Catskills comedian Stewie Stone doing his stand-up routine. Stewie Stone is living proof you can take the kid outa Brooklyn, but you can't take Brooklyn outa the kid. Even his name, Stewie, comes direct from Flatbush. "In Brooklyn," he explains, "we're very big on vowels. We put 'E's at the end of everything - Hermie, Frankie, Stewie." Before Stewie got to be a big man in Vegas, he was a little kid in Brooklyn and comedy was his protector. "I was a terrible introvert, and real small for my age. I found if I could make the rest of the kids laugh, they wouldn't beat me up." But he certainly didn't have dreams of becoming a comic - not yet, at least. "Let's face it," he says, "You don't say 'When I group up I want to be Henny Youngman. One summer Stewie was working with bands in New York on weekends, when he was offered a mid-week job at the famed Concord Hotel in the Catskills. They needed someone to entertain the guests when it rained. For $35 and gas money, Stewie opened his act at the Concord...no lights; just lightning, and the accompaniment of thunder. "I kept praying for rain, 'cause I only got the job if it rained. I tell people I did all the morning shows there. This pace continued - comedian by rainy weekday in the mountains, drummer in the big city on weekends - until one day Stewie was offered a full-time job as social director of the hotel. He packed in his drums, packed up his umbrella, and headed north to make his fame and fortune. The Catskills have always been a great spawning ground for new talent, and Stewie's case was no exception. One day a stranger walked up to him, said, "You're funny. Can you talk on stage?" and proceeded to hire him nation-wide. The turning point came when Stewie opened for Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons at Bachelors III in Fort Lauderdale. He then spent four years touring with the group, and played virtually every major nightclub in the States, including the Copa in New York, Mr. Kelly's in Chicago and Pittsburgh's Holiday House. Stewie really hit the jackpot, when he arrived in Las Vegas. He has opened for Paul Anka, Frankie Avalon, Dionne Warwick, Ben Vereen, Bobby Vinton, Sonny and Cher, to name just a few; and has earned himself the reputation of being one of the best in business. More recently, he has been the opening act for Engelbert Humperdinck and the two played to sell-out crowds whereever they appeared. A comic's job is never easy. "When you go out there, you're all alone he explains. "It's like slaying a dragon without armor. You think in your head that you're a knight, but when you get out there it's just you. And if you die, it's total rejection."