Since Holton had been out of the Hollywood spotlight for years, I had to track him down by sending him a letter (yes, like in an actual mailbox) to a last-known address I found on some random real estate website.
Long story short, the letter miraculously got to him a couple of weeks before he moved from California to Oklahoma. We’ve been friends ever since.
I jumped on a call with Holton a couple of weeks ago to catch up and to talk about Pee-wee as Himself, the new HBO Max docuseries on the late Paul Reubens, his Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure co-star. We also talked about the last time he and Reubens connected and why he thinks everyone should see Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure on the big screen with as many Texans as possible.
Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure is screening on June 10 as part of Texas Public Radio’s 2025 Cinema Tuesdays summer series. The film starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Santikos Northwest theater. RSVPs are required to attend. As of now the screening is at capacity, but TPR urged interested viewers to check its page to see if more seats are freed up.
Do you keep busy with comic conventions these days? I know you only started going to them a few years ago.
I have one in Pennsylvania in August. It’s the PA Horror Con. Then, I have another one that hasn’t been announced yet that’s near Boston. It’s a big one.
Did anything surprise you when you first started attending?
Yeah, I had no frame of reference other than what I was told, mainly by Paul Reubens. He kind of got me into it. I ran into him at the Dallas airport, and he had just finished doing one in Dallas. I said, “Oh, so you’re doing conventions?” And he goes, “Yeah, it’s my new job!” And I said, “OK, well, we need to talk about this.” I was completely in the dark.
So, what was your first experience like at one of them?
You know, [a convention] to me was a place in San Diego with a bunch of nerds who would go in and be like, “Hey, I’ll trade you three X-Men for a Batman and a Superman.” I didn’t know they had rock stars and actors and comedians and horror people. When I went to the first one, there was a little bit of everything. The Ghostbusters mobile was there and a whole bunch of cosplayers. It was kind of a mind blower.
Did you see any other celebrities there that you were excited about?
Cassandra Peterson (Elvira, Mistress of the Dark) was there. She had a roped off section and a line of fans that went on for miles. I’m like, “Elvira, my God, she’s a goddess!” I went up and talked to her. I’m looking down at all her merch — coffee table books and stuff like that. She wasn’t even dressed as Elvira, and she was just like, “Ka-ching, ka-ching, ka-ching.” I thought, “OK, this is fun. I can do this.”
Did Cassandra remember you from Pee-wee’s Big Adventure? [Note: Peterson had a small role as “Biker Mama” in the biker bar scene.]
Oh, yeah. Right after Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, we had the same representation. So, I would see her at the agency. We would run into each other from time to time. We weren’t drinking buddies or anything, but she remembered me.
Have you had any memorable fan interactions?
Well, I’ve only had one nut come by my table. There was a guy sitting with me as my security. He had just gotten out of the Army, and he told me, “Hey, if you get a weird vibe off anybody, just tap on the table, and I’ll pick up on it and take care of it, so you don’t have to do anything.” Well, [the security guard] got his nose in his phone, and the guy who came by started getting weirder and weirder and weirder. And I’m tap, tap, tapping away. And [the security guard], he’s not picking up on it. I did everything but slap him.
So, what happened to the nut?
The guy was horrible. He was a John Wayne Gacy fan. [Note: Holton played Gacy in the 2003 movie Gacy.] He said something had happened in his mind, or maybe it actually happened. I don’t know, but it got way too graphic. It’s the stuff nightmares are made of. I’ll tell you one day, and you’ll go, “Oh, my God, I can’t unhear that, Mark! Don’t ever talk about that again!”
Let’s switch gears and talk about Paul. It’s been almost two years since his passing. How did you find out he died?
I think it was TMZ that called me, and the guy was really hyper, asking me questions, [and] wanting to get the scoop or whatever. And I think I just hung up on him. I just thought, “No, not right now. I don’t care who you are.” It was paparazzi bullshit.
When was the last time you connected with Paul?
My birthday is in July, and he sent me a video. He didn’t look sick. So, I think he had [made the video] knowing what the future was going to hold. So, he sent that to me, and I was totally oblivious to what was going on because he didn’t look that sick. But in hindsight, it was like he was saying goodbye. I’m convinced that’s exactly what that video was. I haven’t ever shared it with anybody, but I might.
No one knew he was sick. The filmmakers behind this new HBO Max docuseries Pee-wee as Himself didn’t even know he was fighting for his life as he was doing these interviews.
The filmmakers were so quiet about [the docuseries], I didn’t think it was finished. Paul was such a perfectionist, I thought, “Well, maybe they just couldn’t see eye to eye [to finish it].” It wouldn’t be beyond the realm of possibility that they had gotten into it with him, and just said, “You know, this isn’t going to happen.” So, I had kind of forgotten about it. When the news came out that it was completed, I was surprised.
Did anyone from HBO ever reached out to you to participate in the docuseries?
Nobody ever got in contact with me.
We’ve talked plenty of times about how much San Antonio has a love affair with Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. Texas Public Radio is screening it Tuesday, June 10, as part of their summer series. I’m sure it will be sold out. Would you take advantage of watching that movie on the big screen?
Oh, yeah, I’ve seen Pee Wee’s Big Adventure before in a beautiful theater in Dallas with a bunch of Texans. It was the 35th anniversary tour. When the Alamo segments came up, they were doing the lines. What really surprised me was when [Pee-wee] goes, “The stars at night…” Bang! With the claps and everything, there was a thunderous, “Deep in the heart of Texas!” from the audience. I can’t imagine watching that film live with a good sound system with anybody but Texans. It’s kind of a Texas movie — or [Texans] certainly have adopted it.
Sold out, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 10, Santikos Northwest, 7600 I-10 West, tpr.org.
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This article appears in May 29 – Jun 11, 2025.