‘Pee-wee as Himself’: How Paul Reubens Created (and Disappeared Into) Pee-wee Herman

If you’ve only known Paul Reubens in the context of his affable, excitable character Pee-wee Herman, get ready to see new facets of the late actor in HBO’s Pee-wee as Himself. The two-part documentary — both halves of which air on HBO on Friday, May 23, starting at 8pm ET — shows how Reubens and Herman were, for many years, inextricable. And that was largely by Reubens’ design.

In a trailer for the doc, Reubens says he wanted to be a performance artist, and “out of nowhere, Pee-wee Herman popped out.”