Video Out

"Out" Takes

Gay sensibility, homophobia and gender roles on broadcast television are outlined by juxtaposing scenes from two children's shows: Pee Wee's Playhouse and Maido Osawaga Seshimasu (We're Always Making Trouble), a prime-time sitcom from Japan. Rex Reed's outrageous critique of Pee Wee (Paul Ruebens) highlights the self-perpetuating closet of Hollywood and the perceived threat of the show's gay subtexts. Reed's opposition to Pee-Wee, and Reuben's technique of innuendo, double-entendre, and gender-switching, both appear equally repressed compared to the explicit frankness of the Japanese series.