His dream of being one of the top players in Major League Baseball was cut short with a sports injury. However, a brand new dream surfaced for this all-American boy who took a chance at entering the exciting and highly-unpredictable world of entertainment.
Danny Gans was an extraordinarily gifted entertainer who continued to sell out the 1,265-seat Danny Gans Theatre at the Mirage Hotel & Casino in the entertainment capital of the world, Las Vegas until his untimely death early this year. His journey from a Southern California baseball star to stand-up comedian, to movies, TV, and a run at Broadway eventually led him to the bright lights of Las Vegas, where as of 2005, he’d earned the title, "Entertainer of the Year" for the eighth time.
"All the hard work that I put into baseball I put into show business." recalled Gans. "I knew that if I worked really hard, it might pay off some day. I never gave up on my dream of being a Strip headliner. I just switched hats. Instead of having a helmet and a baseball bat in my hand, it is now a microphone and a stage.
"After my injury at 22, I had a walking cast on my leg for three months. I was laying around the house one day and my mom said I ought to get up on stage. Up to that point, I was just a fun guy to have on a long bus ride. Mitzi Shore’s legendary Comedy Club had just opened in San Diego. I went there just to watch. A couple of buddies egged me on to go on stage. I went up and did a really good set, about five minutes. That started it all."
Gans covered the whole gamut of show biz. The comedy clubs, singer for a top 40 band, movies, he played the shortstop in "Bull Durham," some commercials, a sitcom, "Open House," and a series called "Silk Stalkings," yet he wasn’t happy; maybe he would give baseball another shot.
"My dad said, before you make any decisions, I want to take you to see someone. We flew to Vegas to see Sammy Davis Jr. He sang great, he danced, he did impressions, he was dramatic, he played instruments. When it was all over, my dad said, what did you get out of the show? I said he was an all-around entertainer. My dad said bingo, nobody is doing that anymore. If you can tap into that, you will never be out of work."
Gans career took off over the next few years. He was offered a monumental one-year contract on Broadway. "I was on the road over 200 days a year. My wife and I had both been praying about me getting off the road. I wanted to spend more time with my family, so I turned down Broadway, not even knowing what was next."
Was it an answer to their prayers? Two weeks later, Gans was offered a contact with the Stratosphere, a yet to be opened hotel in Las Vegas and later signed a three year deal at the Rio. Gans also stayed true to his dream to one day be a headliner on the Strip and eventually turned down the Rio’s lucrative contract extension.
"The day I turned down the Rio in a nice way, not knowing exactly what I would be doing next, my manager got a call from Steve Wynn. He said he was going to build me a theater at the Mirage. We signed a six-year deal and with that my dream of becoming a Strip headliner was complete.
"My best advice on chasing after your dreams is don’t ever accept the word no."
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His dream of being one of the top players in Major League Baseball was cut short with a sports injury. However, a brand new dream surfaced for this all-American boy who took a chance at entering the exciting and highly-unpredictable world of entertainment.
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