Those of you fuming over Cartoon Network’s decision to carry the teen sitcom Saved By the Bell can look forward to more live-action on the network’s late-night [adult swim] block. At least this time they chose something a bit more animated in the cult favorite children’s series Pee-wee’s Playhouse. The 22-time Emmy Award-winning show will join the [adult swim] lineup on July 10, and will air Monday through Thursday at 11 p.m. (ET/PT).
Pee-wee’s Playhouse debuted in CBS’ Saturday morning lineup in 1986. The show stars Paul Reubens as Pee-wee Herman, a child-like adult who lives in a magical house powered by imagination and visited by a wacky cast of human and puppet characters including the King of Cartoons, Cowboy Curtis, Miss Yvonne, Pteri the Pterodactyl and troublemaker Randy. Animated segments include vintage cartoons, stop-motion Penny shorts and the adventures of Spanish superhero El Hombre.
Reubens created the Pee-wee Herman while he was a member of the Los Angeles-based improv group The Groundlings, and spun it off into a successful live show that launched the television series and spawned two hit movies, 1985’s Pee-wee’s Big Adventure and 1988’s movie Big Top Pee-wee. Reubens has since appeared in various film and television roles, and has lent his voice to such animated films as Teacher’s Pet’The Movie and The Nightmare Before Christmas. He can next be seen in the upcoming feature Reno 911! Miami. Pee-wee who went on to bigger things include the late Phil Hartman, Laurence Fishburne, Natasha Lyonne and S. Epatha Merkerson.
Cartoon Network will air all 45 original half-hour episodes of Pee-wee’s Playhouse, as well as the rarely-seen Pee-wee’s Playhouse Christmas Special.
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