More than a year after Paul Reubens‘ death, thousands of the actor’s loyal fans gathered at his final resting place to celebrate his most beloved character.
Cinespia concluded its Summer 2024 season on Saturday at Hollywood Forever Cemetery with a special tribute screening of Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985), featuring surprise appearances from Reubens’ co-stars Diane Salinger and E.G. Daily, as well as the movie’s composer Danny Elfman and producer Richard Gilbert Abramson (who was also Reubens’ manager).
Fred Armisen kicked off the screening by introducing Tony Hawk, who recalled his friendship with Reubens after meeting at an event about 10 years ago. “He and I kept in touch, and he was the sweetest,” recalled Hawk. “I was honored to be the recipients of one of his ‘birthday bomb texts,’ where — you might have heard about it — it’s your birthday and you get texts nonstop all day, just memes from Paul Reubens. It’s crazy.
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“And then last year, my birthday text was much different. It was just him, selfie style, talking in a really heartfelt birthday message … how much he likes me and how much he loves me. It felt heavy. We didn’t know his predicament at all. I showed my wife, and she said, ‘I think he might be hitting on you,’ which would have been awesome too. But I found out that he did that for many people in his circle because he knew that his health was failing. And it’s such a gift to us.
“What he provided, what he’s done with his art is such a gift to all of us, to remind us to keep our childhood wonderment, our fascination, even if we’ve been jaded by our challenges through our adult lives, just to keep that fire going and keep that energy and make others happy. And that’s what he did, and that’s why we’re here,” said Hawk.
Salinger, who starred in Pee-wee’s Big Adventure as waitress Simone, noted that it was her third time attending one of the Cinespia fan screenings, “the first time without Paul.” With a vintage Pee-wee doll in hand, she called for 10 seconds of silence in memory of Reubens.
“Truman Capote had his Swans, but E.G. and I are your Swans,” Salinger recalled telling Reubens.
Daily, who played Pee-wee’s love interest Dottie, “I feel really bless to have gotten to be the Dottie to his Pee-wee, and it was really a magical film to get to be a part of,” she said, adding: “Once you’re in the little Paul world, he’s your friend forever. He was my friend, and I feel really blessed I got to know him and work with him and be in this amazing movie that keeps rocking people’s worlds, like it is right here. Everybody keeps showing up.”
Elfman said Reubens “changed my life,” noting that he was playing with the band Oingo Boingo while Reubens was coming up in the Groundlings. It was the actor who recommended him to director Tim Burton to compose the film’s score, something he never fathomed before that opportunity.
“So obviously, my life changed with that project,” he said. “And I became friends with Paul, but I gave [director] Tim the credit for discovering me. It was not until years later, knowing Paul, that finally I learned it was Paul that suggested me. He had seen this movie Forbidden Zone that I’d done for my brother [Richard Elfman], and Paul wrote my name down and said, ‘If I ever do a movie, I’m gonna call this guy.’ And five, six, seven years later, amazingly he hadn’t lost the piece of paper.”
The tributes also included Pee-wee’s Playhouse composer and Devo singer Mark Mothersbaugh, who said he and Elfman “kinda got our start in scoring through Paul. It was kind of amazing, he chose us both.”
“When I went to his memorial last year, I was kinda hoping it was a hoax. It just seemed like it possibly could have been because he was just that kind of a guy,” said Mothersbaugh. “But what really made me know it wasn’t a hoax was this year on my birthday, it was the first year in about 40 years that I didn’t get a birthday present. He was that kind of a guy that even if we didn’t see each other for long periods of time, he remembered your birthday and sent you things. He was just always a good man. And I’m just happy we can be here to celebrate him.”
Reubens died at age 70 on July 30, 2023, following a private years-long struggle with acute myelogenous leukemia.
“Please accept my apology for not going public with what I’ve been facing the last six years,” he said in a pre-prepared statement at the time. “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.”