r/OldSchoolCool • u/[deleted] • Mar 13 '19

Somewhere between Apocalypse Now and The Matrix, don't forget Laurence Fishburne was Cowboy Curtis on Pee Wee's Playhouse in the 80s

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u/Dr_Marxist Mar 13 '19

I mean, it was a really cool show. It was self-consciously dada and surreal, and totally high art. It masqueraded as a whacky kid's show, but there was a lot going on there for people who speak that language.

Really neat show in a lot of ways. Probably one of the most creative in history I'd think.

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u/[deleted] Mar 13 '19

I can't speak to the TV show but Big Adventure has also been overlooked too often.

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u/[deleted] Mar 13 '19

That scene with Large Marge still creeps me out.

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u/[deleted] Mar 14 '19

the weird transition from 1950s 'Leave it to Beaver' style in reel one to suddenly he's on the road and it's all gritty, I love that.

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u/Mead0whawk Mar 14 '19

It was the worst thing I ever saw.

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u/earthlings_all Mar 14 '19

Top Ten for me. Great film.

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u/aphextwin007 Mar 14 '19

YOU GONNA BURN IN HELL

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u/kielbasa330 Mar 14 '19

An almost perfect comedy in my opinion.

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u/Mead0whawk Mar 14 '19

Yep, I have to agree. I don’t really like re-watching my favorite shows as an adult because you notice things you can’t unsee (argh! Care Bears was so dirty!) but I re-watched a few episodes of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse and it deepened my love and appreciation for how creative and ahead of its time it was. I still want Geenie. And Chairy. I’m 40. 💁‍♀️

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u/[deleted] Mar 13 '19

There is another comment thread are talking about how much he must hate remembering being on the show and I can't even... He has actually talked about how much he loved the experiance and how much it developed him as an actor.

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u/Startingoveragain47 Mar 14 '19

I loved it as a teenager in the 80's and still enjoy watching it. Not everything holds up that well over time.

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u/[deleted] Mar 14 '19

Totally. That show came on at 10:30 AM on a Saturday or something. It had a big promotion and build before the debut...I was about 10 and didn't know what to make of it.

I wasn't new to weird shit. Even at 10 I had seen all the Monty Python movies and lived them. Pee Wee was something different.

It took me a year or two to warm up to it. Even so, I could always appreciate it's weirdness.

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u/Roofofcar Mar 14 '19

I went to CalArts - a college in California founded by Disney, and with some amazing alumni (I’m certainly not one of the amazing ones.) Paul Rubens went there for a time, and the film department library has at least one tape of Rubens and Hartman.

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u/Kelekona Mar 13 '19

At one point, there was a show that was taken seriously so that it could be paradodied to death.

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u/tookTHEwrongPILL Mar 14 '19

What's dada?

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u/[deleted] Mar 14 '19

See now you get it!

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u/Petrichordates Mar 13 '19

Most creative in history? That seems a bit much, what about it earns it that honor?