Tuesday, March 15, 2011

More Pee-Wee Herman -- Remembering Phil Hartman as Captain Carl

First up, have you seen the promo for this Saturday night's HBO The Pee-Wee Herman Show on Broadway special?




One thing we'll really miss in this new incarnation of Pee-Wee Herman's stage show is the character of roving sailor Captain Carl, a role originated (as Kap'n Karl) by the late great Phil Hartman in the first live version of the show back in the early 1980s and also seen on Pee-Wee's Playhouse.

Paul Reubens and Hartman worked together as part of the Groundlings comic troupe in L.A., and the two had an adorable comic chemistry together, as you can tell from these clips from the HBO special of the original show from 1981.










In the new show the romance between Miss Yvonne and the Captain has been revised to Miss Yvonne and Cowboy Curtis, but we'll never forget the hilarious attraction between Lynne Stewart (who still plays Miss Yvonne) and Phil Hartman.




If you haven't seen the 1981 version of The Pee-Wee Herman Show lately (it's on DVD), we highly recommend it. It's still hilarious and charming, as well as slighty naughty which is just the way we like it!
Don't forget -- The Pee-Wee Herman Show on Broadway premieres on HBO this coming Saturday night at 10pm!

1 comment:

Jane said...

Capt Carl was a sea faring hottie long before Johnny Depp made hoisting the sails sexy with his Jack Sparrow pirate. That the Captain was introduced to the world on Pee Wee's original surreal and magical children's show is off the charts weird and wonderful. That Phil Hartman met his demise in such a horrible, violent manner...is tragic. I remember Capt. Carl and I will miss the character...and the actor always.