Pee-wee as Himself. The interviews ended when Reubens objected to some of the topics Wolf brought up. However, just before dying from cancer in July 2023, aged 70, Reubens reached out again.
He left Wolf a final voice message just the day before he died.In the documentary, Reubens talks freely about being gay: a fact he refused to discuss with the press while alive. In fact, he sometimes appeared in paparazzi photos with a female friend, actress Debi Mazar, to give the impression that he had a girlfriend.Subscribe to our newsletter for a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.Reuben says that before becoming famous, “I was as out as you could be, and then I went back in the closet.“My career would have absolutely suffered if I was openly gay, so I went to great lengths for many, many years to keep it a secret.”Reubens talks about dating a man named Guy in Los Angeles before fame came calling. Guy had vocal mannerisms, such as saying “Mmmm! Buttery!” in a Yoda-like way.
Reubens adapted the mannerisms when creating Pee-wee Herman.He and Guy later broke up. Years later, Reuben went to visit Guy in the hospital where he lay dying of AIDS.“To talk about seeing someone at death’s door, that’s what that was,” Reubens says. “He probably died a couple hours after that.”Reubens says AIDS “scared the heck out of me” when it first emerged in the 1980s.He also recalls an “incredible” letter his dad wrote to him after he came out.
It said, “Son, if you’re homosexual, I want you to know that I hope you can be the greatest homosexual you can be.”Ruebens’ career took off with his debut movie, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure in 1985. Made for $6 million, it grossed over $40 million. He was then offered the chance to host a kid’s TV show, Pee-wee’s Playhouse.
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Paul Reubens