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 | 10 Ways Danny Became Vegas' Hottest Act
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3. Field ground balls for Kevin Costner.
By the late '80s, Gans added another line to his resume: actor. He did commercials, got a gig on a short-lived Fox sitcom (Open House, which also featured an unknown Ellen DeGeneres) and suited up as a member of the Durham Bulls in the Kevin Costner baseball comedy, Bull Durham. He was Deke, the shortstop. He didn't have many lines, and he didn't become a breakout star like Tim Robbins (the Bulls' pitcher Nuke LaLoosh), but he was on the big screen. And back in the game.
4. Tell jokes to the catsup kings.
While acting was paying bills, the corporate circuit was paying the mortgage--and then some. By the early '90s, the dirt-defying Gans was the self-described "darling of the Fortune 500 list," picking up five-figure checks for entertaining bigwigs at companies such as Heinz, IBM and McDonald's with his easy-on-the-ears music and comedy impressions. Soon, he was playing 200 concert dates a year. The only thing he had more of was voices in his repertoire (about 300 at last count).
5. Cash in your frequent flyer miles.
No doubt about it--Gans was successful. Maybe too successful. He's remembered his daughter Amy, then 7, drawing a picture entitled, "The Gans Family." "There was my wife, my three kids and the dog. Where was I? I was the face in the airplane window above them all," Gans has recalled. Gans, who in 1995 had added the Broadway stage to his plate, then decided it was time to settle down.
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ON HIS IMPRESSIONS: "My dad loved The Ed Sullivan Show. I remember as a little kid ... I would do an impression of Ed Sullivan, and he would just fall out. As the years went by, I started doing impressions of the acts that were on the show ...
I'd stand up and turn the TV off and re-create the show. It was the funniest thing."
ON HIS NEW IMPRESSION-FREE CD: "It is a wonderful release to record as 'Danny.' These songs really mean everything to me. I've always done my own voice in my show, but that wasn't what the show was all about. Now I'll be singing songs from the album in my show."
ON LUCK, PART 2: "Sure, you need some breaks along the way, but when those breaks come you've got to be ready."
ON SUCCESS, PART 2: "My dad taught me at a very young age that success is not making a lot of money; it's being happy every day of your life in what you do, what you've chosen. So if you can make a million dollars a year at something you hate, or make $50,000 and you can't wait to get to work, choose the $50,000 job. I thought, If I can't play baseball, what's the next closest thing? And I figured, well, that would be show business. And I've never looked back."
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6. Move to Vegas.
A must if you intend to become Vegas' hottest act, and in Gans' case, a must if he intended to fix his home life. His first stop was at the Stratosphere, where he became the house act in March 1996. Less than a year later, with buzz building, he'd stepped up to the Rio. Recognizing a hot act when it was sizzling, the casino hiked ticket prices early and often, from $39.95 all the way up to $99. Gans, fearing loyal fans would be shut out, protested, but the pricey prices stayed. And so did demand.
7. Keep 'em guessing.
Regardless of the venue, Gans' Vegas act isn't too different from its early Stratosphere days--it's always 90 minutes worth of different. One night he's Stevie Wonder serenading Shirley MacLaine. The next night (or the next bit), he's the Rat Pack--all of them. Even Joey Bishop. "I tell people my act is like weather in Hawaii," Gans has said. "If you don't like it, wait five minutes and it will change."
8. Hit the jackpot.
Steve Wynn has told it this way: "One night, Mel Brooks and his wife, Anne Bancroft, came to town. Mel said to me, 'I have to see Danny Gans; all I hear about is Danny Gans.'" Wynn got them into the show; they raved. Wynn took a look for himself, and in 1999 the Mirage lured Gans away from the Rio with the promise of a new theater, a big marquee and a 10-year contract--reportedly worth as much as $150 million. Said Wynn: "The prospect of having him in the same place with Siegfried & Roy made our mouths water." Said Gans, when his Danny Gans theater opened in 2000: "I feel that God honored the fact that I put my family first."
9. Keep the ushers in line.
Ever the disciplined athlete, Gans has been known to save his voice by resorting to sign language with his kids and preserve his physique (on display in his trademark form-fitting black T-shirt) with a diet of egg whites, chicken breasts and hard work. He makes sure everybody in his Mirage show is on the same page--the ushers included. "I've had a couple of pep talks with even them, saying we can't take this for granted any time," Gans once said.
10. Remember Sammy.
"He did everything I ever wanted to do in one show," Gans has recalled of seeing Sammy Davis Jr. on stage. "He sang, danced, did impressions and played instruments. He was funny, he was dramatic, and I said, 'That's what I'm going to do.'"
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