Let's Talk "Pee-wee's Playhouse"! - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Adamantium · 11-20-2004, 03:00 PM

First off, I wasn't sure where to place this thread. So if it's in the wrong place, I'm sorry. Anyways:

From what I know, Paul Rubens started the Pee-Wee character in an HBO special. It was just like "Pee-Wee's Playhouse" only an HBO version. It had Lynn Stewart as Miss Yvonne and Phil Hartman as Captain Carl. The special was a success and CBS began productions for the Saturday morning series. Other actors who came in the first season of thirteen episodes were; John Paragon as Jambi, Larry Fishburne as Cowboy Curtis, Shirley Stoler as Mrs. Steve, Johann Carlo as Dixie, Gilbert Lewis as The King of Cartoons (aka King Cartoon), Roland Rodriguez as Tito and S Epatha Merkerson as Reba the mail lady. Puppet characters included Conky 2000, Chairy, Randy, Globey, Pterri, Mr. Window, Cool Cat, Chicky Baby, Dirty Dog, Cowntess and Magic Screen.

The first season was shot in a warehouse in 1986. According to the E! True Hollywood Story, it was very hot and the actors were cranky. Paul Rubens and Phil Hartman, who both co-wrote the movie "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" got into a fight. The two, one time friends never spoke to one another again. Hartman, of course, died in 1998.

The second season saw the arrival of new characters. A lot of characters from season one were gone. Mrs. Steve, Dixie, Captain Carl and Tito were gone. William Marshall took over the role of The King of Cartoons in season two. Vic Trevino and Suzanne Kent joined the series as Ricardo and Mrs. Rene. Clockey and Floory also joined the playhouse in it's second year. The cast would remain the same until 1990. CBS and Paul Rubens agreed to end the show after forty-five episodes. The last episode aired in 1991. Shortly after, Paul Rubens was arrested for an incident in a movie theater. CBS immediately canceled the Summer reruns. Pee-Wee Herman was dead. The show returned to TV in reruns on FOX Family in the late nineties. It had a short run, however. 34 episodes were released on VHS. And as of November 16th, 2004 all forty-five episodes were released on DVD. In July of 2006, Cartoon Network added "Pee-wee's Playhouse" to it's Adult Swim lineup.

In 1988, a Christmas Special was made. It's also been released on both VHS and DVD.

Here's an episode guide:

1. "Ice Cream Soup" (1986)
2. "Luau for Two" (1986)
3. "Rainy Day" (1986)
4. "Now You See Me, Now You Don't" (1986)
5. "Just Another Day" (1986)
6. "Beauty Makeover" (1986)
7. "The Restaurant" (1986)
8. "Ants in Your Pants" (1986)
9. "Monster in the Playhouse" (1986)
10. "The Cowboy and the Countess" (1986)
11. "Stolen Apples" (1986)
12. "The Gang's All Here" (1986)
13. "Party!" (1986)
14. "Open House" (1987)
15. "Puppy in the Playhouse" (1987)
16. "Store" (1987)
17. "Pee-Wee Catches a Cold" (1987)
18. "Why Wasn't I Invited?" (1987)
19. "Tons of Fun" (1987)
20. "School" (1987)
21. "Spring" (1987)
22. "Playhouse in Outer Space" (1987)
23. "Pajama Party" (1987)
24. "Reba Eats and Pterri Runs" (1987)
25. "To Tell the Tooth" (1987)
-Pee-Wee's Playhouse Christmas Special (1988)
26. "Dr. Pee-Wee and the Del Rubios" (1989)
27. "Fire in the Playhouse" (1989)
28. "Love That Story" (1989)
29. "Sick, Did Somebody Say Sick?" (1989)
30. "Miss Yvonne's Visit" (1989)
31. "Rebarella" (1989)
32. "Heat Wave" (1989)
33. "Chairry-Tee Drive" (1989)
34. "Let's Play Office" (1989)
35. "I Remember Curtis" (1989)
36. "Conky's Breakdown" (1990)
37. "Mystery" (1990)
38. "Front Page Pee-Wee" (1990)
39. "Tango Time" (1990)
40. "Playhouse Day" (1990)
41. "Accidental Playhouse" (1990)
42. "Fun, Fun, Fun" (1990)
43. "Camping Out" (1990)
44. "Something to Do" (1990)
45. "Playhouse for Sale" (1990)

Adamantium · 11-20-2004, 03:21 PM

Phil Hartman (Captain Carl) was murdered by his wife in a murder-suicide on May 28th 1998.
Shirley Stoler (Mrs. Steve) died of heart failure on February 17th, 1999.
William Marshall (The King of Cartoons) died of complications from Alzheimer's disease on June 11th, 2003.

As far as I know, these are the only late cast members.

PZelda · 11-21-2004, 02:49 AM

Wasn't ABC Family, Fox Family before? Anyway...there you have it. I remember watching PWP when they reran it in the late 90's. That was the last time I saw PWP.

Adamantium · 11-21-2004, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PZelda
Wasn't ABC Family, Fox Family before?

That's right. Before it was ABC Family it was Fox Family. Before that, for many years it was "The Family Channel." Before that it was CBN (Christian Broadcasting Network). That's why Pat Robertson's "The 700 Club" airs still. He made a deal that with all the channel changes, that program must air.

vashti1999 · 11-22-2004, 03:10 PM

Theme song lyrics

Come on in, and pull yourself up a chair (like Chairy!)
Let the fun begin, it's time to let down your hair!
Pee-wee's sure excited,
'cause all his friends have been invited (that's you!)
To go wacky, at Pee-wee's Playhouse!

There's a crazy rhythm, comin' from Puppetland (what's that?)
Dirty Dog, Cool Cat, and Chicky Baby are the Puppet Band (yeah!)
He's got a couple of talkin' fish,
and a genie who'll grant a wish -
Golly, it's cuckoo at Pee-wee's Playhouse!

Globey's spinnin', Mr. Window's grinnin',
'cause Pterri's flyin' by (hello!)
The Flowers are singin', the Picture Phone is ringin',
and the Dinosaur family goes, "Hi!"
Mr. Kite's soarin', Conky's still a snorin',
there's the flashing Magic Screen,
The Cowntess is so classy, Randy's kinda sassy -
A nuttier establishment you've never seen!
Spend the day with Pee-wee and you'll see what we mean! (Come on!)

Get outta bed, there'll be no more nappin'! (Wake up!)
'Cause you've landed in a place where anything can happen
Now we've given you fair warnin'!
It's gonna be that kind of mornin'
For bein' wacky!
For getting nutty!
Golly, it's cuckoo!
At Pee-wee's Playhouse!

vashti1999 · 11-22-2004, 03:28 PM

Did anybody catch that sun tea disclaimer on the dvd? I had no clue that may be unsafe.

I'm enjoying the episodes I've watched so far on the dvd. I knew Tito wasn't on the show during the entire run, but I always thought he was in more episodes than he was. Seems like they got Ricardo to take Tito's place and Mrs. Renee took Mrs. Steve's place. And the kids Elvis, Cher and Opal, they cracked me up. It's been so long since I've seen the show, I didn't realize/remember that those characters were just in season one. I'll watch the entire five seasons to refresh my memory before deciding which season was my favorite.

Adamantium · 11-22-2004, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by vashti1999
Did anybody catch that sun tea disclaimer on the dvd? I had no clue that may be unsafe.

I'm enjoying the episodes I've watched so far on the dvd. I knew Tito wasn't on the show during the entire run, but I always thought he was in more episodes than he was. Seems like they got Ricardo to take Tito's place and Mrs. Renee took Mrs. Steve's place. And the kids Elvis, Cher and Opal, they cracked me up. It's been so long since I've seen the show, I didn't realize/remember that those characters were just in season one. I'll watch the entire five seasons to refresh my memory before deciding which season was my favorite.

I'm the opposite. I don't remember those characters at all. My sister was a fan of the show before I was. So I must have gotten into it during it's last season or so. Being a Phil Hartman fan, I wish Captain Carl had lasted longer. He was funny, escpecially in "The Restaurant" episode. I used to collect their action figures. I had:

Pee-Wee Herman
Miss Yvonne
Cowboy Curtis
The King of Cartoons
Ricardo
Pterri
Jambi
Cool Cat, Chicky Baby and Dirty Dog
Randy
Globey
Magic Screen

The only ones I didn't have were Reba (Which I recently bought on Ebay just for the heck of it), Chairry and the actual playhouse. I looked everywhere for it, but could never find it.

Out of all those action figures, the only one I still have is Pee-Wee. All the others (Sadly) broke over the years.

Dean Winchester · 11-23-2004, 04:18 PM

I had no idea until a few years ago that it was Cyndi Lauper singing the theme song. Must've been a favor to Paul because Pee-Wee also did a cameo on the song "911" off Cyndi's True Colors album that came out around the same time the series premiered (fall 1986)

vashti1999 · 11-23-2004, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by BuffySlayer79
I had no idea until a few years ago that it was Cyndi Lauper singing the theme song.

Just checked the end credits of a season two episode on the dvd. It says the theme song vocal is by Ellen Shaw. I don't if Cyndi Lauper ever did it, I hadn't heard about her doing it. I'll have to check other seasons to see if there was a change.

Dean Winchester · 11-23-2004, 04:54 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by vashti1999
Just checked the end credits of a season two episode on the dvd. It says the theme song vocal is by Ellen Shaw. I don't if Cyndi Lauper ever did it, I hadn't heard about her doing it. I'll have to check other seasons to see if there was a change.

I have an MP3 of Cyndi singing the theme song, and it sounded like how I remembered it from tv, so I thought it was her who sang it on tv as well

vashti1999 · 11-24-2004, 02:11 PM

Does anyone know if the Pajama Party episode aired intact during its original run? I was surprised hearing Cowboy Curtis say that he sleeps in the nude. Thought that was a bit more risque than usual. And where was he when Pee-Wee married the fruit salad? (yes, Pee-Wee got married to a bowl of fruit salad.) It was funny when everyone was saying goodnight to each other and Pee-Wee told them to shut-up.

I love this show.

Dean Winchester · 11-24-2004, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TVAdam
Here's an episode guide:

1. "Ice Cream Soup" (1986)
2. "Luau for Two" (1986)
3. "Rainy Day" (1986)
4. "Now You See Me, Now You Don't" (1986)
5. "Just Another Day" (1986)
6. "Beauty Makeover" (1986)
7. "The Restaurant" (1986)
8. "Ants in Your Pants" (1986)
9. "Monster in the Playhouse" (1986)
10. "The Cowboy and the Countess" (1986)
11. "Stolen Apples" (1986)
12. "The Gang's All Here" (1986)
13. "Party!" (1986)
14. "Open House" (1987)
15. "Puppy in the Playhouse" (1987)
16. "Store" (1987)
17. "Pee-Wee Catches a Cold" (1987)
18. "Why Wasn't I Invited?" (1987)
19. "Tons of Fun" (1987)
20. "School" (1987)
21. "Spring" (1987)
22. "Playhouse in Outer Space" (1987)
23. "Pajama Party" (1987)
24. "Reba Eats and Pterri Runs" (1987)
25. "To Tell the Tooth" (1987)
-Pee-Wee's Playhouse Christmas Special (1988)
26. "Dr. Pee-Wee and the Del Rubios" (1989)
27. "Fire in the Playhouse" (1989)
28. "Love That Story" (1989)
29. "Sick, Did Somebody Say Sick?" (1989)
30. "Miss Yvonne's Visit" (1989)
31. "Rebarella" (1989)
32. "Heat Wave" (1989)
33. "Chairry-Tee Drive" (1989)
34. "Let's Play Office" (1989)
35. "I Remember Curtis" (1989)
36. "Conky's Breakdown" (1990)
37. "Mystery" (1990)
38. "Front Page Pee-Wee" (1990)
39. "Tango Time" (1990)
40. "Playhouse Day" (1990)
41. "Accidental Playhouse" (1990)
42. "Fun, Fun, Fun" (1990)
43. "Camping Out" (1990)
44. "Something to Do" (1990)
45. "Playhouse for Sale" (1990)

so outside of the Xmas special, there wasn't any Pee-Wee in 1988?

Adamantium · 11-25-2004, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by BuffySlayer79
so outside of the Xmas special, there wasn't any Pee-Wee in 1988?

That's how it looked to me. I went through every episode, just watched the ending credits to see the year on each show.

In the commentary for the Christmas Special, Paul Rubens had said that they filmed the X-Mas show in November of 1988. Something about an actor's strike. So they didn't do that many shows that season.

I still can't tell where the seasons separate. I know that

1-13 is season 1
14-25 is season 2
26-whatever is season 3 (I know that because Paul Rubens said the Del Rubio episode was the third season premiere.)

vashti1999 · 11-26-2004, 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TVAdam
1-13 is season 1
14-25 is season 2
26-whatever is season 3 (I know that because Paul Rubens said the Del Rubio episode was the third season premiere.)

Watching this episode right now. It's obvious this ep is part of a new season since the opening credits are different, but it's weird that they'd split seasons between volumes. The second volume starts off with the last two eps of season 2.

And it's numbered disc 6 instead of disc 1, as if they expect you to buy both volumes and own the complete set (makes sense though).

Adamantium · 07-15-2006, 08:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adamantium

That's how it looked to me. I went through every episode, just watched the ending credits to see the year on each show.

In the commentary for the Christmas Special, Paul Rubens had said that they filmed the X-Mas show in November of 1988. Something about an actor's strike. So they didn't do that many shows that season.

I still can't tell where the seasons separate. I know that

1-13 is season 1
14-25 is season 2
26-whatever is season 3 (I know that because Paul Rubens said the Del Rubio episode was the third season premiere.)

Okay I now have the information on the different seasons. So turns out Volume 1 of the DVDs is the complete First and Second seasons. Volume 2 is really the complete Third, Fourth and Fifth seasons.

Season 1 - (13 episodes)
1. “Ice Cream Soup”
2. “Luau for Two”
3. “Rainy Day”
4. “Now You See Me, Now You Don’t”
5. “Just Another Day”
6. “Beauty Makeover”
7. “The Restaurant”
8. “Ants in Your Pants”
9. “Monster in the Playhouse”
10. “The Cowboy and the Cowntess”
11. “Stolen Apples”
12. “The Gang’s All Here”
13. “Party!”

Season 2 - (10 episodes)
14. “Open House”
15. “Puppy in the Playhouse”
16. “Store”
17. “Pee-wee Catches a Cold”
18. “Why Wasn’t I Invited?”
19. “Tons of Fun”
20. “School”
21. “Spring”
22. “Playhouse in Outer Space”
23. “Pajama Party”

Season 3 - (2 episodes & Christmas Special)
24. “Reba Eats and Pterri Runs”
25. “To Tell the Tooth”
“Pee-wee’s Playhouse Christmas Special”

Season 4 - (10 episodes)
26. “Dr. Pee-wee and the Del Rubios”
27. “Fire in the Playhouse”
28. “Love That Story”
29. “Sick, Did Someone Say Sick?”
30. “Miss Yvonne’s Visit”
31. “Rebarella”
32. “Heat Wave”
33. “Chairry-Tee Drive”
34. “Let’s Play Office”
35. “I Remember Curtis”

Season 5 - (10 episodes)
36. “Conky’s Breakdown”
37. “Mystery”
38. “Front Page Pee-wee”
39. “Tango Time”
40. “Playhouse Day”
41. “Accidental Playhouse”
42. “Fun, Fun, Fun”
43. “Camping Out”
44. “Something to Do”
45. “Playhouse for Sale”

I'm assuming they aired a lot of reruns during the seasons (especially season three) because ten episodes a season isn't that much.

11-20-2004, 03:00 PM	#1
Adamantium TVAdam No More Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 11, 2002 Location: Springfield, Ohio Posts: 7,840	Let's Talk "Pee-wee's Playhouse"! First off, I wasn't sure where to place this thread. So if it's in the wrong place, I'm sorry. Anyways: From what I know, Paul Rubens started the Pee-Wee character in an HBO special. It was just like "Pee-Wee's Playhouse" only an HBO version. It had Lynn Stewart as Miss Yvonne and Phil Hartman as Captain Carl. The special was a success and CBS began productions for the Saturday morning series. Other actors who came in the first season of thirteen episodes were; John Paragon as Jambi, Larry Fishburne as Cowboy Curtis, Shirley Stoler as Mrs. Steve, Johann Carlo as Dixie, Gilbert Lewis as The King of Cartoons (aka King Cartoon), Roland Rodriguez as Tito and S Epatha Merkerson as Reba the mail lady. Puppet characters included Conky 2000, Chairy, Randy, Globey, Pterri, Mr. Window, Cool Cat, Chicky Baby, Dirty Dog, Cowntess and Magic Screen. The first season was shot in a warehouse in 1986. According to the E! True Hollywood Story, it was very hot and the actors were cranky. Paul Rubens and Phil Hartman, who both co-wrote the movie "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" got into a fight. The two, one time friends never spoke to one another again. Hartman, of course, died in 1998. The second season saw the arrival of new characters. A lot of characters from season one were gone. Mrs. Steve, Dixie, Captain Carl and Tito were gone. William Marshall took over the role of The King of Cartoons in season two. Vic Trevino and Suzanne Kent joined the series as Ricardo and Mrs. Rene. Clockey and Floory also joined the playhouse in it's second year. The cast would remain the same until 1990. CBS and Paul Rubens agreed to end the show after forty-five episodes. The last episode aired in 1991. Shortly after, Paul Rubens was arrested for an incident in a movie theater. CBS immediately canceled the Summer reruns. Pee-Wee Herman was dead. The show returned to TV in reruns on FOX Family in the late nineties. It had a short run, however. 34 episodes were released on VHS. And as of November 16th, 2004 all forty-five episodes were released on DVD. In July of 2006, Cartoon Network added "Pee-wee's Playhouse" to it's Adult Swim lineup. In 1988, a Christmas Special was made. It's also been released on both VHS and DVD. Here's an episode guide: 1. "Ice Cream Soup" (1986) 2. "Luau for Two" (1986) 3. "Rainy Day" (1986) 4. "Now You See Me, Now You Don't" (1986) 5. "Just Another Day" (1986) 6. "Beauty Makeover" (1986) 7. "The Restaurant" (1986) 8. "Ants in Your Pants" (1986) 9. "Monster in the Playhouse" (1986) 10. "The Cowboy and the Countess" (1986) 11. "Stolen Apples" (1986) 12. "The Gang's All Here" (1986) 13. "Party!" (1986) 14. "Open House" (1987) 15. "Puppy in the Playhouse" (1987) 16. "Store" (1987) 17. "Pee-Wee Catches a Cold" (1987) 18. "Why Wasn't I Invited?" (1987) 19. "Tons of Fun" (1987) 20. "School" (1987) 21. "Spring" (1987) 22. "Playhouse in Outer Space" (1987) 23. "Pajama Party" (1987) 24. "Reba Eats and Pterri Runs" (1987) 25. "To Tell the Tooth" (1987) -Pee-Wee's Playhouse Christmas Special (1988) 26. "Dr. Pee-Wee and the Del Rubios" (1989) 27. "Fire in the Playhouse" (1989) 28. "Love That Story" (1989) 29. "Sick, Did Somebody Say Sick?" (1989) 30. "Miss Yvonne's Visit" (1989) 31. "Rebarella" (1989) 32. "Heat Wave" (1989) 33. "Chairry-Tee Drive" (1989) 34. "Let's Play Office" (1989) 35. "I Remember Curtis" (1989) 36. "Conky's Breakdown" (1990) 37. "Mystery" (1990) 38. "Front Page Pee-Wee" (1990) 39. "Tango Time" (1990) 40. "Playhouse Day" (1990) 41. "Accidental Playhouse" (1990) 42. "Fun, Fun, Fun" (1990) 43. "Camping Out" (1990) 44. "Something to Do" (1990) 45. "Playhouse for Sale" (1990)
	Last edited by Adamantium; 07-15-2006 at 08:36 PM.

11-21-2004, 02:49 AM	#3
PZelda Two Valeries! <3 Forum Addict Join Date: Jul 15, 2002 Location: I'm STILL missing NYC. :( Posts: 78,223	Wasn't ABC Family, Fox Family before? Anyway...there you have it. I remember watching PWP when they reran it in the late 90's. That was the last time I saw PWP.
	__________________ Cheers behind the couch!

11-22-2004, 03:10 PM	#5
vashti1999 NY METS - #1 Forum Star Join Date: Oct 14, 2003 Location: The world's greatest city - New York City Posts: 11,404	Theme song lyrics Come on in, and pull yourself up a chair (like Chairy!) Let the fun begin, it's time to let down your hair! Pee-wee's sure excited, 'cause all his friends have been invited (that's you!) To go wacky, at Pee-wee's Playhouse! There's a crazy rhythm, comin' from Puppetland (what's that?) Dirty Dog, Cool Cat, and Chicky Baby are the Puppet Band (yeah!) He's got a couple of talkin' fish, and a genie who'll grant a wish - Golly, it's cuckoo at Pee-wee's Playhouse! Globey's spinnin', Mr. Window's grinnin', 'cause Pterri's flyin' by (hello!) The Flowers are singin', the Picture Phone is ringin', and the Dinosaur family goes, "Hi!" Mr. Kite's soarin', Conky's still a snorin', there's the flashing Magic Screen, The Cowntess is so classy, Randy's kinda sassy - A nuttier establishment you've never seen! Spend the day with Pee-wee and you'll see what we mean! (Come on!) Get outta bed, there'll be no more nappin'! (Wake up!) 'Cause you've landed in a place where anything can happen Now we've given you fair warnin'! It's gonna be that kind of mornin' For bein' wacky! For getting nutty! Golly, it's cuckoo! At Pee-wee's Playhouse!
	__________________ .

11-20-2004, 03:21 PM	#2
Adamantium TVAdam No More Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 11, 2002 Location: Springfield, Ohio Posts: 7,840	Phil Hartman (Captain Carl) was murdered by his wife in a murder-suicide on May 28th 1998. Shirley Stoler (Mrs. Steve) died of heart failure on February 17th, 1999. William Marshall (The King of Cartoons) died of complications from Alzheimer's disease on June 11th, 2003. As far as I know, these are the only late cast members.

11-22-2004, 03:28 PM	#6
vashti1999 NY METS - #1 Forum Star Join Date: Oct 14, 2003 Location: The world's greatest city - New York City Posts: 11,404	Did anybody catch that sun tea disclaimer on the dvd? I had no clue that may be unsafe. I'm enjoying the episodes I've watched so far on the dvd. I knew Tito wasn't on the show during the entire run, but I always thought he was in more episodes than he was. Seems like they got Ricardo to take Tito's place and Mrs. Renee took Mrs. Steve's place. And the kids Elvis, Cher and Opal, they cracked me up. It's been so long since I've seen the show, I didn't realize/remember that those characters were just in season one. I'll watch the entire five seasons to refresh my memory before deciding which season was my favorite.

11-23-2004, 04:18 PM	#8
Dean Winchester Member Forum Star Join Date: Sep 28, 2003 Location: Louisville KY Posts: 14,803	I had no idea until a few years ago that it was Cyndi Lauper singing the theme song. Must've been a favor to Paul because Pee-Wee also did a cameo on the song "911" off Cyndi's True Colors album that came out around the same time the series premiered (fall 1986)

11-24-2004, 02:11 PM	#11
vashti1999 NY METS - #1 Forum Star Join Date: Oct 14, 2003 Location: The world's greatest city - New York City Posts: 11,404	Does anyone know if the Pajama Party episode aired intact during its original run? I was surprised hearing Cowboy Curtis say that he sleeps in the nude. Thought that was a bit more risque than usual. And where was he when Pee-Wee married the fruit salad? (yes, Pee-Wee got married to a bowl of fruit salad.) It was funny when everyone was saying goodnight to each other and Pee-Wee told them to shut-up. I love this show.