Rob Stewart temporarily joined Canada's work force following high school graduation in Brampton. He proceeded to get fired from nearly every job he got.

Stewart finally decided to clean up his act when a series of small accidents marred a construction job he held briefly. He had been fired after severing a water main and nearly killing the boss's son. He had claimed he could drive a forklift ... he hadn't guaranteed he could do it well.

Goaded into action

"That construction job led me directly to show business," says Stewart, 29, a burly, six-foot, athletic type with a ponytail. "It was the only career I could think of after asking the question, "Where can you be a total screw-up and make money at it?" And here I am, only a decade later, the star of my own television series, Sweating Bullets."

When it ran on CBS last season, it was the first Canadian/Mexican series co-production in history, with Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, substituting for the fictitious Key Mariah in Florida. This season, in an about-turn, it's a Canadian/Israeli co-production, with the Israeli seaport of Elat standing in for the Florida key. Stewart, however, still portrays Nick Slaughter, a beach bum/private eye who managed to get kicked out of the Mounties and the U. S. Drug Enforcement Administration before he became an entrepreneur.

Slaughter -- who prefers ice cold beer and hot women to apprehending criminals -- is goaded into action occasionally by Sylvie Girard (Carolyn Dunn), his calculating quasi-business manager and sometime partner. Their burned-out former rock musician sidekick, Ian Stewart (John David Bland), once had a hit single with a group called Ground Zero and now operates Ian's Dive Shop and The Tropical Heat Bar.

Stewart, who spent 1½years unemployed and was $6,000 in debt before hooking on to Sweating Bullets, had a wonderful time last season working 15-18 hours a day, six days a week in Puerto Vallarta's searing tropical heat. "I worked harder and drank less than ever in my entire life," he says. "My only complaint is that Montezuma had a personal vendetta against my bowels -- and I don't even drink water."

The son of a bank loans officer and a real estate property manager was born in Bramalea and raised in Brampton, where he aspired to a professional athletic career. At 17, his dreams ended while playing centre for the Bramalea Blues, a junior B hockey team. Butt-ended by a hockey stick, he suffered a ruptured kidney that was subsequently removed.

"It was one of those things that changed my life," Stewart recalls, "in that my interests shifted from sports to reading, writing and music. After my early experiences in the retail business, I put myself through a couple of years as an English major at the university of Waterloo by playing the guitar and singing in local clubs. I also worked as a riding instructor and did a stunt show at Canada's Wonderland during the summers."

Stewart's luck changed in 1986 when he teamed up with a cousin to write a no-budget film based on a John Keats poem, which led to a deal with CHCH TV in Hamilton to co-write, co-star in, produce and direct a low-budget telemovie called Mark Of The Beast. "It was by far the worst movie ever made, but it was cheap," he says, laughing. "So CHCH gave us a deal for two more cheapo TV movies, Where There's A Will and Come Spy With Me."

He kept rolling for a while with guest shots on Canadian-produced series such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Hot Shots, and the mini-series Mount Royal, then ran out of luck for a long dry-spell until Sweating Bullets came along. Totally out of money and a couple of months sleeping on a bench near a church on Toronto's Avenue Road. He sought shelter with relatives when pneumonia set in.

Paying off creditors

"This series has changed my life in a number of ways already, including paying off all my creditors," Stewart says happily. "And most of my dad's, mom's and brother's creditors. And the weekly exposure has opened a few doors in Hollywood already. Sweating Bullets has given me a legitimate acting start and I'm focusing only on what I have to do to make it work."

The part of Nick Slaughter is tailor-made, according to Stewart. "This guy's close to home -- moody, dark and cynical. Sometimes violent. But underneath, he has a warm heart. And he's a self-deprecating hero who loses a lot."

In that respect, Stewart and Nick have a lot in common. "This show basically broke it off with my ex-girlfriend, an actress just starting out at home. Now I understand why it's so hard for people in this business to keep relationships together -- being away for months will kill any romance."

Eirik Knutzen

©The Toronto Star