Look no farther than the sidewalk for this metaphor.

On May 31, John Stuart -- best known for producing "Legends in Concert" at the Imperial Palace -- is getting a star on the Las Vegas Walk of Stars, a project similar to the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Except, Stuart explains, they have to put the star in front of New York-New York instead of the Imperial Palace, because Harrah's Entertainment "may blow it up within the year." If the replacement project covers up the existing sidewalk at the Imperial Palace, someone would have to dig up and move the star that cost its sponsors $15,000.

With each year that goes by, it becomes more surprising that "Legends in Concert, which opened May 5, 1983, is still hanging on.

Some might say the same of Stuart.

He doesn't currently operate "Legends," but says he is negotiating to regain control of the company he left in 2003. (Jeff Victor, who was in charge of the show via On Stage Entertainment, recently left to head up the Fremont Street Experience.)

But Stuart is truly one of the last of the independents in Las Vegas entertainment.

At first glance, his name would seem ready to be resigned to sidewalk history. His last local production, "Ovation," was an inauspicious affair ousted by the major overhaul of the Lady Luck. His plan for a Dick Clark-branded revue at the Plaza was sidelined by Clark's health problems. A pitch to move "Ovation" to the Plaza fell through.

"When Cirque (du Soleil) walks in and buys up the whole industry, what can you do?" Stuart says on the phone while dodging traffic one day.

Plenty, apparently.

Come the day that "Legends" faces the final curtain, Stuart hopes not to feel too sentimental. He says he has obtained the licensing to Clark's "American Bandstand," and aims to make it "a bigger and better version (of 'Legends') that would be open and running by then."

Stuart also co-produced "The Blues Brothers Revival" with Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi's widow, Judith Belushi Pisano, in 2004. He hopes to revive the production at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, S.C., next fall. "I'm reaching out for big brand names," he says.

Then there's Show Floats, a giant parade float that cruises down the Strip. You can rent it for your wedding, or promote your own show: The interactive "Ba Da Bing" was a recent taker.

You can even be Stuart's neighbor in the housing he is developing across the street from his ranch house near Windmill Lane and Las Vegas Boulevard. On May 30, some 200 celebrity lookalikes will be there for a party in his honor.

"You've just got to find other markets and other ways to skin the same cat," says Stuart.

Whether all these projects sink or swim, he is clearly not ready just to be walked on.

Mike Weatherford's entertainment column appears Thursdays and Sundays. Contact him at 383-0288 or e-mail him at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com.