Pee Wee Herman

Pee Wee Herman
"Wherefore art thou, Pee?"
By Euphrates

Pee Wee was like David Lee Roth; you either loved him or you hated him.
For those of us who loved the campy character and the swell Playhouse
shows, he is greatly missed. For those of us who loved Pee Wee and
love toys, read on!

In 1987/1988, Matchbox made figures based on Pee Wee's Playhouse
and Pee Wee Herman movies. The Playhouse figures are about 6 inches
tall with crude articulation but great likenesses. The movie figures
are plush and much taller including a 17-inch mute and 17-inch talking
Pee Wee.

The toys have a retro feel to them. The talking Pee Wee uses a
pullstring rather than a chip. Many of the 6-inch figures are
windups. Even the packaging for the Playhouse features a small
boy playing with the set who looks like he is right out of the
early '60s!

The Matchbox vinyl Playhouse is my personal favorite from the line.
The color and design are stunning, and a bunch of the features of the
TV Playhouse were faithfully replicated like

the talking floor

a working front door

the talking window

dancing flowers

The figures and accessories, although not very poseable, still look
great in the house.

Here is a list of the Matchbox releases and some of the other Pee Wee
related collectibles that I have seen:

Pee Wee Toys by Matchbox

Pee Wee - Jacket

Pee Wee and Scooter - Figure, Jacket, Scooter, Helmet

Miss Yvonne

Pterri

Randy/Globey

Jambi and the Puppetland Band - Jambi in Box and three jazz musicians

Cowboy Curtis - Cowboy Curtis and Vinyl Cowboy Hat

Reba - Reba with Mailbag and Dress

King of Cartoons - The King with his Crown!

Ricardo

Magic Screen

Conky

Chairry - (These are always dirty or stained if loose.)

Playhouse - Table, Counter, Sofa, TV

Plush Talking Pee Wee

Plush Chairry

Plush Pterri

Plush Vance

Plush Billy Baloney

Other Pee Wee Collectibles

Cereal Bowl

Plastic Lunch Box

Condom

Key Chain

Trading Cards

Novelty Ring

Watch

Viewmaster Reels

Colorforms

Ball Dart Game

Table Cloth

Bed Spread and Sheets

Curtains

Halloween Costume

Air Fresheners

These toys were dumped by stores after Pee Wee's alter-ego's incident.
The toys were marked down to "get-'em-outa-here" prices. Despite
this, the Pee Wee market is quite healthy today with many of the carded
figures going for $15-$35. The Miss Yvonne is one of the hardest to
find and regularly brings $45-$50.