Pee-wee Herman, Snooki earn Hudson Valley Tweets of the Week

Friday August 31, 2012 4:00 PM By Chris Serico

Photo credit: Getty Images | From left Pee Wee, Snooki, and Michael Kay

It's the return of the Hudson Valley Tweets of the Week, and this batch includes two reality stars, a baseball broadcaster with a famous uncle, and a couple of comedians.

(If you missed the rest of our August editions, check them out here.)

At No. 5, it's been a busy week for Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, a native of Marlboro and the self-proclaimed "Princess of Poughkeepsie." The good news? She had her baby boy, Lorenzo, and a national chain honored them both with a burger-and-slider special. The bad news? The reality-TV show that made her a star, "Jersey Shore," got the ax.

She doesn't seem too sad about the news, and why should she? This seems like a win for everybody. Even the biggest fans of the guilty pleasure have lost interest in the show, almost everyone in the crazy cast seems to have made millions off it. Now maybe MTV can go back to showing music videos again. (OK, we all know that last part's not happening, but something needs to justify the cable network's Video Music Awards ceremony these days.)

Fourth on the countdown is another reality-TV star in "Top Chef All-Stars" winner Richard Blais, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. The guy who was most likely to bust out some dry ice for epic "Top Chef" plate presentations probably could use some of it to numb his mouth at the dentist.

No word on if those red fly-shades are merely protecting him from the dentist's high-beams or if Blais just wanted to look like Bono in the early '00s. All I know is that after a little bit of the laughing gas, I've been known to sing "Zoo Station" to no one in particular.

At No. 3, it's the New York Yankees' play-by-play announcer Michael Kay, who lives in Hartsdale. Not only might you know his wife — WPIX anchor Jodi Applegate — but you may also be familiar with his uncle, actor Danny Aiello.

Must've been cool for Kay to grow up and watch his uncle in the movies. I haven't seen "29th Street," but anyone involved with "Do the Right Thing" has cinematic credibility for a lifetime. It turns out Kay's got a bit of the acting bug as well, as he's filmed his role in "Grown Ups 2," although I doubt Spike Lee is helming that Adam Sandler sequel.

This week's HVTotW runner-up is stand-up comic Greg Fitzsimmons, who grew up in Tarrytown and told his Twitter followers that his Sept. 14 Music Hall show will be taped for an upcoming TV special.

The best part is that Fitzsimmons had to clarify exactly where in Tarrytown the taping would be, because a fan suggested it might be filmed instead at other village landmarks, including the Eldorado West Diner. I'm sure you can reserve seats there, too, but I doubt the waiter has a timely, 60-minute set that's TV-ready.

Taking home this week's grand prize for Hudson Valley Tweet of the Week is Pee-wee Herman, a Peekskill native who was born Paul Reubens this week in 1952.

In addition to starring in "Pee-wee's Big Adventure," "Pee-wee's Playhouse" and "The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway," Reubens is responsible for possibly my favorite cameo in "30 Rock" history. And Twitter's been a huge reason that he's stayed relevant in recent years. So, happy birthday, Pee-wee. We love you, too, infinity plus one.

Which of these tweets was this week’s best? Vote in the Hudson Buzz poll below. Did we miss your favorite celebrity tweet with a Hudson Valley connection? Let us know in the comments section or on Twitter. And check out the full gallery of celebrity tweets, which we update with each Hudson Valley Tweets of the Week installment.

Follow Chris Serico on Twitter at @NewsdayChris.

Tags: Peekskill , Pee-wee Herman , Poughkeepsie , Marlboro , Snooki , Michael Kay , Hartsdale , Greg Fitzsimmons , Tarrytown , Richard Blais , Hyde Park , Culinary Institute of America , Westchester , Hudson Valley , Tweets of the Week , Hudson Valley Tweets of the Week , TV , reality TV , baseball , comedy