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Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Pete started his musical career at age eleven by taking accordion lessons and within one year was earning spending money playing at weddings. He attended Scranton Tech High School, where he studied percussion and as a freshman, moved up to the advanced band program. While attending high school, performing solos and writing arrangements for the tech band, he also played with the University of Scranton band, the noted Scranton Philharmonic Orchestra and was selected "first chair" percussion in statewide competition. During these same high school years, Pete operated two accordion schools and spent his nights performing in local nightclubs.
Pete graduated high school voted "Most popular boy" and "Class clown." Upon finishing high school, Pete served in the army reserves where he became head arranger and assistant conductor with the 79th Division band.
Then came the formation of his own group, a musical-comedy-vocal quartet called "The Millionaires" which toured the country for six years, settling in Chicago, then Las Vegas, where "The Millionaires" quickly became the favorite of many Las Vegas strip celebrities.
After two years in Las Vegas, the group disbanded and Pete started working as a stand-up comic first in Spokane, then Seattle. It was during this period that Steve Allen saw a locally produced video tape of Pete and immediately booked him as a regular on his popular late night TV show
one of which, was seen by Nat King Cole who booked Pete for an extended concert tour.
Next came a long run on Arthur Godfrey's famous radio show and a regular spot on the Gary Moore show. Pete moved back to Las Vegas where he can frequently be found working any one of the strip hotels and although based there, Pete maintains a high national visibility by working clubs, conventions and fairs all across the United States and Canada and is famous for his hundreds of appearances on television talk shows.
Pete conducts a comedy "workshop" seminar in Las Vegas where he tutors young comics in the art of working both in concert and on television.
AWARDS
Pete Barbutti's latest award: "MALE COMIC OF THE YEAR" at the 3rd Annual Meatball Awards.
Pete has received one of the coveted "LAS VEGAS ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR" awards. This award was voted by his peers as well as the entertainment directors and Las Vegas press. Pete has also received an "ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR" award for his performances in Atlantic City.
"ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD" from the American Federation of Musicians.
"MOST VALUABLE PLAYER AWARD" from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
"ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR AWARD" from the International Theatrical Agencies Association.

RECORD ALBUMS
"Here's Pete Barbutti" (V.J.)
Recorded live at Slate Brothers Club in Hollywood and chosen by "Cashbox" as one of the best of the year.
"The Funny Side of Pete Barbutti"
(Decca)
Recorded live at the Playboy Club in New York City. Several tracks from this album were used by every major airline for their in-flight entertainment presentation. One of the tracks was included in the Longine album "The Golden Age of Comedy" which showcases fifty years of classic comedy.
"In The Sahara / The Hotel not the Desert" (Contrast)
Recorded live at the Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas. Several tracks from this album are currently on United Airlines flights along with an interview.
PERSONAL APPEARANCES
Concert Tours:
HENRY MANCINI, NAT KING COLE, WOODY HERMAN, MAYNARD FERGUSON, GLEN CAMPBELL, JOHNNY MATHIS, JOHN DAVIDSON, JOAN RIVERS, JACK JONES, EDDIE ARNOLD, ROBERT GOULET, FRANK SINATRA
Nevada Hotels:
SANDS, CAESARS PALACE, SAHARA, LANDMARK FRONTIER, RIVIERA, THUNDERBIRD, FOUR QUEENS, DUNES, HILTON, HARRAH'S RENO, HARRAH'S TAHOE, SAHARA RENO, SAHARA TAHOE, HARVEY'S, HAROLD'S, HIGH SIERRA
Atlantic City:
HARRAH'S MARINA, GOLDEN NUGGET, BALLY'S GRAND ATLANTIS
Clubs:
COPACABANA LATIN CASINO, MISTER KELLY'S, HUNGRY I, BASIN STREET
TELEVISION
Over 1000 appearances. * indicates multiple appearances.
Steve Allen Show*
Merv Griffin*
Mike Douglas*
On Broadway*
Night Life*
The Tonight Show*
Steve Lawrence
Garry Moore*
Al Capp Show
Dinah Shore
John Davidson Show*
Sweepstakes*
Woody Herman Special
Everything Goes*
Greatest Lounge Comics of Las Vegas
Just for Laughs
The Allen Hamel Show*
The Allen Thick Show*
Benson
Jerry Lewis Telethon
Playboy Dance-Off
Bloopers and Foul-ups
Liar's Club (65 shows)
The Next Line
Totally Hidden Video
Sammy Davis Show
Redd Foxx Show
Dave Garroway
Peggy Fleming Special
Make Me Laugh*
Pete hosted a 13-week variety series on KING-TV, the NBC affiliate in Seattle and his own celebrity-interview series on the CBS affiliate in Las Vegas.
Pete starred for four years in his own Canadian TV series, a sit-com called "Pete's Place," which featured top American guest stars.
Pete starred in another Canadian TV series, 130 episodes, a celebrity-guest cooking show called "Celebrity Microwaves."
Pete was also a regular on the long-running network radio show "The Arthur Godfrey Show."
CONVENTIONS
Union Pacific
Southland Corp.
Washington Bar Association
Washington AMA
Northwest Builders
Associated Grocers
National Jazz Educators
The Grammy Awards
B.P.O.E. Elks
Nevada Realty Dealers
Academy of Recording Arts
California Nurses Association
Associated Jewelers
McKinsey Financial
National Association on Catering Executives
Washington State Food Dealers
Midwest Clothiers
Mercury Marine
Motorola
Calgary Stampede
Holiday Inns
Whirlpool
American Flooring Dealers
West Texas Advertising
Letter Carriers of America
FAIRS AND COLLEGES
San Francisco Italian Festival (7 years)
Milwaukee Italian Festival (5 years)
Spokane Sportsman Show
Milwaukee Home Show (5 years)
Wichita Jazz Festival (7 years)
Otter Crest Jazz Festival
World's fairs in Seattle/Spokane/Knoxville
Tampa Jazz Festival
Corpus Christi Jazz Festival
Riverside Jazz Festival
Purdue University
Montana State
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Washington State University
Olympic College
University of Idaho
Central Washington State
Green River Community College
PRESS CLIPPINGS
OAKLAND TRIBUNE
"He is a master of timing and there are moments when his improvisation borders on genius."
LOS ANGELES TIMES (Leonard Feather)
"He is outrageously funny, a gas."
DETROIT FREE PRESS
"Barbutti is something else...He is a wild comic with trigger-quick style."
INDIANAPOLIS NEWS
"He is one of the funniest men ever to stop off in Indianapolis on his way to national fame and fortune."
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
"Barbutti laughs at convention, at himself and at comedy in general. He is as close to a satire of a comedian as I've seen."
OREGON POST
"Pete Barbutti is the first of the "new young comedians" I've seen who gives promise of becoming an "old great comedian."
DETROIT TIMES
"It is no overstatement to say that Pete Barbutti is a gallant comic. He's hep but not snobbish...getting through to everybody."
VANCOUVER BC
"Pete Barbutti, in my opinion, one of the funniest and most original comedians in the business."
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
"Comedian Pete Barbutti opened for Sinatra. The program notes state that he has been named Las Vegas entertainer of the Year. One can see why."
SHOWBIZ MAGAZINE
"The show features one of the funniest men ever to walk on stage, Pete Barbutti."
VARIETY
"Barbutti is easily Las Vegas' number one AMBASSADOR OF COMEDY. His adept humor and rare wit makes every session an experience to cherish."
LOS ANGELES HERALD EXAMINER
"Barbutti, as intelligent as he is gifted, seems to be well aware of what is good and bad. His stage work, done with what appears to be effortless grace, is a series of absurdities."
LAS VEGAS SUN
"Humorist-wit and master musician: nearly peerless except for Bill Cosby...Pete's glee club segment should have been preserved on film."
SEATTLE PI
"You can see Barbutti 50 times and keep coming back for more!"
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER
"He is an original, this Barbutti. Off beat, satiric in a delightfully broad way and funny in almost every way."
NEW YORK TIMES
"He has an attitude in confronting his audience unlike any other comic. Pete Barbuti's only trouble is that he isn't on stage long enough."
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
"Pete Barbutti...for my money the funniest, hippest and freshest comedian around."
VARIETY
"It's been a long time since he played New York in his early days when he used his fender bass as the base of his exposition. He has since matured and perfected his style to the point where he is possibly one of the funnier humorists."
LOS ANGELES TIMES
"Warning! Pete Barbutti may be hazardous to your health. Excessive laughter may induce shortness of breath and we all know where that can lead."
VARIETY
"Opening for Sinatra is Pete Barbutti, comic with a literate point of view who can play the piano seriously. He is able to accomplish this despite the fact that Carnegie Hall is not as intimate as a nitery, where he is at his best. It's still top comedy fodder."
Pete states
"Receiving any reward which recognizes anyone's service is gratifying
However, an award presented by your peers, or those for whom you have respect, is especially
gratifying. Recognition by the general public, or audience, is based not on any special talent or ability but on your appeal to the masses regardless of the quality of that talent. It could be, and often is, in response to publicity or promotion. Having received both, I can honestly say there is a difference!"
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