WI: Pee Wee Herman doesnt get busted

What if Paul Reubens hadnt decided to go to that theater that fateful day in 1991? Would he still perform as Pee Wee (he has been doing a revival show in recent years)? More importantly, would he be able to shake the pee wee image? He was already going to be in Batman Returns as Penguin's father (though i dont know if his scenes were already shot prior to the scandal), but would he go on to other, more adult, roles (like playing a drug dealer in "Blow"), or would the Pee Wee image be an albatross around his neck?
 

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I'm going to go out on a limb and say he'd be president right now. President Pee Wee Herman. And the White House would look like his playhouse.
 
I don't think the character Pee Wee Herman could survive with or without the scandal. As a concept it was depending too much on the silly, gross kind of humor that was popular in the late 70's and early 80's but was already out of style by the time Pee Wee's playhouse was aired. He managed a kind of turnaround though with the Pee Wee Playhouse concentrating on more child-oriented themes with the kind of humor a 9-year old kid would like, but as the show depended on Pee Wee's silly kid imago it had its expiration date build in from the start as the actor Paul Rubens was obviously getting older and eventually would either have to recast himself as a father figure with a silly streak or hand over the character to a younger actor.

As for the fate of the actor Paul Rubens if he had ditched the Pee Wee character in - let's say 1985 and concentrated on other roles? Possibly, but the fact that by the time of his arrest, he was already out of work for a year and a half speaks for something. My oppinion: He could have made it as a comic actor with supporting roles in several movies, but he would never be someonelike Jim Carrey or Robin Wiliams.
 
I think Pee Wee's Playhouse would have eventually gotten cancelled due to the audience watching it simply growing up and changing their tastes. I think Paul Reuben's career wouldn't have taken such a hit and probably might have gone on to star in some comedy films, provided he hadn't been typecast by that point.
 
Possibly, but the fact that by the time of his arrest, he was already out of work for a year and a half speaks for something.
I did not know that.

I think there's a lot to the phenomenon of regression to the mean, and similar statistical phenomenon. Or, just looking at the baseline numbers.

An actor can have loads of talent but there are still luck factors and external factors.

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Am I remembering correctly than Paul was arrested for masturbating at a porn theater? and during a raid, was it?
 
I think Pee Wee's Playhouse would have eventually gotten cancelled due to the audience watching it simply growing up and changing their tastes. I think Paul Reuben's career wouldn't have taken such a hit and probably might have gone on to star in some comedy films, provided he hadn't been typecast by that point.


Actually Pee Wee's Playhouse was out of production (Due to a mutual agreement between Paul Reubens and CBS) since 1990 (The last original episode produced had aired on November 17, 1990 9 months before the arrest had occurred. If Paul Reubens was never busted at all Pee Wee's Playhouse would have likely continued in reruns until the Fall of 1991 anyway (And the Pee Wee Herman character would have likely been put behind anyway) and your opinion on Paul Reubens career would have been right on if that arrest had not occurred.
 
Paul Reubens was merely on sabbatical when the arrest occurred. CBS actually wanted another season. It is possible another season, maybe more, would have been produced. If the show wasn't a hit, they wouldn't have been showing reruns at all. CBS was hoping Paul would come back the next year.

ennobbe seems to have a different timeline for Pee Wee than actually occurred. Pee Wee had a big break in 1985 with the film Pee Wee's Big Adventure, and his Saturday morning show aired from 1986-1990. This is way past a "late 70's and early 80's but was already out of style". Pee Wee's Playhouse was a huge hit - and it wasn't just a kid's show. Many teens and older audience watched it too. It was a cult persona - something many others liked besides kids.

I do agree that Pee Wee as a character had a limited shelf life, but Paul Reuebens likely had a few more years out of it if he wanted. However, I think he was getting tired of the role and was looking to do something else. Whether he succeeded as a straight actor, or succeeded in another persona is something impossible to predict. However, coming out of 1990, Paul/Pee Wee had a very hot career. Everything would depend on the projects he picked. He did have one big supporter though - Tim Burton's directing career was about to take off. It's possible instead of using Johnny Depp exclusively, he might use Paul Reubens a lot as well.
 
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