Pee - wee 's Big Adventure - wikipedia Pee - wee 's Big Adventure Pee - wee 's Big Adventure Theatrical release poster by John Alvin. Directed by Tim Burton Produced by Robert Shapiro Richard Gilbert Abramson Written by Phil Hartman Paul Reubens Michael Varhol Starring Pee - wee Herman Elizabeth Daily Mark Holton Diane Salinger Judd Omen Music by Danny Elfman Cinematography Victor J. Kemper Edited by Billy Weber Production company Aspen Film Society Distributed by Warner Bros. Release date August 9, 1985 ( 1985 - 08 - 09 ) Running time 91 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $7 million Box office $40.9 million ( domestic ) Pee - wee 's Big Adventure is a 1985 American adventure comedy film directed by Tim Burton in his full - length film directing debut and starring Paul Reubens as Pee - wee Herman with supporting roles provided by Elizabeth Daily, Mark Holton, Diane Salinger, and Judd Omen. Reubens also co-wrote the script with Phil Hartman and Michael Varhol. Based on the 1948 Italian classic The Bicycle Thief, it is the tale of Pee - wee Herman embarking on a nationwide adventure in search for his stolen bicycle. After the success of The Pee - wee Herman Show, Reubens began writing the script to Pee - wee 's Big Adventure when he was hired by Warner Bros... The producers and Reubens hired Burton to direct when they were impressed with his work on Vincent and Frankenweenie. Filming took place in both California and Texas. The film was released on August 9, 1985, grossing over $40 million in North America. It eventually developed into a cult film and has since accumulated positive feedback. The film was nominated for a Young Artist Award and spawned two sequels, Big Top Pee - wee ( 1988 ) and Pee - wee 's Big Holiday ( 2016 ). Its financial success, followed by the equally successful Beetlejuice in 1988, prompted Warner Bros. to hire Burton as the director for the 1989 film Batman. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 4 Soundtrack 5 Reception 5.1 Critical response 6 References 7 External links Plot Pee - wee Herman has a heavily accessorized bicycle that he treasures and that his neighbor, Francis Buxton, covets. A bike shop employee, Dottie, has a crush on Pee - wee, but he does not reciprocate it. Pee - wee 's bike is stolen while he is shopping at a mall. The police tell Pee - wee that they can not help him find his bike. Pee - wee thinks Francis took it, and confronts him. Francis ' father convinces Pee - wee that Francis did not steal the bike. Pee - wee then offers a $10,000 reward for his bike. Francis, who did indeed pay to have someone steal the bike, is frightened by Pee - wee 's relentlessness and then pays to have it sent away. After holding an unsuccessful meeting to locate the bike, Pee - wee angrily rejects Dottie 's offers of help. Desperate, he visits `` Madam Ruby '', a phony psychic. Ruby, inspired by the Al and Moe 's Bargain Basement shop across the street, tells Pee - wee that his bike is in the basement of the Alamo Mission in San Antonio. Pee - wee hitchhikes to Texas, getting rides from a fugitive, Mickey ; and from Large Marge, the ghost of a deceased truck driver. At a truck stop, Pee - wee discovers his wallet is missing and pays for his meal by washing dishes. He befriends Simone, a waitress who dreams of visiting Paris. As they watch the sunrise at a dinosaur museum, Pee - wee encourages her to follow her dreams, but Simone tells him about her jealous and large boyfriend, Andy, who disapproves. Andy arrives and tries to attack Pee - wee, who escapes onto a moving train and meets Hobo Jack. Pee - wee eventually arrives at the Alamo, but learns at the end of a guided tour that the building does not have a basement. At a bus station, Pee - wee encounters Simone, who tells him that she and Andy broke up and she is on her way to Paris. She tells Pee - wee not to give up finding his bike. Pee - wee calls Dottie at the bike shop and apologizes for his behavior. Andy spots Pee - wee and resumes his attack. Pee - wee evades Andy at a rodeo by disguising himself as a rodeo bull rider. Forced to ride for real, Pee - wee does well but receives a concussion. Pee - wee enters a biker bar to make a phone call, but the outlaw motorcycle club threatens to kill him after he accidentally knocks over their motorcycles. Pee - wee makes a last request, dancing to the song `` Tequila ''. His dance wins over the bikers, who give him a motorcycle for his journey. Pee - wee crashes his motorcycle immediately afterwards. Pee - wee wakes up in a hospital and learns from a television news report that his bike is being used as a prop in a movie starring a bratty child named Kevin Morton. Pee - wee sneaks into Warner Bros. Studios and takes the bike. He is chased by security across the studio lot and through several sets before escaping. Later, Pee - wee discovers a burning pet shop and rescues the animals. Although the firefighters declare Pee - wee a hero, the police arrest him for his disruption at the studios. Pee - wee meets the president of Warner Bros., Terry Hawthorne, and explains his journey to retrieve the bike. Hawthorne decides to drop the charges and make a special movie about Pee - wee and his bike, which is returned to him. Later at a drive - in theater, Pee - wee and Dottie attend the premiere of his biopic, an action movie starring James Brolin as `` P.W. Herman '' and Morgan Fairchild as Dottie. The two must retrieve a sport bike called the X-1, which contains an important microfilm and has been stolen by the soviets. Pee - wee has a cameo appearance as a hotel bellhop, though his voice has been dubbed. At the drive - in, Pee - wee gives refreshments to all the people he met along his journey. Pee - wee also encounters Francis, who tells reporters that he is Pee - wee 's best friend who taught him how to ride. Francis claims to be knowledgeable about Pee - wee 's bike, but accidentally catapults himself into the air using one of the bicycle 's gadgets. As Pee - wee leaves the drive - in, Dottie asks why he is not staying for the rest of the movie. Pee - wee answers, `` I do n't have to see it, Dottie. I lived it. '' He and Dottie then ride off together at the movie screen in silhouette. Cast Paul Reubens as Pee - wee Herman ( billed `` Pee - wee Herman as himself '' ). He sports a gray flannel suit with a red bow tie and close - cropped hair. Elizabeth Daily as Dottie Mark Holton as Francis Buxton Diane Salinger as Simone Lynne Marie as `` Mother Superior '' in Kevin Morton 's film John Paragon as Man in Red Armor Judd Omen as Mickey Morelli Alice Nunn as Large Marge, the ghost of a truck driver who describes her own death in a traffic accident. The fabrication and animation for Large Marge 's transformation was provided by The Chiodo Brothers. Phil Hartman as Reporter Jon Harris as Andy Carmen Filpi as Jack Jan Hooks as Tina, a tour guide at the Alamo. Jason Hervey as Kevin Morton Tony Bill as Terry Hawthorne, an executive at Warner Bros. Cleve Hall as Godzilla, also cameos as a Satan 's Helpers Biker Gang member. Michael Varhol who co-wrote the script with Reubens and Hartman cameos as a photographer. Director Tim Burton has an uncredited cameo as the street thug who confronts Pee - wee in a rainy back - alley. Other minor roles include Ed Herlihy as Mr. Buxton and Cassandra Peterson ( a.k.a. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark ) as the Biker Mama of Satan 's Helpers. James Brolin portrays `` P.W. Herman '' and Morgan Fairchild is Dottie in the in - movie production about Pee - wee 's life. Heavy metal band Twisted Sister, and veteran comedy star Milton Berle cameo as themselves. Pee - wee 's Big Adventure contains numerous `` conceptual continuity '' links to other Tim Burton films and other productions : Several cast members from The Pee - wee Herman Show ( who would go on to appear in Pee - wee 's Playhouse ) have cameo roles in the film. John Moody ( Mailman Mike in The Pee - wee Herman Show ) appears as the bus clerk, in the movie studio sequence, Lynne Marie Stewart ( Miss Yvonne ) plays the Mother Superior, John Paragon ( Jambi the Genie ) plays the high - voiced studio extra in red armor from whom Pee - wee asks directions and the reporter interviewing Francis in the final scene at the drive - in is played by Phil Hartman ( Cap'n Carl ). Jan Hooks ( who played Tina ) was a fellow member of The Groundlings comedy troupe with Reubens, Hartman and Paragon, and went on to co-star in Saturday Night Live with Hartman. She also had a cameo role as a publicist in Burton 's Batman Returns. Paul Reubens and Diane Salinger ( Simone ) were reunited in the opening sequence of Burton 's Batman Returns, in which they portrayed the parents of the Penguin. They would reunite again in Pee - wee 's Big Holiday. Supporting actors Monte Landis ( Mario ) and Lou Cutell ( Amazing Larry ), who appeared together in a deleted scene in Mario 's Magic Shop, had both appeared as extras in Mel Brooks ' Young Frankenstein. In the Warner Bros. studio chase sequence, Pee - wee rides through a set where a Japanese crew are filming a Godzilla movie. The full chase sequence through Warner Bros Studios was originally longer than the version in the final cut of the film and showed much more of the WB backlot, including the vast storage yard where props and set pieces were stored. A full - scale prop of a Visitor shuttlecraft from the original TV miniseries V ( 1983 ) is clearly visible in the foreground in one shot. Another deleted scene in this section was filmed on the WB `` Western town '' set. Ennio Morricone 's theme music from the score of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly was to be used in that sequence. Production One of the prop bicycles used in Pee - wee 's Big Adventure on display in the Bicycle exhibit at the Carnegie Science Center The success of The Pee - wee Herman Show prompted Warner Bros. to hire Paul Reubens to write a script for a full - length Pee - wee Herman film. Reubens ' original idea was to do a remake of Pollyanna with Pee - wee Herman in the Hayley Mills role. Reubens claims that Pollyanna is his favorite film. Halfway through writing the script, Reubens noticed everyone at Warner Brothers had a bike to get around the backlot, and so he requested one of his own. This inspired Reubens to start on a new script. Having left The Walt Disney Company and with Frankenweenie receiving positive reviews within film studios, Tim Burton was looking for a full - length film to direct. When Reubens and the producers of Pee - wee 's Big Adventure saw Burton 's work on Vincent and Frankenweenie, they decided to hire Burton for their film. Burton felt he connected with Reubens ' personality and the humor of the Pee - wee Herman Show. After hiring Burton to direct, Reubens, Phil Hartman and Michael Varhol reworked the script again. Filming locations included Glendale, Pomona, Santa Clarita, Santa Monica, Burbank, Cabazon ( at the Cabazon Dinosaurs ), Port Hueneme, California, and San Antonio, Texas. Burton and Reubens had tensions with Warner Bros. studio executives over the shooting schedule. Burton hired CalArts classmate Rick Heinrichs for scenes involving stop - motion animation. Soundtrack Pee - wee 's Big Adventure Film score by Danny Elfman Released 1985 Danny Elfman chronology Forbidden Zone ( 1980 ) Forbidden Zone 1980 Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( 1985 ) Beetlejuice ( 1988 ) Beetlejuice 1988 To compose the film score, Burton brought in Danny Elfman, who had previously composed the music for Forbidden Zone. He relished the opportunity to compose an orchestral score rather than a pop score and wanted to it to be taken as the work of a composer rather than the dabbling of a pop musician. Elfman already had the main title theme written before he signed on. At the time, Elfman was the lead singer of Oingo Boingo, but the working relationship between Burton and Elfman would overshadow his performing life and continue for most of Burton 's films. In 1986 Varese Sarabande released an album on record, cassette and compact disc featuring cues from the movie and 1986 's Back to School, also scored by Elfman. While both films had their scores recorded in Hollywood, the album recording was made in London and performed by the National Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by John Coleman. In 2010 many of the original tracks were subsequently released by Warner Bros. Records as part of The Danny Elfman & Tim Burton 25th Anniversary Music Box. 1986 re-recording, Pee - wee 's Big Adventure tracks only No. Title Length 1. `` Overture / The Big Race '' 3 : 07 2. `` Breakfast Machine '' 2 : 36 3. `` Park Ride '' 1 : 14 4. `` Stolen Bike '' 1 : 44 5. `` Hitchhike '' 0 : 56 6. `` Dinosaur Dream '' 0 : 48 7. `` Simone 's Theme '' 1 : 35 8. `` Clown Dream '' 1 : 58 9. `` Studio Chase '' 1 : 24 10. `` The Drive - In '' 2 : 02 11. `` Finale '' 3 : 12 The Danny Elfman & Tim Burton 25th Anniversary Box ( Disc 1 ) No. Title Length 1. `` Main Title / Bike Race '' 2 : 54 2. `` The Breakfast Machine '' 2 : 40 3. `` The Bike '' 1 : 42 4. `` The Park Ride '' 1 : 19 5. `` The Mall '' 1 : 12 6. `` Music Shop And Beyond '' 1 : 05 7. `` Stolen Bike / Lonely Walk '' 1 : 42 8. `` Francis ' House '' 0 : 34 9. `` The Bath '' 1 : 32 10. `` The Basement '' 2 : 14 11. `` Hitch Hike '' 0 : 57 12. `` Edsel Over the Edge '' 1 : 21 13. `` Simone 's Theme '' 1 : 37 14. `` Dinosaur Dream '' 0 : 49 15. `` Andy Chase '' 0 : 51 16. `` Alamo '' 0 : 19 17. `` Bus Station / Simone '' 1 : 04 18. `` Clown Dream '' 2 : 00 19. `` Studio Chase '' 1 : 25 20. `` Pet Shop '' 2 : 11 21. `` The Drive - In '' 2 : 04 22. `` Finale '' 3 : 07 23. `` Large Marge '' 0 : 52 24. `` The Fork '' 0 : 27 25. `` Rain / Fortune '' 1 : 39 26. `` Andy Chase 2 '' 0 : 26 27. `` Cowboy Pee - wee '' 0 : 33 28. `` Andy & the Bull '' 0 : 26 29. `` Stolen Bike / Lonely Walk ( Film Version ) '' 1 : 40 30. `` Hitch Hike ( Film Version ) '' 0 : 57 31. `` Simone ( Film Version ) '' 2 : 09 32. `` Dino Dreams ( Film Version ) '' 0 : 47 33. `` Studio Chase ( Film Version ) '' 3 : 58 `` Clown Dream '' is also used in the video game Grand Theft Auto V. It is also often used as the opening music during Primus concerts. The film also features `` Burn in Hell '' by Twisted Sister and `` Tequila '' by The Champs. Reception Pee - wee 's Big Adventure opened on August 9, 1985 in the United States in 829 theaters, accumulating $4,545,847 over its opening weekend. The film went on to gross $40,940,662 domestically. Critical response Pee - wee 's Big Adventure received generally positive reviews at the time of the film 's release, before eventually developing into a cult film. As of March 2017, Rotten Tomatoes reported that 89 % of 44 critics gave the film a positive review. By comparison Metacritic calculated an average score of 47 from 13 reviews collected. The film was nominated with a Young Artist Award for Best Family Motion Picture ( Comedy or Musical ). Christopher Null gave positive feedback, calling it `` Burton 's strangest film. '' Variety compared Paul Reubens to Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, while Empire called the film `` a one - comic masterpiece '' and `` a dazzling debut '' for Burton. Stephanie Zacharek of Salon.com explained `` Everything about Pee - wee 's Big Adventure, from its toy - box colors to its superb, hyper - animated Danny Elfman score to the butch - waxed hairdo and wooden - puppet walk of its star and mastermind is pure pleasure. '' Burton was offered the opportunity to direct Big Top Pee - wee, but had no interest and was already working on his own pet project, Beetlejuice. Positive reviews of Beetlejuice and the financial success of Pee - wee 's Big Adventure prompted Warner Bros. to offer Burton the director 's helm for Batman. Roger Ebert never officially reviewed Pee - wee 's Big Adventure but in 1987 it topped his list of Guilty Pleasures and he did mention it in his review of Big Top Pee - wee, saying the sequel was not as magical as the first. The second paragraph of that review contrasted the two films explaining what he liked in Big Adventure that he did n't like in Big Top. Gene Siskel, however, gave Pee - wee 's Big Adventure a negative review and even called it one of the worst movies of 1985. Warner Home Video released Pee - wee 's Big Adventure on DVD in May 2000. The release included audio commentary by Tim Burton, Paul Reubens and Danny Elfman as well as deleted scenes. References Jump up ^ `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( U ) ''. British Board of Film Classification. April 14, 1987. Retrieved December 7, 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( 1985 ) ''. Box Office Mojo ( Amazon.com ). Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 06. Jump up ^ `` Movies ''. Retrieved March 23, 2018 -- via NYTimes.com. Jump up ^ Paul Reubens, Tim Burton, audio commentary, 2000, Warner Bros. Jump up ^ Mark Salisbury, Tim Burton ( 2006 ). Burton on Burton. Faber and Faber. p. 42. ISBN 0 - 571 - 22926 - 3. Jump up ^ Salisbury, Burton, p. 43 -- 4 Jump up ^ Salisbury, Burton, p. 47 Jump up ^ Famous Movie Locations : Wheel Inn Restaurant from Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( Cabazon, California ), by Kim Potts, Aug 10, 2010, Moviefone. Retrieved 2011 - 08 - 21. Jump up ^ `` Filming locations of Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ''. Platial. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 06. ^ Jump up to : Salisbury, Burton, p. 49 ^ Jump up to : Salisbury, Burton, p. 48 Jump up ^ `` Fanfare Article ''. www.boingo.org. Retrieved March 23, 2018. Jump up ^ Danny Elfman, audio commentary, 2000, Warner Bros. Jump up ^ excluding Ed Wood and Sweeney Todd : The Demon Barber of Fleet Street ^ Jump up to : Salisbury, Burton, p. 50 Jump up ^ `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( 1985 ) ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 26. Jump up ^ `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( 1985 ) : Reviews ''. Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 06. Jump up ^ `` PAwards for Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ''. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 06. Jump up ^ Christopher Null ( 2005 - 06 - 13 ). `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ''. FilmCritic.com. Archived from the original on March 30, 2008. Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 06. Jump up ^ `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ''. Variety. Reed Business Information. 1985 - 01 - 01. Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 06. Jump up ^ `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ''. Empire. Bauer Consumer Media. Retrieved 2008 - 04 - 06. Jump up ^ Zacharek, Stephanie ( 10 October 2000 ). `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ''. Salon.com. Retrieved 2013 - 11 - 28. Jump up ^ Salisbury & Burton 2006, p. 52 Jump up ^ Tim Burton, Batman audio commentary, 2005, Warner Bros. Jump up ^ Ebert, Roger. `` Big Top Pee - wee Movie Review & Film Summary ( 1988 ) - Roger Ebert ''. www.rogerebert.com. Retrieved March 23, 2018. Jump up ^ `` Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( Widescreen ) ( 1985 ) ''. Amazon.com. Retrieved 2008 - 09 - 22. External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : Pee - wee 's Big Adventure Pee - wee 's Big Adventure on IMDb Pee - wee 's Big Adventure at the TCM Movie Database Pee - wee 's Big Adventure at AllMovie Pee - wee 's Big Adventure at Rotten Tomatoes Pee - wee 's Big Adventure at Box Office Mojo Pee - wee Herman Paul Reubens Stage show The Pee - wee Herman Show TV series Pee - wee 's Playhouse episodes Films Pee - wee 's Big Adventure Big Top Pee - wee Pee - wee 's Big Holiday Tim Burton Filmography Frequent collaborators Unproduced projects Tim Burton Productions Directorial works Feature films Pee - wee 's Big Adventure ( 1985 ) Beetlejuice ( 1988 ) Batman ( 1989 ) Edward Scissorhands ( 1990 ) Batman Returns ( 1992 ) Ed Wood ( 1994 ) Mars Attacks ! ( 1996 ) Sleepy Hollow ( 1999 ) Planet of the Apes ( 2001 ) Big Fish ( 2003 ) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ( 2005 ) Corpse Bride ( 2005 ) Sweeney Todd : The Demon Barber of Fleet Street ( 2007 ) Alice in Wonderland ( 2010 ) Dark Shadows ( 2012 ) Frankenweenie ( 2012 ) Big Eyes ( 2014 ) Miss Peregrine 's Home for Peculiar Children ( 2016 ) Dumbo ( 2019 ) Short films The Island of Doctor Agor ( 1971 ) Stalk of the Celery Monster ( 1979 ) Hansel and Gretel ( 1982 ) Vincent ( 1982 ) Frankenweenie ( 1984 ) Stainboy ( 2000 ) Music videos `` Bones '' `` Here with Me '' Produced only The Nightmare Before Christmas ( 1993 ) Cabin Boy ( 1994 ) Batman Forever ( 1995 ) James and the Giant Peach ( 1996 ) 9 ( 2009 ) Abraham Lincoln : Vampire Hunter ( 2012 ) Alice Through the Looking Glass ( 2016 ) Literature The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy & Other Stories ( 1997 ) Television series Alfred Hitchcock Presents ( `` The Jar '', 1986 ) Faerie Tale Theatre ( `` Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp '', 1986 ) Beetlejuice ( 1989 -- 91 ) Family Dog ( 1993 ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pee-wee%27s_Big_Adventure&oldid=832055845 '' Categories : 1985 films English - language films 1980s comedy films 1980s road movies American adventure comedy films American films American ghost films American road movies Directorial debut films Films directed by Tim Burton Pee - wee Herman Warner Bros. films Films set in California Films set in Los Angeles Films set in Texas Films shot in California Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in San Antonio Films using stop - motion animation Self - reflexive films Screenplays by Paul Reubens Screenplays by Michael Varhol Films scored by Danny Elfman Hidden categories : Use mdy dates from December 2016 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from November 2014 Articles with hAudio microformats Album infoboxes lacking a cover Music infoboxes with deprecated parameters Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Български Deutsch Español فارسی Français Հայերեն Italiano Bahasa Melayu 日本 語 Polski Português Русский Simple English Svenska 5 more Edit links This page was last edited on 23 March 2018, at 15 : 32. 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Question: who plays dotty in pee wee's big adventure
Answer: Elizabeth Daily