LOS ANGELES (NEWSnet/AP) — Paul Reubens, the actor and comedian whose character Pee-wee Herman became a cultural phenomenon through films and TV shows, has died. He was 70.

Reubens died Sunday night after a six-year struggle with cancer that he did not make public, his publicist said in a statement.

"Please accept my apology for not going public with what I've been facing the last six years," Reubens said in a statement released Monday with the announcement of his death. "I have always felt a huge amount of love and respect from my friends, fans and supporters. I have loved you all so much and enjoyed making art for you."

The character with his too-tight gray suit, white chunky loafers and red bow tie was best known for the film "Pee-wee's Big Adventure" and the television series "Pee-wee's Playhouse."

The Pee-wee character would become a cultural constant for much of the 1980s, though an indecent exposure arrest in 1991 would send him into entertainment exile for years.

Reubens would also act as non-Pee-wee characters including in Burton's 1992 movie "Batman Returns," the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" film and a guest-star run on the TV series "Murphy Brown."

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