June 10, 2025 • 20 mins
We're talking with comedian Dana Gould about hosting the Pee-wee’s Big Adventure 40th Anniversary celebration, Paul Reubens’ legacy, and the new documentary Pee-wee as Himself. Plus, KFi's Heather Brooker has updates on the Baldoni vs. Lively lawsuit—spoiler: it’s still messy.
Hear how Walter Goggins and Aimee Lou Wood finally buried the hatchet (with a hug... and a little Scorpio sass).
And if you're still scrambling for Father’s Day plans, we’ve got some suggestions on the quirkiest, coolest events happening all around SoCal.
Dads, drama, and Dana—this one's got it all. Don't forget to subscribe to the show and follow Heather on Instagram @theheatherbrooker or Tiktok @heatherbrooker.
Hear how Walter Goggins and Aimee Lou Wood finally buried the hatchet (with a hug... and a little Scorpio sass).
And if you're still scrambling for Father’s Day plans, we’ve got some suggestions on the quirkiest, coolest events happening all around SoCal.
Dads, drama, and Dana—this one's got it all. Don't forget to subscribe to the show and follow Heather on Instagram @theheatherbrooker or Tiktok @heatherbrooker.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to entertain Me. I'm Heather Brooker. This is a
show that covers entertainment stories from SoCal to the silver screen.
My guest today's comedian Dana Gould, who is going to
be talking to us about a very special fortieth anniversary
celebration for the movie Peewee's Big Adventure. We're going to
talk with him in just a minute, but first, let's
get in some of the big entertainment stories making headlines
(00:22):
this week. And I'm going to share with you some
fun things happening in SoCal that you might want to
add to your calendar. Let's talk about some big entertainment
stories making headlines this week. The Justin Baldoni lawsuit. The
defamation lawsuit was thrown out by a judge. Now, his
lawyers say they plan to keep their legal battle going
even after the judge dismissed the four hundred million dollar
(00:45):
defamation suit against Blake Lively and her husband. His lawyers
have said that Miss Lively in her team's predictable declaration
of victory is false, so they want to clarify what's
happening with this ruling here. Baldoni's lawyer, Brian Friedman said
in a statement that the court has dismissed the defamation
(01:06):
related claims, but the court has invited them to amend
four out of the seven claims against miss Lively. So
just based on this information, it seems like they're not
giving up. They're going to try again. They're going to
go back to the table, regroup and try again to
file this multi hundreds of million dollar defamation lawsuit against
(01:29):
Blake Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds. I know some
people have been very into this case. They were, you know,
when it all first started unfolding. My whole you know,
TikTok algorithm and Instagram feed was full of people who
were team Baldoni or some people's team Blake Lively, you know,
and it's it's been an interesting case to watch unfold.
(01:51):
I think some of the heat from it has kind
of died down a little bit, but it certainly is
going to be a lot of drama that will continue
to unfold. I will say, maybe over the next year,
maybe even two at least, So we'll keep a close
eye on that for you guys. Another pair of actors
who have been accused of having a feud is Walter
Goggins and Amy Lee Wood, who recently started on the
(02:11):
most recent season of White Lotus. But they're saying there
is no beef. They are not upset with each other
at all, and they recently sat down to talk to
Variety and sort of explain what people have assumed was
beef because Walter Goggins unfollowed Amy Lee Wood on Instagram
(02:31):
after their show wrapped, you know, and people are so
caught up with Instagram and social media that they just
assumed that they weren't friends anymore because he unfollowed her. Like,
whose job is it to find out who's following who
on social media and who's unfollowing them? And since when
did that become the indicator of what's happening in real life?
(02:52):
I don't know. So these two sat down for an
interview with Variety, and Goggins said Walter Goggins says, there
is is no feud. I adore I love this woman
madly and she is so important to me. He definitely
wanted to clear that up. He said at the end
of the show it was a very cathartic process for
(03:13):
him playing this character Rick on White Lotus, and that
he just felt like he needed to let everything go
from that season of the show and move on, and
didn't really think anything about it when he unfollowed her.
But during the process of the interview, I guess he
picked up his phone and immediately followed her back and
was like, see, it's all so ridiculous. It was just
(03:34):
a part of me saying goodbye to the character. And
so now Amy and I will be friends for bleeping ever.
So we love a good sense of humor whenever actors
can hopefully not take themselves too seriously. Okay, let's talk
about Father's Day. It's coming up this weekend. Do you
have plans with dad? Do you what do you like
(03:55):
to do? Do you go out to dinner, to a lunch?
Does dad grill? Do you grow four? Dad? Hit that
talkback button on the iHeartRadio app. I want to hear
from you. What are your Father's Day plans? Well, I
have a few suggestions for you. If you've got an
Irishman in your life, The Irish Fair is celebrating your
fiftieth anniversary this weekend in Torrance. You might want to
(04:15):
check that out. If your dad is all about the movies,
then check out Street Food Cinema. They are showing Friday
the thirteenth on Friday the thirteenth, So you know that's
gonna be extra spooky. I am not much of a
slasher film fan, but if you are, and if you're
into that, then hey, go for it. Also, a couple
of new movies opening this weekend. We're gonna break all
(04:37):
of those down on the Gary and Shannon Show coming
up this Friday for our weekly entertainment segment. And this
is really cool. Did you know that you can dine
with your dad at Sofi Stadium. Yeah, this weekend they're
doing a very special brunch starting at ten thirty on Sunday.
You can bring out your dad and the fam and
whoever else wants to join and basically enjoy a brunch
(04:59):
of behind the scenes tour of Sofi Stadium and the
locker rooms and the suites. Everything that sounds so cool.
That is such a good idea. Definitely check that out
on Sofi Stadium's website and take your dad to dine
at Sofi Stadium. There are so many other great things happening,
but one thing I want to highlight for you guys
is my interview with comedian Dana Gould where we talk
(05:22):
about the big fortieth anniversary celebration of Peewe's Big Adventure. Comedian, writer,
and actor Dana Gould is set to host the fortieth
anniversary reunion of Pee Wee's Big Adventure at the Alex
Theater at Glendale, California, on June fourteenth, and it is
(05:43):
going to be just an epic event full of lots
of nostalgia. The special event will feature a screening of
the nineteen eighty five Tim Burton classic, followed by a
Q and a session with some of the original cast
and crew members. And here to talk about this more
about it is Dana Gould.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
Hi, Da, Hi, how you doing today?
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Good good, Thanks for joining me. So this is you know,
Peewee's Big Adventure is a movie that means a lot
to a lot of people, But I want to talk
first of all, what does it mean to you? And
how did you get involved with this anniversary event.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
I first saw the film when it came out in
nineteen eighty five, and it knocked me four rows back
in the theater. I was already a stand up comedian,
I was just starting out. But what killed me was
it was such a completely realized world. It was as
(06:42):
if you wanted to be a filmmaker. So you went
out and saw Avatar. I was like, I don't even
know how to approach how you would do this. It
was beautiful in the way it was. That character in
that world was so fully realized and so fully created.
(07:05):
And to me, I mean, it has nothing to do
with what I did in terms of as a stand
up comedian or whatever, but it was something to aspire to,
just in terms of how completely fully realized it was.
And I always held it aloft as an aspirational thing.
(07:26):
And you know, not only did that give us Peewee Herman.
That was Tim Burton's first film, Danny Elfman's first film,
I mean entire you know genre came out of that movie.
And as I moved to Los Angeles and my career progressed,
(07:47):
I was very fortunate and that I got to know
Paul and that was absolutely one of those relationships that
was never ever ever lost on me. I was, you know,
was never like, oh Paul, No, it was it was
I was always very well aware of it.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
Just casually friends with Pee Wee her this.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Came up came around. I was just, uh, I was
somebody I think, I think because a new Paul my
name was in a list, but uh, I'm such a
fan more than anything else.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
So let's talk about I mean, given the incredible names
you just mentioned, and including Paul Rubins, you know, who
played Pee Wee Herman, and the lexicon that this has
been a part of for so long, how do you
think that this film influenced the landscape of not just
comedic films but films in general since then?
Speaker 2 (08:43):
What's funny? I was talking about this this morning with
a friend of mine. It was so of its time,
the original Peewee Show at the Roxy, which was in
nineteen eighty one, and you know, the set design and
the graphics that were by Gary Panter and then Wayne
(09:03):
White came in and worked on the morning show. In
the films it, you know, the whole eighties pop esthetic
was so hugely influential on all of pop culture, and
this was such a huge part of it. It was
one of those things, you know, not exaggerating to say,
(09:25):
like musically, the way the Sergeant Pepper art design influenced
the end of the sixties in the early seventies, it was.
It was that pervasive. And you know Bob kat Golfwaite
who said, like I got my career Warner Brothers because
Peewee's Big Adventure was a hit. They didn't know what
I was doing, but they knew that pee Wee's was
(09:48):
a big hit. And it's sort of defined a genre
of comedy. You know. That's sort of like I'm not,
you know, pee Wee Herman's is not. This is a character,
a hyper real character, but he created a universe in
which that character lived and it was, you know, a
(10:10):
fully realized genre.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
It also really opened a lot of doors for a
lot of people, not just the cast that was in
this show. But I feel like, like you said it,
sort of you know, it was Tim Burton's first film,
Danny Elfman like, it really opened the doors two different genres.
And I think people to be unique and different with
their comedy, and that's something I think a lot of
(10:35):
people forget about with that show for sure. Can you
give us a little bit of, you know, some insights
or anecdotes and your preparation for this Q and A.
It must feel like quite a big task to sit
down and come up with some questions spanning forty years
for this epic show in film.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
It is. It is, and I'm nervous because I don't
know any of the I know the Kyoto brothers. I
know Steven and Edward Kyoto who did the stop motion animation.
They did Large Marge, and they did the dinosaurs in
Peewee's Pewee's Nightmare. I've worked with them before. But E. G.
Daly who played Dottie is on the panel. Diane Salinger,
(11:19):
who played Simone is on the panel. Mark Holton, who
played Francis a legendary and underrated film villain, Francis Buxton.
I've never met any of these people, and I'm really
I want to give a dollar value to the audience
in terms of asking the right questions, but I don't
(11:39):
want to also fan boy out and make a fool
of mine.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
That's understandable. That's understandable. Well, I want to I want
to walk back just a little bit. And you mentioned
you had a personal relationship with Paul Rubens, who of
course played Peewee Harmon and created this iconic character. Can
you talk a little bit about your friendship with him,
if you're comfortable and share anything, any moments or anything
(12:06):
like that that you think people might be interested to
know more about if they come to this event.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
Well, Paul is one of those people that everyone who
knew him adored him. I met him originally we were
in a movie together, in a movie called Mystery Men,
and then later I knew him through My first wife
(12:35):
was an agent and she had worked with Paul, and
we got to know him socially. And then, in a
very strange turn, for a long time I lived in
Roddy McDowell's old house, and Paul was a very good
friend of Roddy McDowell. And Roddy McDowell's powder room is
(12:56):
in the Max Factor History Museum because it was the
walls were covered with letters and photos and it was
just sort of like you have to go in and
see the powder room. When Roddy passed, Paul arranged for
the powder room to be removed from the house and
sent to the Max Factor Hollywood History Museum. When I
bought the house, I had to call Paul to arrange
(13:17):
to let me go to the museum and photograph it
because I wanted to rebuild the powder room. So we
had all these wow, strange connections. I'll just tell you
one story very briefly. When they did the Peewe's Playhouse
Live at the Nokia Theater, in twenty ten, we took
our our two daughters to uh. We later had another one,
(13:40):
but she wasn't ongoing at the time at the time,
and they were, you know, they were twenty ten, so
they were seven and seven and six, and we take
them to the show, and then a week after the show,
and then we went backstage after the show, Paul arranged
for the puppeteer to remain in Cherry, so when my
(14:05):
daughters sat on the chair, Cherry would wrap her arms
around them, which to them it was, yeah, sure, it's Cherry.
What is she gonna do? Not hug me?
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
A week later, we have a benefit at our house.
Paul comes to the benefit. My daughters are walking downstairs
and my daughter sees Paul and she just goes, pee wee,
come upstairs. I want to show you in my room,
just like real casual, and then explaining not every kid
has pee wee. Herman come over to the house. I know,
but he was he was full of he was full
(14:36):
of life, and he was full of love and was
just an incredibly beautiful sort of force of nature.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
And now you know, he did pass away in twenty
twenty three, and recently there was a documentary that came
out called Pee Wee as himself. Have you seen that?
Do you have any thoughts on that documentary?
Speaker 2 (14:58):
I thought it was really really well done. I thought
it handled everything really wonderfully. And you know, when we
did the film Mystery Man together, it was in nineteen
ninety five, which was a year after his Florida adventure,
and he was clearly traumatized, and word got out we
(15:27):
were filming an Orange, California ad in a cul de
sac and word got out that he was there, and
every kid in a ten mile radius lined up in
this cul de sac to meet him. And I got
to watch him go outside, even in his wardrobe from
(15:48):
the film, and just meet these kids. And it was
just like this tsunami of love and affection and approval
and acceptance. It was really really beautiful and now very
lucky that I get to see it.
Speaker 1 (16:04):
And for people who are coming to the fortieth anniversary celebration,
what are you hoping that they walk away with at
you know from the evening's events.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
You know, well, two things. One, I'm glad they're coming
because it is a benefit, uh And fifty percent of
the proceeds are going to stand up to cancer, which
was Paul's charity of choice. And and this, you know,
one of the things about Pee wee Ah is it
is in a way timeless. That character never commented on
(16:40):
things that were of the time, and so it is
a beautiful two hour vacation from your reality at the moment,
and it's timeless in that regard and important in that regard.
You know, you can and stop thinking about things that
(17:02):
might be in the news all the time and just
go away to this place that is is beautifully, beautifully
ridiculous and silly.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
And I think you know, for me it, you know,
watching any clips of Peewee's Playhouse, reliving these films, you know,
reminds me of when I was younger. I'm an old
I'm an old lady, and I'm like, when I watched
the documentary, it just really took me back in time,
and the clips from the film, I just remember such
(17:39):
a special time in my life and my childhood. And
I have a feeling that a lot of the people
who are going to be coming to this will also
be transported back in time as well and have those
joyful feelings, you know, when they were younger.
Speaker 2 (17:52):
It's going to be the same feeling that you had
if you were lucky enough to see the live show
in twenty ten. I mean, that was so emotional and
and that's such a positive, beautiful way that the lights
came up on that playhouse and you were just transported.
Speaker 1 (18:08):
Everybody went crazy for that. Well, I have a feeling
that it's going to be a similar kind of feeling
and vibe for this show as well. And really quickly,
I want to know where can people come and see
you outside of this event. Do you have any shows
coming up or anything like that that that we can
talk about.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
Uh, yeah, Well I have a you know, I'm I'm
all over I'm all over Dana Gould on all platforms
and one of the things that I, uh, it took
me a long long time to do my version of Peewe,
but I have a I have a show on YouTube
called Hanging with Doctor Z that is that is as
(18:50):
my attempt to be as beautifully stupid ass as Peewee,
and you can always check that out.
Speaker 1 (18:56):
Well, we love that. Well, thank you so much Jana
for your time, and we want to remind everybody that
this event is happening at the Alex Theater in Glendale
on June fourteenth. That's presented by a Nostalgic Nebula and
you can get tickets online. So, Dana, thank you so
much for your time and I'm best of luck during
the show.
Speaker 2 (19:15):
Thank you so much. I really appreciate Youay.
Speaker 1 (19:20):
That sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun,
and I hope you all find something fun to do
this Father's Day weekend. I'm always here for you. If
you have any suggestions, feel free to reach out to
me anytime on social media at the Heatherbrooker on Instagram,
Heatherbrooker on TikTok, or you can always hit that talkback
button if you're listening on the iHeartRadio app and let
me know what kind of entertainment stories do you want
(19:41):
to hear if you have something fun coming up, any
new projects or entertainment stories that you think might be
fun to share on the show, and I will be
happy to take a look at that. And of course
later this week we'll have our weekend Box Office preview
on The Gary and Shannon Show, so you don't want
to miss that. Make sure you subscribe to inner tain
Me and listen anywhere anytime on the iHeartRadio app.
Welcome to entertain Me. I'm Heather Brooker. This is a
show that covers entertainment stories from SoCal to the silver screen.
My guest today's comedian Dana Gould, who is going to
be talking to us about a very special fortieth anniversary
celebration for the movie Peewee's Big Adventure. We're going to
talk with him in just a minute, but first, let's
get in some of the big entertainment stories making headlines
(00:22):
this week. And I'm going to share with you some
fun things happening in SoCal that you might want to
add to your calendar. Let's talk about some big entertainment
stories making headlines this week. The Justin Baldoni lawsuit. The
defamation lawsuit was thrown out by a judge. Now, his
lawyers say they plan to keep their legal battle going
even after the judge dismissed the four hundred million dollar
(00:45):
defamation suit against Blake Lively and her husband. His lawyers
have said that Miss Lively in her team's predictable declaration
of victory is false, so they want to clarify what's
happening with this ruling here. Baldoni's lawyer, Brian Friedman said
in a statement that the court has dismissed the defamation
(01:06):
related claims, but the court has invited them to amend
four out of the seven claims against miss Lively. So
just based on this information, it seems like they're not
giving up. They're going to try again. They're going to
go back to the table, regroup and try again to
file this multi hundreds of million dollar defamation lawsuit against
(01:29):
Blake Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds. I know some
people have been very into this case. They were, you know,
when it all first started unfolding. My whole you know,
TikTok algorithm and Instagram feed was full of people who
were team Baldoni or some people's team Blake Lively, you know,
and it's it's been an interesting case to watch unfold.
(01:51):
I think some of the heat from it has kind
of died down a little bit, but it certainly is
going to be a lot of drama that will continue
to unfold. I will say, maybe over the next year,
maybe even two at least, So we'll keep a close
eye on that for you guys. Another pair of actors
who have been accused of having a feud is Walter
Goggins and Amy Lee Wood, who recently started on the
(02:11):
most recent season of White Lotus. But they're saying there
is no beef. They are not upset with each other
at all, and they recently sat down to talk to
Variety and sort of explain what people have assumed was
beef because Walter Goggins unfollowed Amy Lee Wood on Instagram
(02:31):
after their show wrapped, you know, and people are so
caught up with Instagram and social media that they just
assumed that they weren't friends anymore because he unfollowed her. Like,
whose job is it to find out who's following who
on social media and who's unfollowing them? And since when
did that become the indicator of what's happening in real life?
(02:52):
I don't know. So these two sat down for an
interview with Variety, and Goggins said Walter Goggins says, there
is is no feud. I adore I love this woman
madly and she is so important to me. He definitely
wanted to clear that up. He said at the end
of the show it was a very cathartic process for
(03:13):
him playing this character Rick on White Lotus, and that
he just felt like he needed to let everything go
from that season of the show and move on, and
didn't really think anything about it when he unfollowed her.
But during the process of the interview, I guess he
picked up his phone and immediately followed her back and
was like, see, it's all so ridiculous. It was just
(03:34):
a part of me saying goodbye to the character. And
so now Amy and I will be friends for bleeping ever.
So we love a good sense of humor whenever actors
can hopefully not take themselves too seriously. Okay, let's talk
about Father's Day. It's coming up this weekend. Do you
have plans with dad? Do you what do you like
(03:55):
to do? Do you go out to dinner, to a lunch?
Does dad grill? Do you grow four? Dad? Hit that
talkback button on the iHeartRadio app. I want to hear
from you. What are your Father's Day plans? Well, I
have a few suggestions for you. If you've got an
Irishman in your life, The Irish Fair is celebrating your
fiftieth anniversary this weekend in Torrance. You might want to
(04:15):
check that out. If your dad is all about the movies,
then check out Street Food Cinema. They are showing Friday
the thirteenth on Friday the thirteenth, So you know that's
gonna be extra spooky. I am not much of a
slasher film fan, but if you are, and if you're
into that, then hey, go for it. Also, a couple
of new movies opening this weekend. We're gonna break all
(04:37):
of those down on the Gary and Shannon Show coming
up this Friday for our weekly entertainment segment. And this
is really cool. Did you know that you can dine
with your dad at Sofi Stadium. Yeah, this weekend they're
doing a very special brunch starting at ten thirty on Sunday.
You can bring out your dad and the fam and
whoever else wants to join and basically enjoy a brunch
(04:59):
of behind the scenes tour of Sofi Stadium and the
locker rooms and the suites. Everything that sounds so cool.
That is such a good idea. Definitely check that out
on Sofi Stadium's website and take your dad to dine
at Sofi Stadium. There are so many other great things happening,
but one thing I want to highlight for you guys
is my interview with comedian Dana Gould where we talk
(05:22):
about the big fortieth anniversary celebration of Peewe's Big Adventure. Comedian, writer,
and actor Dana Gould is set to host the fortieth
anniversary reunion of Pee Wee's Big Adventure at the Alex
Theater at Glendale, California, on June fourteenth, and it is
(05:43):
going to be just an epic event full of lots
of nostalgia. The special event will feature a screening of
the nineteen eighty five Tim Burton classic, followed by a
Q and a session with some of the original cast
and crew members. And here to talk about this more
about it is Dana Gould.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
Hi, Da, Hi, how you doing today?
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Good good, Thanks for joining me. So this is you know,
Peewee's Big Adventure is a movie that means a lot
to a lot of people, But I want to talk
first of all, what does it mean to you? And
how did you get involved with this anniversary event.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
I first saw the film when it came out in
nineteen eighty five, and it knocked me four rows back
in the theater. I was already a stand up comedian,
I was just starting out. But what killed me was
it was such a completely realized world. It was as
(06:42):
if you wanted to be a filmmaker. So you went
out and saw Avatar. I was like, I don't even
know how to approach how you would do this. It
was beautiful in the way it was. That character in
that world was so fully realized and so fully created.
(07:05):
And to me, I mean, it has nothing to do
with what I did in terms of as a stand
up comedian or whatever, but it was something to aspire to,
just in terms of how completely fully realized it was.
And I always held it aloft as an aspirational thing.
(07:26):
And you know, not only did that give us Peewee Herman.
That was Tim Burton's first film, Danny Elfman's first film,
I mean entire you know genre came out of that movie.
And as I moved to Los Angeles and my career progressed,
(07:47):
I was very fortunate and that I got to know
Paul and that was absolutely one of those relationships that
was never ever ever lost on me. I was, you know,
was never like, oh Paul, No, it was it was
I was always very well aware of it.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
Just casually friends with Pee Wee her this.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Came up came around. I was just, uh, I was
somebody I think, I think because a new Paul my
name was in a list, but uh, I'm such a
fan more than anything else.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
So let's talk about I mean, given the incredible names
you just mentioned, and including Paul Rubins, you know, who
played Pee Wee Herman, and the lexicon that this has
been a part of for so long, how do you
think that this film influenced the landscape of not just
comedic films but films in general since then?
Speaker 2 (08:43):
What's funny? I was talking about this this morning with
a friend of mine. It was so of its time,
the original Peewee Show at the Roxy, which was in
nineteen eighty one, and you know, the set design and
the graphics that were by Gary Panter and then Wayne
(09:03):
White came in and worked on the morning show. In
the films it, you know, the whole eighties pop esthetic
was so hugely influential on all of pop culture, and
this was such a huge part of it. It was
one of those things, you know, not exaggerating to say,
(09:25):
like musically, the way the Sergeant Pepper art design influenced
the end of the sixties in the early seventies, it was.
It was that pervasive. And you know Bob kat Golfwaite
who said, like I got my career Warner Brothers because
Peewee's Big Adventure was a hit. They didn't know what
I was doing, but they knew that pee Wee's was
(09:48):
a big hit. And it's sort of defined a genre
of comedy. You know. That's sort of like I'm not,
you know, pee Wee Herman's is not. This is a character,
a hyper real character, but he created a universe in
which that character lived and it was, you know, a
(10:10):
fully realized genre.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
It also really opened a lot of doors for a
lot of people, not just the cast that was in
this show. But I feel like, like you said it,
sort of you know, it was Tim Burton's first film,
Danny Elfman like, it really opened the doors two different genres.
And I think people to be unique and different with
their comedy, and that's something I think a lot of
(10:35):
people forget about with that show for sure. Can you
give us a little bit of, you know, some insights
or anecdotes and your preparation for this Q and A.
It must feel like quite a big task to sit
down and come up with some questions spanning forty years
for this epic show in film.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
It is. It is, and I'm nervous because I don't
know any of the I know the Kyoto brothers. I
know Steven and Edward Kyoto who did the stop motion animation.
They did Large Marge, and they did the dinosaurs in
Peewee's Pewee's Nightmare. I've worked with them before. But E. G.
Daly who played Dottie is on the panel. Diane Salinger,
(11:19):
who played Simone is on the panel. Mark Holton, who
played Francis a legendary and underrated film villain, Francis Buxton.
I've never met any of these people, and I'm really
I want to give a dollar value to the audience
in terms of asking the right questions, but I don't
(11:39):
want to also fan boy out and make a fool
of mine.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
That's understandable. That's understandable. Well, I want to I want
to walk back just a little bit. And you mentioned
you had a personal relationship with Paul Rubens, who of
course played Peewee Harmon and created this iconic character. Can
you talk a little bit about your friendship with him,
if you're comfortable and share anything, any moments or anything
(12:06):
like that that you think people might be interested to
know more about if they come to this event.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
Well, Paul is one of those people that everyone who
knew him adored him. I met him originally we were
in a movie together, in a movie called Mystery Men,
and then later I knew him through My first wife
(12:35):
was an agent and she had worked with Paul, and
we got to know him socially. And then, in a
very strange turn, for a long time I lived in
Roddy McDowell's old house, and Paul was a very good
friend of Roddy McDowell. And Roddy McDowell's powder room is
(12:56):
in the Max Factor History Museum because it was the
walls were covered with letters and photos and it was
just sort of like you have to go in and
see the powder room. When Roddy passed, Paul arranged for
the powder room to be removed from the house and
sent to the Max Factor Hollywood History Museum. When I
bought the house, I had to call Paul to arrange
(13:17):
to let me go to the museum and photograph it
because I wanted to rebuild the powder room. So we
had all these wow, strange connections. I'll just tell you
one story very briefly. When they did the Peewe's Playhouse
Live at the Nokia Theater, in twenty ten, we took
our our two daughters to uh. We later had another one,
(13:40):
but she wasn't ongoing at the time at the time,
and they were, you know, they were twenty ten, so
they were seven and seven and six, and we take
them to the show, and then a week after the show,
and then we went backstage after the show, Paul arranged
for the puppeteer to remain in Cherry, so when my
(14:05):
daughters sat on the chair, Cherry would wrap her arms
around them, which to them it was, yeah, sure, it's Cherry.
What is she gonna do? Not hug me?
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
A week later, we have a benefit at our house.
Paul comes to the benefit. My daughters are walking downstairs
and my daughter sees Paul and she just goes, pee wee,
come upstairs. I want to show you in my room,
just like real casual, and then explaining not every kid
has pee wee. Herman come over to the house. I know,
but he was he was full of he was full
(14:36):
of life, and he was full of love and was
just an incredibly beautiful sort of force of nature.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
And now you know, he did pass away in twenty
twenty three, and recently there was a documentary that came
out called Pee Wee as himself. Have you seen that?
Do you have any thoughts on that documentary?
Speaker 2 (14:58):
I thought it was really really well done. I thought
it handled everything really wonderfully. And you know, when we
did the film Mystery Man together, it was in nineteen
ninety five, which was a year after his Florida adventure,
and he was clearly traumatized, and word got out we
(15:27):
were filming an Orange, California ad in a cul de
sac and word got out that he was there, and
every kid in a ten mile radius lined up in
this cul de sac to meet him. And I got
to watch him go outside, even in his wardrobe from
(15:48):
the film, and just meet these kids. And it was
just like this tsunami of love and affection and approval
and acceptance. It was really really beautiful and now very
lucky that I get to see it.
Speaker 1 (16:04):
And for people who are coming to the fortieth anniversary celebration,
what are you hoping that they walk away with at
you know from the evening's events.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
You know, well, two things. One, I'm glad they're coming
because it is a benefit, uh And fifty percent of
the proceeds are going to stand up to cancer, which
was Paul's charity of choice. And and this, you know,
one of the things about Pee wee Ah is it
is in a way timeless. That character never commented on
(16:40):
things that were of the time, and so it is
a beautiful two hour vacation from your reality at the moment,
and it's timeless in that regard and important in that regard.
You know, you can and stop thinking about things that
(17:02):
might be in the news all the time and just
go away to this place that is is beautifully, beautifully
ridiculous and silly.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
And I think you know, for me it, you know,
watching any clips of Peewee's Playhouse, reliving these films, you know,
reminds me of when I was younger. I'm an old
I'm an old lady, and I'm like, when I watched
the documentary, it just really took me back in time,
and the clips from the film, I just remember such
(17:39):
a special time in my life and my childhood. And
I have a feeling that a lot of the people
who are going to be coming to this will also
be transported back in time as well and have those
joyful feelings, you know, when they were younger.
Speaker 2 (17:52):
It's going to be the same feeling that you had
if you were lucky enough to see the live show
in twenty ten. I mean, that was so emotional and
and that's such a positive, beautiful way that the lights
came up on that playhouse and you were just transported.
Speaker 1 (18:08):
Everybody went crazy for that. Well, I have a feeling
that it's going to be a similar kind of feeling
and vibe for this show as well. And really quickly,
I want to know where can people come and see
you outside of this event. Do you have any shows
coming up or anything like that that that we can
talk about.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
Uh, yeah, Well I have a you know, I'm I'm
all over I'm all over Dana Gould on all platforms
and one of the things that I, uh, it took
me a long long time to do my version of Peewe,
but I have a I have a show on YouTube
called Hanging with Doctor Z that is that is as
(18:50):
my attempt to be as beautifully stupid ass as Peewee,
and you can always check that out.
Speaker 1 (18:56):
Well, we love that. Well, thank you so much Jana
for your time, and we want to remind everybody that
this event is happening at the Alex Theater in Glendale
on June fourteenth. That's presented by a Nostalgic Nebula and
you can get tickets online. So, Dana, thank you so
much for your time and I'm best of luck during
the show.
Speaker 2 (19:15):
Thank you so much. I really appreciate Youay.
Speaker 1 (19:20):
That sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun,
and I hope you all find something fun to do
this Father's Day weekend. I'm always here for you. If
you have any suggestions, feel free to reach out to
me anytime on social media at the Heatherbrooker on Instagram,
Heatherbrooker on TikTok, or you can always hit that talkback
button if you're listening on the iHeartRadio app and let
me know what kind of entertainment stories do you want
(19:41):
to hear if you have something fun coming up, any
new projects or entertainment stories that you think might be
fun to share on the show, and I will be
happy to take a look at that. And of course
later this week we'll have our weekend Box Office preview
on The Gary and Shannon Show, so you don't want
to miss that. Make sure you subscribe to inner tain
Me and listen anywhere anytime on the iHeartRadio app.
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