Paul Reubens, the comic actor whose bow-tied, childlike alter-ego Pee-wee Herman became an unlikely movie and television sensation in the 1980s, died on July 2 in Los Angeles. He was 70.

Mr. Reubens had scores of acting credits in a career that began in the 1960s, but Pee-wee, a character he created in the late 1970s as a l0-minute bit when he was a member of the Los Angeles comedy troupe the Groundlings, overshadowed all else, morphing into a bizarre and savvy cultural phenomenon.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, he reflected on the adjustments that were made to keep the character fresh, and on how the creative landscape had changed since Pee-wee first appeared some 40 y ears ago. “Today, it seems to me, it’s a lot more difficult to stand out,” he said.