Pee-wee postpones stage show

They were planning to fly to L.A. from all over the country to see one of their beloved pop-culture heroes. But now many of them are left with dashed hopes and airline cancellation fees – and they are not happy, to say the least.

Last week, actor Paul Reubens announced that he is pushing back the opening of “The Pee-wee Herman Show” to January from November. He also said that the stage show would move to downtown L.A. from the original venue in Hollywood.

“Man, this is the worst news ever,” said Steve Gadlin, a lifelong Pee-wee fan who lives in Chicago. In a telephone interview, the Web developer (and part-time comic and producer) said he had bought an airline ticket and front-row seats for the show on the day after Thanksgiving but now is requesting a refund.

“I’m not over-dramatizing this just because I’m talking to a newspaper reporter. This is the biggest bummer on the planet. For me, I had such a connection to Pee-wee growing up. But, you know, I’ll live.”

Scott Sanders, lead producer of “The Pee-wee Herman Show,” said the decision to move the dates and venue was made because the production is growing larger and more technically complex.

A spokeswoman for Reubens said the actor intended to meet fans who were inconvenienced by the change of plans after performances. “I want to grovel to them in person,” Reubens said in a statement issued Wednesday.

The birthday bunch

Paul Simon is 68. Country singer Lacy J. Dalton is 63. Demond Wilson (“Sanford and Son”) is 63. Sammy Hagar is 62. John Lone (“Rush Hour 2”) is 57. Marie Osmond is 50. Joey Belladonna (Anthrax) is 49. T’Keyah Crystal Keymah (“That’s So Raven”) is 47. Actress Kelly Preston is 47. Kate Walsh (“Grey’s Anatomy”) is 42. Country singer Rhett Akins is 40. TV personality Billy Bush (“Access Hollywood”) is 38. Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat,” “Da Ali G Show”) is 38. Ashanti is 29.