Drena De Niro is paying tribute to Paul Reubens after his death at 70.
On Tuesday, De Niro, 55, shared a number of photos and videos on Instagram showing Reubens posing with her late son Leandro “Leo” De Niro-Rodriguez when he was a baby. The actress previously shared news of Leandro’s sudden death in a July 2 post.
“Darling wonderful kind genius Paul 💙 I loved you since the moment I first laid on eyes on you in Cheech & Chong’s Up in Smoke because even though I was just a kid ..Weird knows weird and you were brilliantly and beautifully weird,” De Niro, the daughter of Robert De Niro, wrote in the caption.
“You gave the world so much more than it gave back to you,” she continued, emphasizing her love for Reubens’s popular character Pee Wee Herman.
“I didn’t know you then but I had wished I could tell you that I loved you and would stand by PeeWee forever,” De Niro added of growing up a fan of Reubens’s comedy. “Luckily I got the chance in this lifetime to do just that.”
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De Niro recounted that she and Reubens worked together on an 2002 animated TV short titled The Groovenians and said “two weird Virgos became friends to the end” following their meeting.
“Thank you for letting me part of your Big Adventure,” she wrote. “Now you and Leandro can ride bicycles, build elaborate pet feeding systems & talk to the animals everyday together. Take care of eachother. Heaven is lucky to have you 2 angels. Love you Buddy”
De Niro-Rodriguez, 19, was found dead on July 2 inside a New York City apartment. On July 14, PEOPLE confirmed that police arrested Sofia H. Marks, 20, and accused her of selling fake Oxycodone and Xanax laced with fentanyl to him the night before he was found dead. Her trial is scheduled for Aug. 14.
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“I don’t know how to live without you but I’ll try to go on and spread the love and light that you so made me feel in getting to be your mama,” Drena wrote on Instagram following news of his death. “You were so deeply loved and appreciated and I wish that love alone could have saved you.”
Meanwhile, a rep for Reubens confirmed his death to PEOPLE in a statement Monday and revealed the actor had cancer for years before he died.
“Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit,” the statement read. “A gifted and prolific talent, he will forever live in the comedy pantheon and in our hearts as a treasured friend and man of remarkable character and generosity of spirit.”
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