Pee-Wee’s Playhouse: the pinnacle of children’s live action programming

As summer turns to fall and the kids go back to school I’m thinking about the great things we did the past three months.  During our summer vacation we spent some time with the family and a handful of 7-13 year olds.  Because not every day was sunny, they had to watch television and it was at this time that I was reminded of how superior Pee-Wee’s Playhouse was to every children’s live action show ever made.

I use the words “children’s live action show” loosely because when I saw Pee-Wee’s Playhouse I was in college.  The show ran from 1986-1990 on CBS and we saw almost every episode.  I was far from a child, but the fact that it could be enjoyed by children and adults is what was so brilliant about Pee-Wee’s Playhouse.

Pee-Wee’s Playhouse was like The Muppets in that respect.  It had two levels of humor that existed in the same show.  The kids thought that you were laughing at what they were (and sometimes you were), while other times you were laughing at something much deeper.

The cast of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse is something that could never be repeated and is the stuff of legend.  You know that it starred Phil Hartman, S, Epatha Merkerson, Laurence Fishburne, Paul Reubens and others.     But did you know that Peter Lord and David Sproxton (who did the animation on the show) were the ones who founded Aardman Animations, which does Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the Sheep?

There was so much creative genius in Pee-Wee’s Playhouse that one wonders how some network suit didn’t manage to screw it up for four years.

I first saw Pee-Wee Herman in the L.A. standup show that he did for HBO.  That was a bit over my head as it was more for adults, but much like Pee-Wee’s Playhouse there was enough silliness to entertain a 15 year old.

Today’s audiences may not understand how much of a cultural icon Pee-Wee Herman was back in the late 80’s.  Consider that his classic Christmas episode pulled together the likes of Oprah, Joan Rivers, Little Richard, Grace Jones, Frankie Avalon, Cher, Whoopi and many others, including the regulars.   All of the music was done by Danny Elfman, whose signature earlier sound is evident in every scene.

It’s hard to believe that Pee-Wee’s Playhouse is just now coming to Blu-ray.  It’s all 45 episodes, the Christmas Special and 9 other special features including interviews with the puppeteers, fans, actors and more.

It was against my fabulous memories of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse that I saw the dreck that inhabits children’s live programming now.  The laugh track, stereotypes, poor writing, bright lighting and inane stories made me want to grab these children and show them what funny and family friendly funny can be.