Danny Gans

Danny Davies Gans (October 25, 1956 – May 1, 2009) was an American singer, comedian and vocal impressionist.

Career Gans was a performer on the Las Vegas Strip and the surrounding area, where he was billed as "The Man of Many Voices." He had been named Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year and his production had been awarded Show of the Year for 10 straight years from 1998 to 2008.

Prior to entering show business, Gans was a professional baseball player. He was drafted by the Chicago White Sox after being named an All-America at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo where he was a Physical Education major. It was at Cal Poly that he met his wife, Julie.

Later, he held a small role as a third baseman in the romantic comedy Bull Durham (1988). After an injury ended his sporting career—a player's spikes tore his Achilles tendon while he was fielding a ground ball—Gans turned to the entertainment industry. Gans began his career on the road, performing mostly at private corporate functions. In 1992, he played Dean Martin in the CBS miniseries Sinatra. His show there was successful and he moved over to the Rio in 1998. In 2000, Gans' show moved again, this time to The Mirage where the Danny Gans Theatre was built for him.

At the time of his death, he was grossing $18 million a year. shortly after his wife called paramedics saying he was having difficulty breathing. The cause of death was a drug toxicity caused by the combination of hydromorphone (an opiate, commonly marketed under the name Dilaudid) and a pre-existing heart condition. It was determined that his death was caused by an adverse drug reaction, and was not drug abuse-related.

Gans had three children, Amy, Andrew and Emily.

Film and television Gans had been noted many times for his role in Bull Durham, although his role in the movie was ultimately downsized. He used this role as an addition to his resume, even going on Roy Firestone's show and promoting the role while holding a picture of himself from the movie to prove that he was, in fact, in it.

He had an uncredited cameo as himself in the sci-fi adventure movie Race to Witch Mountain (2009). Gans was mentioned several times, but did not appear, in an episode of the sitcom Gary Unmarried (which aired shortly after his death, on May 6, 2009). When aired, the episode was accompanied by an "In Memory Of" end-credit dedicated to Gans.

In the 2025 film Voices: the Danny Gans Story, his son Andrew tells the story of his father through interviews and performances.