Ready for adventures with Pee-Wee?  By Indie-Ana Jones
At the Blue Starlite Drive In Sept 2&4!

So a kid loses his bike, big deal? Who cares, everyone loses something in their lives that they consider precious.  Not so fast it all depends on the kid, or should I say man and the bike.  No it’s not Lance Armstrong and his speedy tour de France winning bicycle, nor is it Evil Kenevil and his awesome stunt motorcycle, it’s not even Howard Wolowitz and his trusty vespa.  It’s Pee-wee Herman and his super awesome red retro bike.  Nothing is worse for a boy to lose his bike to the mean, rich kid, bully; but for someone like Pee-wee it is like losing his best friend!  So we are off on a quest of a lifetime to find and save his beloved bike.  But really what’s the big deal about this big adventure?

Well to begin with; this is the first time the general public got to see the wacky, zany mind of Paul Reubens before his TV series became a hit.  Having only appeared in small bit parts here and there on film and TV, (look up on youtube and watch Reubens as a contestant on the Gong Show and The Dating Game) Reubens had to come up with something extreme to get noticed in Hollywood.  Written together with good friend and SNL comedic star Phil Hartman, and Micheal Varhool, this story was the circus cannon that made his career skyrocket.  It has a premise all kids and adults could relate to.  Gathering together some famous and not so famous faces, Reubens still needed someone with a mind just as warped as his to direct this film.

In 1984, a young Tim Burton was just another wannabe director who didn't have much experience directing a full feature film until Pee-Wee.  He had only had a few productions of film shorts and a very bizarre TV movie for Disney that didn’t make the cut (look up Burton’s Hansel & Gretel and you’ll understand why).  So when a script came about that allowed him to play along with the crazy storyline, his film adventure began!  Betcha didn’t even realize Pee-Wee’s was a Burton production!  Well it’s obvious when you see Pee-Wee’s nightmares, or meet large Marge!

This was also the debut film of great musical collaborator to Burton, Danny Elfman.  Elfman and his brother were the front men for the 80’s band Oingo Boingo (Dead Man’s Party) but found his true voice as the composer for numerous films after Pee-Wee.  Interestingly enough Burton had been the artistic director for many Oingo Boingo music videos…which of course explains a lot.  What many don’t realize is that one beloved Burton character is voiced by none other than Elfman, namely Jack Skellington!  This Burton/Elfman collaboration will continue for decades after this first big feature film.

Though the story itself isn’t memorable, it’s what happens along the way that is unforgettable.  This film is irreverent, silly, ridiculous and just as haphazard as listening to an 8 year old’s retelling of a  day in his life after he is jacked up with Oreo’s and Mountain Dew and his sugar rushed stream of consciousness.  

After the bike disappears, Pee-Wee sets off alone to search for his kidnapped “friend”.  It takes him from a gypsy to bus rides, road side diners, creepy convicts, scary truck drivers, and even our own favorite Elvira as a tough no nonsense biker babe in the pinnacle scene that leads to the most epic dance moments ever to be on screen.   In the end the bike is found, the Alamo is remembered, justice is served and a generation remembers when phrases like “I know what you are, but what am I?” and "That's so funny I forgot to laugh." began popping up in childish adult conversation once again.

Almost 30 years later, I still recall first seeing this film with my little brother and listening to him imitate PeeWee for months after. So celebrate this cinematic masterpiece which was the springboard for many more adventures for Reubens, Burton and Elfman and come see it on the big screen at The Blue Starlite Drive In this week on Tues. and Thurs. Sept 2 &4 .