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     As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 27, 1997

                                                     Registration No. 333-_____
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                             Washington, D.C. 20549
                             ----------------------

                                    FORM S-8

                             REGISTRATION STATEMENT
                                     UNDER
                           THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
                 ----------------------------------------------

                           STUART ENTERTAINMENT, INC.
             (Exact name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

                 ----------------------------------------------

           DELAWARE                                        84-0402207
 (State or Other Jurisdiction                           (I.R.S. Employer
of Incorporation or Organization)                      Identification No.)

                              3211 NEBRASKA AVENUE
                           COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA 51501
                    (Address of Principal Executive Offices)

                       1997 EMPLOYEE STOCK PURCHASE PLAN

                            (Full Title of the Plan)
                 ----------------------------------------------

                               MICHAEL A. SCHALK
                              CORPORATE SECRETARY

                           STUART ENTERTAINMENT, INC.
                              3211 NEBRASKA AVENUE
                           COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA 51501
                    (Name and Address of Agent for Service)

                                 (712) 323-1488
         (Telephone Number, Including Area Code, of Agent For Service)

                                    Copy to:
                             WARREN L. TROUPE, ESQ.
                            DEBORAH A. SCHULTZ, ESQ.
                            MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP
                          370 17TH STREET, SUITE 5200
                                DENVER, CO 80202
                                 (303) 592-1500
               --------------------------------------------------

                        CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE




===========================================================================================
                                                               Proposed                    
                                                               Maximum          Proposed   
                             Amount           Maximum          Aggregate        Amount of 
 Title of Securities         to be         Offering Price      Offering        Registration
  to be Registered         Registered       Per Share(1)       Price(2)           Fee
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                   
Common Stock, 
$.01 par value
per share                   300,000           $3.75          $1,125,000.00       $340.91
===========================================================================================


(1)  Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee.


- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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                                    PART II

               INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT


ITEM 3.    INCORPORATION OF DOCUMENTS BY REFERENCE.

       The following documents filed by Stuart Entertainment, Inc. (the
"Registrant") with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "Commission")
are incorporated by reference herein:

       (a)   The Registrant's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended 
December 31, 1996.

       (b)   The Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the three months 
ended March 31, 1997.

       (c)   The description of the Registrant's Common Stock which is 
contained in its Registration Statement on Form 8-A dated October 28, 1982.

       All documents filed by the Registrant with the Commission pursuant to
Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, prior
to the filing of a post-effective amendment which indicates that all securities
offered have been sold or which deregisters all securities then remaining
unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into this Registration
Statement and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents.
Any statement contained in a document incorporated by reference herein shall be
deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this Registration Statement
to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently
filed document which also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference
herein modifies or supersedes such statement. Any statement so modified or
superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to
constitute a part of this Registration Statement.

ITEM 4.    DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES.

       Not applicable.

ITEM 5.    INTERESTS OF NAMED EXPERTS AND COUNSEL.

       Not applicable.



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ITEM 6.    INDEMNIFICATION OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS.

         Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law provides generally
and in pertinent part that a Delaware corporation may indemnify its directors
and officers against expenses, judgments, fines and settlements actually and
reasonably incurred by them in connection with any civil suit or action, except
actions by or in the right of the corporation, or any administrative or
investigative proceeding if, in connection with the matters in issue, they
acted in good faith and in a manner they reasonably believed to be in, or not
opposed to, the best interests of the corporation, and in connection with any
criminal suit or proceeding, if in connection with the matters in issue, they
had no reasonable cause to believe their conduct was unlawful. Section 145
further provides that in connection with the defense or settlement of any
action by or in the right of the corporation, a Delaware corporation may
indemnify its directors and officers against expenses actually and reasonably
believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interest of the corporation.
Section 145 permits a Delaware corporation to grant its directors and officers
additional rights of indemnification through bylaw provisions and otherwise and
to purchase indemnify insurance on behalf of its directors and officers.

         Article Eight of the Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant
requires the Registrant to indemnify, to the fullest extent permitted by
Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, all directors and officers
of the Registrant, which it has the power to indemnify, from and against any
and all expenses, liabilities or other matters referred to in Section 145.

         The Registrant's Certificate of Incorporation also provides in Article
Seven that directors shall not be personally liable to the Registrant or its
stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director,
except for liability (i) for any breach of a director's duty of loyalty to the
Registrant or its stockholders, (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or
which involve intentional misconduct or knowing violations of law, (iii) under
Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law or (iv) for any transaction
from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.

         Article III, Section 16 of the Registrant's Bylaws provides, in
general, that the Registrant shall indemnify its directors and officers to the
fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law.

         The Registrant maintains liability insurance coverage for its
directors and officers.

ITEM 7.    EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION CLAIMED.

       Not applicable.



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ITEM 8.    EXHIBITS.

       5        Opinion of Morrison & Foerster LLP.

       23.1     Consent of Morrison & Foerster LLP (contained in Exhibit 5).

       23.2     Consent of Deloitte & Touche LLP, independent auditors.

       24       Power of Attorney (See page II-2).

ITEM 9.    UNDERTAKINGS.

                   (a) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:

              (1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being
made, a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement:

                   (i) To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3)
of the Securities Act;

                   (ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events
arising after the effective date of the Registration Statement (or the most
recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the
aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the
Registration Statement;

                   (iii) To include any material information with respect to
the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the Registration Statement
or any material change to such information in the Registration Statement.



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       Provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not apply
if this Registration Statement is on Form S-3 or Form S-8 and the information
required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is
contained in periodic reports filed by the Registrant pursuant to Section 13 or
Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in this
Registration Statement.

              (2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the
Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new
registration statement relating to the securities offered herein, and the
offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona
fide offering thereof.

              (3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective
amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the
termination of the offering.

       (b) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of
determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the
Registrant's annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the
Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan's
annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is
incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a
new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the
offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona
fide offering thereof.

       (c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the
Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons
of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions or otherwise, the
Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Commission such
indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act,
and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification
against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses
incurred by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the
successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such
director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being
registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the
matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of
appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is
against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed
by the final adjudication of such issue.




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SIGNATURES

        Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
Stuart Entertainment, Inc. certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe
that it meets all the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused
this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned,
thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Council Bluffs, State of Iowa, on
June 23, 1997.


                                         STUART ENTERTAINMENT, INC.



                                         By: /s/ Timothy R. Stuart
                                            -------------------------------
                                             Timothy R. Stuart, President



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                               POWER OF ATTORNEY

        KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature
appears below constitutes and appoints Timothy R. Stuart, with full power to
act alone, his true and lawful attorneys-in-fact, with the power of
substitution, for him and in his name, place and stead, in any and all
capacities, to sign any and all amendments (including post-effective
amendments) to this Registration Statement, and to file the same, with all
exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact full
power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite
and necessary to be done as fully to all intents and purposes as he might or
could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said
attorneys-in-fact may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

        Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this
Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the
capacities and on the dates indicated:




          SIGNATURE                                      TITLE                                       DATE
          ---------                                      -----                                       ----
                                                                                           
/s/ Leonard A. Stuart                       Chairman of the Board                                June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------
    Leonard A. Stuart

/s/ Albert F. Barber                        Vice Chairman of the Board                           June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------    and Chief Executive Officer
    Albert F. Barber                                                   

/s/ Timothy R. Stuart                       President, Chief Operating                           June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------    Officer and Director
    Timothy R. Stuart                                           

/s/ Perry J. Lewis                          Director                                             June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------
    Perry J. Lewis

/s/ Ira Starr                               Director                                             June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------
    Ira Starr

/s/ Sangwoo Ahn                             Director                                             June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------
    Sangwoo Ahn

/s/ Stanley M. Taube                        Director                                             June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------
    Stanley M. Taube

/s/ Richard D. Spizzirri                    Director                                             June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------
    Richard D. Spizzirri

/s/ Ronald G. Rudy                          Director and Executive                               June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------    Vice President
    Ronald G. Rudy                                        

/s/ Paul C. Tunink                          Vice President-Finance,                              June 23, 1997
- ----------------------------------------    Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer
    Paul C. Tunink                                                               




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                                 EXHIBIT INDEX



EXHIBIT
NUMBER                            DESCRIPTION
- ------                            -----------

5             Opinion of Morrison & Foerster LLP.

23.1          Consent of Morrison & Foerster LLP (contained in Exhibit 5).

23.2          Consent of Deloitte & Touche LLP, independent auditors.

24            Power of Attorney (See page II-2).