Pee Wee as Himself topped the winners of the Dorian TV Awards, the annual honours celebrating series and episodic works. Voted upon by the GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics, which boasts a roster of 560 members, the Dorian Awards gave Pee Wee as Himself wins in both documentary categories. The doc won Best LGBTQ TV Documentary or Series and the overall Best TV Documentary or Series.
The documentary is a two-part portrait of late actor Paul Reubens, the star behind the iconic TV character. Director Matt Wolf (Spaceship Earth) charts the story of Pee Wee Herman’s rise as a beloved TV character in a career marked by dramatic notoriety for a performer who brought joy to families through films like Pee-wee’s Big Adventure and the Emmy–winning children’s series Pee-wee’s Playhouse. Pee Wee as Himself draws upon 40 hours of interview footage with Reubens—a rare feat for a celebrity who generally refused to appear as himself in public and opted to present as his TV persona. The doc is now streaming on HBO and Crave.
Other nominees the in the LGBTQ documentary category were Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution, Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara, Outstanding: A Comedy Revolution, and Queer Planet. Nominees for the overall TV documentary included Deaf President Now!, Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes, The Rehearsal, and SNL: Beyond Saturday Night.
The comedy series Hacks led the overall winners at the Dorian Awards, taking five awards including Best TV Comedy, Best LBGTQ TV Show, Best Written TV Show, and lead and supporting performance honours for Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder, respectively. Smart also won the TV Icon Award. On the dramatic side, the medical series The Pitt won top honours, along with acting prizes for Noah Wyle and Tramell Tillman. The comedy series Overcompensating by Benito Skinner won Best Unsung TV Show.
