The Catskills were more than my family’s summer escape—they were where my passion for show business and teamwork took root. From performing in casino halls as a kid to running talent shows, magic acts, and even scrubbing pool gutters at Brown’s Hotel as a teen, I grew up wearing every possible hat in the lively world of Catskill hospitality.

A popular myth claims Jerry Lewis got his start working the Catskills, but here’s the truth: Jerry Lewis never actually performed there. His face was everywhere at Brown’s Hotel thanks to genius marketing, but his comedy career grew elsewhere. While Jerry’s generation turned the Catskills into a comedy workshop, and his image made him the honorary face of the "mountains," his fame was borrowed, not built, in the New York Catskill resorts.

Unlike Jerry’s billboard persona, my Catskills experience  ...