Paul Reubens, beloved Pee-wee Herman actor, dies at 70

Paul Reubens, the actor and comedian beloved for his role as Pee-wee Herman, died Sunday following a private battle with cancer. He was 70.

"Please accept my apology for not going public with what I've been facing the last six years," Reubens said in a posthumous statement shared on his social media accounts. "I have always felt a huge amount of love and respect from my friends, fans, and supporters. I have loved you all so much and enjoyed making art for you."

Reubens added that any expressions of sympathy could be made in honor of his late parents Judy and Milton Rubenfeld, Stand Up to Cancer, or organizations involved in dementia and Alzheimer's care, support, and research.

"Last night we said farewell to Paul Reubens, an iconic American actor, comedian, writer and producer whose beloved character Pee-wee Herman delighted generations of children and adults with his positivity, whimsy and belief in the importance of kindness," a statement shared alongside Reubens' read. "Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit. A gifted and prolific talent, he will forever live in the comedy pantheon and in our hearts as a treasured friend and man of remarkable character and generosity of spirit."

Reubens began his career in the 1970s as a member of the Los Angeles live comedy troupe the Groundlings. He rose to prominence for his role as the childlike Pee-wee Herman, first introduced in his 1981 stage show The Pee-wee Herman Show. The success led to an HBO special, three feature films (1985's Pee-wee's Big Adventure, 1988's Big Top Pee-wee, and 2016's Pee-wee's Big Holiday), and a weekend-morning program that ran on CBS between 1986 and 1990.

Reubens starred in a number of other projects throughout his career, including the films Batman Returns, The Blues Brothers, Cheech and Chong's Next Movie, Blow, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Mystery Men. He also made appearances in TV shows 30 Rock, Pushing Daisies, Murphy Brown, Everybody Loves Raymond, and What We Do in the Shadows. Reubens' final credits included voiceover work in 2021's The Tom and Jerry Show and The Crown With a Shadow.

The star's career was briefly derailed after he was arrested in 1991 for indecent exposure at an adult theater in Sarasota, Fla. He pleaded no contest and was fined and sentenced to community service. In 2002, Reubens was charged with possession of materials depicting children under the age of 18 engaged in sexual conduct. The charges were dropped in 2004 after Reubens, a self-proclaimed collector of erotica, agreed to plead guilty to a lesser misdemeanor obscenity charge.

In conversation with NBC News in 2005, Reubens said, "One thing I want to make very, very clear, I don't want anyone for one second to think that I am titillated by images of children. It's not me. You can say lots of things about me. And you might. The public may think I'm weird. They may think I'm crazy or anything that anyone wants to think about me. That's all fine. As long as one of the things you're not thinking about me is that I'm a pedophile. Because that's not true."

Prior to his death, Reubens had been developing and pitching a Pee-wee black comedy movie titled The Pee-wee Herman Story. He also headlined a 2020 U.S. tour in celebration of the 35th anniversary of Pee-wee's Big Adventure, which included a screening of the flick followed by stories of the making of the film.

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