Paul Reubens Threw Down the Most Hilarious Guest Turn in TV History as ‘30 Rock’s Prince Gerhardt

Paul Reubens, the genius behind the magical mayhem of all things Pee-wee Herman, passed away last night after a private battle with cancer. While Reubens was synonymous with Pee-wee, he was also a masterful comic actor who could steal a show right from under its iconic stars. Case in point: the late, great Reubens’s chaotic guest turn as “zee” Duke of Thuringia and Earl of the Duchy of Westphalia, Prince Gerhard Messerschmidt Ramstein Von Hap in 30 Rock Season 1 Episode 12 “Black Tie.” It’s an episode of the classic sitcom that introduces Jack’s (Alec Baldwin) “classy” ex Bianca (Isabella Rossellini) and sets Liz (Tina Fey) up as Jack’s fake date, but it’s Gerhardt who earns the biggest laughs as an inbred European prince who falls hard and fast for a scheming Jenna (Jane Krakowski).

Paul Reubens’s guest role on 30 Rock wasn’t just one of the all-time best one-time performances in the iconic show’s run, but I’d argue one of the all-time greatest guest turns in sitcom history.

In 30 Rock Season 1 Episode 12 “Black Tie,” Jack asks Liz to be his plus-one to a birthday party for a Hapsburg prince. Jenna learns about the party and finagles her way in, too, in the hopes that she can pull a Grace Kelly and marry her way into royalty. However Jenna’s fairy tale dreams are seemingly dashed when an attendant played with gusto by the great Will Forte introduces Prince Gerhardt. Instead of being a Prince Charming, he is a cartoon version of an inbred royal. He’s a tiny person confined to a chair laden with one tiny silver hand, legs that appear to be moving by a puppeteer, and an eyebrow that falls off. Rather than play Gerhardt as a monstrosity, however, Reubens plays him as a sweet eccentric with a love for life. From the moment Gerhardt expresses glee that he’s still awake at 7:45 PM, he’s absolutely adorable.

“That Gerhardt is incredible, isn’t he?” Jack tells Liz. “Most people in his situation would be angry with their family for the centuries of inbreeding, but not Gerhardt. He’s too busy trying to stave off infection.”

While Liz immediately finds herself embroiled in Jack and Bianca’s story, Jenna is stunned to learn that she has indeed caught the eye of Gerhardt. Always ambitious, Jenna sucks up her disgust and proceeds to charm the prince. When she asks him to dance, he demurs that he’d love to, but sadly his body doesn’t produce joint fluid. Instead, Jenna dances for him, setting off two brilliant bits of physical comedy from both Krakowski and Reubens. As Krakowski goes through a series of dance styles on command, Reubens lets Gerhardt’s marionette-like legs flail in Muppet-esque delight.

Gerhardt’s 25th birthday party ends in tragedy, however. Gerhardt declares his love for Jenna, opining that it’s “almost” something out of a fairy tale. “Jenna, I know we just met, but I think I love you. Do you love me?” He asks. She musters up a “Mmmhmm,” which delights the prince.

“Knowing that I have the love of a beautiful woman has set me free!” Gerhardt declares before grabbing a flute of champagne. “To freedom! To us.”

As soon as Gerhardt downs his glass of champagne, he bids Jenna goodbye and promptly dies. Apparently he was unable to metabolize the grapes and chose to die with the knowledge that he had found true love.

In all honesty, Reubens’s 30 Rock turn is probably my all-time favorite guest performance on a sitcom. What’s insane to me is that Reubens somehow wasn’t nominated for an Emmy for this performance. It’s a tightrope act of ludicrous satire and true pathos. His physical ailments are so extreme that they are silly while his gratitude for life, love and laughter underscores the obvious pain he must feel in every moment. I can’t think of a single other actor who could have attacked this insanity with the same kindness or creativity as Reubens. Whether it’s the way he embraced the prosthetics or chose the most outrageous line reads, Gerhardt is a magical character because Reubens made him so.

Rest with the angels, Prince Gerhardt, and rest in peace with him, Paul Reubens. Both Reubens and Gerhardt were too pure for this cruel world.