-like area in the shape of a woman's head was the exterior. The lips served as saloon doors that could be opened and closed at will. Inside was a TV monitor, a tin can handset, several controls for the user to pull, press and twist, and lights to brighten the inside. Also, a pull-down drape was often seen; it parodied a lot of modern-day artwork, such as American Gothic. On some occasions, Pee-wee wore a silly hat that matched the drape's theme. The phone's "ringing" was accompanied by a flash of shapes and patterns on the monitor. The interior only had one seat, but three people could get inside it. The "conversations", which implied the existence of other "Picturephones", were actually pre-recorded video films of any character that Pee-wee "called". He would usually call "I'll get it! I'll get it!" and answer "Pee-wee's Playhouse. Pee-wee speaking." before the caller's image would appear on the monitor. The phone itself was always an empty tin can of Del Monte fruit cocktail and/or vegetables.

• Pen Pal Letters: When Reba arrived with mail for Pee-wee, it would usually be letters from his international pen pals. Pee-wee would then sit down on Chairry and read them. He started with the country or state (China, New York, Australia, etc.), followed by Globey pointing them out on his head. On one particular occasion, however, Pee-wee received no pen pal letters at all (because he didn't write any letters himself), which caused him to go into an infantile tantrum. One of the few complaints of the show was that the people portrayed in the pen pal letters were often very stereotypical of their native country or state.

• Magic Glasses: On numerous occasions, Pee-wee would put on a pair of magic glasses, which had attached to it a hat with a monkey's head and arms on it. The monkey would usually say, "Put me on!" before Pee-wee did so. The lenses of the glasses revealed numerous things in different points in time, including a distorted version of the Playhouse (seen in two episodes).

• Lip Synching: Many episodes involve Pee-wee or some other character singing a song. But they usually don't use their own voice; instead, they pantomime (or lip synch) to the song, thus making them sound like they had more than one type of voice.

One-time gags

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (August 2008)

Each episode usually contained a running gag particular to that episode, and/or a specific occasion that would send Pee-wee into an emotional frenzy. Some of these gags and moments included:

• In the episode "Luau For Two", Pee-wee put Scotch Tape on his face, similar to a scene in Pee-wee's Big Adventure and hid behind Chairry to scare an unsupecting Captain Carl.
• In the episode "Party!", the food in Pee-wee's freezer is found dancing to the song "Tequila" in a manner almost identical to a dance Pee-wee did to the song in Pee-wee's Big Adventure, even going so far as wearing the exact same platform shoes Pee-wee did in that scene.
• In the episode "Fire in the Playhouse", Pterri incorrectly said Jambi's name as "Zombie". Later, in "Front Page Pee-wee," Pterri said Jambi's name correctly. Interestingly, both Pterri and Jambi are played by the same actor (namely, John Paragon).
• In the episode "Stolen Apples", the flashing word on the screen and the bell sounds fizzled out when Pee-wee "screamed" in exasperation over not getting any pen pal letters, a clear indication of his infantile behavior.
• In the episode "The Gang's All Here", Pee-wee slowly got really annoyed at having the Playhouse Gang around, and ultimately asked the kids to leave for unacceptable behavior:

"I'd like to have a little informal chat with you, okay?" (everyone screams at the sound of the secret word; Pee-wee glares and everyone goes silent) "That's better. Now look, you guys know that I really like you, right? (kids nod silently) Good, and I'm sure you'll understand what I'm about to say. The Playhouse is a place where we can all play. But you guys are playing too loud, and too rough! You can't run around in the Playhouse, and scream, and jump on the furniture! Now you know that you're welcome to come over and play any time that you want... but, for now, I think that the best thing for each of you to do is to go home, and reflect... on what I just told you."

Once they left, however, Pee-wee proceeded to do everything he claimed they were wrong for doing (running around, jumping on furniture, etc.), and the gang then returned, as they had hidden behind Mr. Window and saw Pee-wee go against his own words.

• In "Sick? Did Someone Say Sick?", Randy the Bully changed the Secret Word rules, to where everyone had to bark like a dog instead of screaming when the word was said. This outraged Pee-wee.
• In the episode "Why Wasn't I Invited?", Pee-wee missed the secret word "ALL". After becoming frustrated that he hadn't been invited to Cowntess' birthday party, he threw a tantrum in which he exclaimed at the end, "It doesn't make any sense at all!". Neither Pee-wee nor the remaining friends at the Playhouse took notice.
• In "Love That Story", Pee-wee plays connect-the-dots with Magic Screen (but this time with magic beans instead of dots), and ends up at the top of a beanstalk. After jumping off to evade the giant on top, he lands on Chairry and claims he has whiplash. He threatens to sue Magic Screen, and they both laugh.
• In the episode "Pajama Party!", in which Pee-wee hosts a slumber party for all of the main cast, the secret word of the day is "watch". Miss Yvonne, who arrived at the playhouse not yet in her pajamas, claimed that she brought her sleeping clothes with her, and that she was going to change into them later on. Pee-wee then replies by saying "Mmmm. Can I watch?", causing everyone to scream. After this, Yvonne blushes and Pee-wee ends the conversation by saying "Just kidding!".
• In that same episode, Pee-wee exclaims "I love fruit salad!" Everyone replies with "Why don't you marry it?" Pee-wee then says "Maybe I will!" There is a huge wedding for Pee-wee & Fruit Salad.
• There have been at least three episodes in which Pee-wee objects to screaming at the secret word. First, in "Pee-wee Catches a Cold", he shouts at everyone to stop screaming and show him some "consideration" while he is in bed sick. Second, in "Love That Story", while they play "library", Pee-wee orders everyone to be silent when they scream at the word. They immediately close their mouths as the music cringes at his outburst. The third time was in the final episode, "Playhouse for Sale" when, after everyone screams at the word, Pee-wee looks at everyone like they're crazy and asks "What's all the screaming about?".

Critical praise

As soon as it first aired, Pee-wee's Playhouse fascinated media theorists and commentators, many of whom championed the show as a postmodernist hodgepodge of characters and situations which appeared to soar in the face of domineering racist and sexist presumptions.^[13][14] For example, Pee-wee's friends, both human and non, were of diverse cultural and racial origin. In its entire run, Pee-wee's Playhouse won 22 Emmys as well as other awards.^[15]

"I'm just trying to illustrate that it's okay to be different — not that it's good, not that it's bad, but that it's all right. I'm trying to tell kids to have a good time and to encourage them to be creative and to question things," Reubens told an interviewer in Rolling Stone.^[16]

Episode guide

Changes to the show

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (August 2008)

Several notable changes to the show's characters, cast, or set occurred over the years. At the start of season two, the show moved from its New York City warehouse studio to facilities at the Hollywood Center Studios, creating changes in personnel and a change to the set that allowed the show to take advantage of the additional space. In addition to the personnel changes mentioned in the character tables above, the following also happened:

• In the first season, Chairry was next to Mr. Window, with Dog Chair to the viewer's left of her; in subsequent seasons, Dog Chair was placed by the window.
• Before Clocky was put into the Playhouse, his space (in the wall behind Chairry) was occupied by a large smiley face with movable shelves where Pee-wee's toys resided.
• Globey's facial features completely changed, and his body changed from gold to black.
• Dixie, Tito, Mrs. Steve, the Salesman, Captain Carl, the original Playhouse Gang, and the original King of Cartoons were replaced or removed from the show entirely. Also, the Tito replacement was a Hispanic soccer star, Ricardo.
• The two fish changed in appearance.
• The flowers' voices changed from distorted and robotic to more normal-sounding female voices (falsetto, since 2 are played by males).
• During the first season, Conky's secret words were printed on regular strips of paper; in later seasons, they were printed on small white pieces of card stock.
• The fireplace had changed its appearance as well.
• The scooter eject ending scene was changed. During the 1986-1987 season, Pee-wee opened the door hiding his scooter by raising an iron on an ironing board. In subsequent seasons, Pee-wee pulled the arm on a small statue to reveal the scooter (which apparently was behind a different door as well.) Pee-wee also began wearing a helmet that looked like Roger, a one-eyed monster who visited the Playhouse. Additionally, whereas in the first season Pee-wee landed on the road upon departing the Playhouse, later seasons showed him flying past Mount Rushmore after leaving the house and before hitting the road.
• A Spanish-language cartoon that starred a Hispanic Rambo-esque hero named El Hombre ("the man") was added in later seasons, usually as a substitute for the Penny cartoons, though some episodes either had both cartoons or neither. The segment had no subtitles.
• There was also a real-life male dog (whose name is Roosevelt) in the playhouse after the episode, "Puppy In the Playhouse". He was added in later seasons.
• Magic Screen's border changed from white to pink.
• The frame around the ant farm is recolored from blue to orange.
• The scratch board on Conky's lower body changed in appearance a little.
• In the second season, a wooden log-type figure with bulgy eyes ("Floory") sat on the floor of the Playhouse.
• The right-side wall was, in the second season, covered by flashy yellow shards, and a big green monster with big eyes, and a rocketship filled with gumdrops. In every season after that, the rocketship was moved to the kitchen, and the monster was gone, and the shards were recolored into blue.
• Rather than his typical plaid suit, Pee-wee would wear different kinds of apparel more often by the second season, including pajamas and a baseball uniform.
• When Pee-Wee put the secret word away in the first season, he put it in his pants pocket; in subsequent seasons, he put it in his jacket pocket.
• By the second season, Pee-wee began wearing little to no lipstick or rouge. His hair also appeared slightly thicker (and may have been augmented with a hairpiece).
• In the first season, there was a plain blue backdrop outside the Playhouse windows. In all subsequent seasons, the backdrop was a slightly different shade of blue, and had a landscape and clouds painted on it.
• In the first season, Jambi wore blue-green make-up with red lipstick, and had painted-on eyebrows. In subsequent seasons, his make-up was greener, he wore blue eye shadow as well as blue lipstick, and his eyebrows were made of sequins. Also, the green glow around him wasn't as bright in subsequent seasons.

Golden Age cartoons

During the show's run, many cartoons were shown from the "Golden Age" of animation, usually courtesy of the King of Cartoons. However, they were not featured with their respective titles, nor credited, and generally only brief clips were shown. As Reubens stated in a 2004 radio interview, almost all of the cartoons they obtained were Public Domain.

* These episodes had more than one classic cartoon each

Later airings and home video releases

• On August 15, 1998, the show returned to television in reruns on Fox Family Channel, only to go off the air once again the following year.
• Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming block began airing the show Monday through Thursday on July 10, 2006. After the first week only the "Quiet Village" part of the opening was shown, leaving out the Cyndi Lauper vocal. "Quiet Village" was not part of the first week of broadcasts. The newer opening theme and prelude created for the 1990-91 season was left off. Adult Swim originally slated to end airings on the weekdays on October 19, 2006 and move the show to Sundays at 10 PM.^[17] In late December 2006, Adult Swim moved the show to Sunday nights, returning it to the schedule at 1:30 AM.
• Several episodes were initially released by Hi-Tops Video, the "children's imprint" of Media/Heron Communications, in 1988. They were then reissued on video by MGM/UA Home Entertainment in 1996, along with several episodes that were not released on video the first time. Finally, all 45 episodes were released on DVD by Image Entertainment in 2004. It should also be noted that the Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special was released during each of these three times.

DVD Releases

Image Entertainment has released all 45 episodes of Pee-wee's Playhouse on DVD as NTSC Region 0 discs..

References

External links

• Official site for Pee-wee's Playhouse
• Pee-wee's Playhouse at the Internet Movie Database
• Pee-wee's Playhouse at TV.com
• ProgressiveBoink.com: "The 25 Best Pee-wee's Playhouse Moments"
• Today's Secret Word of the Day
• Paul-Reubens.net
• Pee-wee Herman Audio Clips