Where I Stand—Danny Gans: Making an impression

Thursday, Aug. 5, 1999 | 9:07 a.m.

Editor's note: In August, Where I Stand is written by guest columnists. Today's guest, entertainer Danny Gans, took Las Vegas by storm in 1996 when he arrived here from Broadway to open his show at the Stratosphere. The impressionist-singer-comedian went on to wow audiences at the Rio and now has signed to appear at the Mirage next year in his own showroom -- The Danny Gans Theater. While Gans does more than 200 impressions of other people, he writes today of himself and a value that he cannot impress enough upon readers -- the value of family.

EVER SINCE I can remember, my dream was to become a major league baseball player. My dad shared that dream with me, and spent most of his free time teaching me the finer skills of America's game. He instilled in me that with enough hard work, belief in myself and faith in God, dreams can come true.

We started practicing when I was 5 years old. By the time I was 20, I had been on six all-star teams, won four batting titles, been named to the college All-American team and signed with the Dodger organization.

Midway through my first season as a professional baseball player, I was leading the league in home runs and my future looked bright until disaster struck. A collision at first base left me with a severed Achilles tendon. That was my last turn at bat.

I thought that day was the end of my dreams. But that night, I met a man who told me that God would not have taken baseball away from me unless He had another dream in my future. Little did I know that within two months I would be on stage singing and telling jokes which, up until then, was limited to dugouts and long bus rides. That was 20 years ago. Since then I've never looked back. I've spent most of the time on the road, playing in a variety of places from small clubs to big arenas, and everything in between.

Twelve years ago, my wife and I started our family. We have three children, ages 11, 9 and 4. I can honestly say that after 18 years of marriage my wife is even more beautiful and exciting to me than when we first met 20 years ago. One of the toughest challenges we had to deal with was my being on the road 200 days a year.

Just before I brought my show to Las Vegas, I was in New York, fulfilling another dream -- a one-man show on Broadway. Opening night was one of the most unforgettable nights of my career. There I was, on stage at the beautiful, 1,200-seat Neil Simon Theatre, receiving my fifth standing ovation in front of a packed New York crowd with my family in attendance. My dressing room was filled with flowers and gifts from fellow performers, and telegrams from friends. What a night!

But it was a picture that my then 8-year-old daughter drew for me that really made the night unforgettable. Her picture was entitled "The Gans Family." It was a picture of my wife and three children standing on a hill. When I asked my daughter, "Honey, where's Daddy?" she pointed to the top of the picture where she had drawn an airplane with a face looking out the window.

That night, my manager told me that I had been offered a year's extension on my contract, and that I could sign it the following morning. I didn't get much sleep that night as I pondered my future. My wife and children were happy with their life in Los Angeles, and I was more than 2,000 miles away fulfilling what most people in the industry would consider being my big break. My wife and I prayed that God would take control and fulfill the desires of our hearts for me to continue performing on stage and somehow be together with my family.

The next day I told my manager that I was declining the offer to stay on Broadway, and that I would be returning to Los Angeles at the end of my two-month contract.

Within two weeks, a representative from the Stratosphere hotel-casino in Las Vegas flew to New York to see my show. He offered me a three-month contract, with options, to open their new showroom. Little did I know what was about to take place. I opened on May 16, 1996, to a sold-out audience and have played to capacity crowds ever since.

We just celebrated my third year in Las Vegas, but more importantly three years together with my family. My show sells out two weeks in advance at the Rio hotel-casino, and I now enjoy what I consider to be a normal life. I take my children to school, help coach my son's baseball team, and see all of my children's school plays. Monday night is family night and on Thursdays, my wife and I have "date" nights. Needless to say, I love Las Vegas. I truly believe that my success here is due to prayer, not only mine but hundreds of people across the country.

So in conclusion, to all of you goal-oriented perfectionists like me, I pose a question: Have you ever seen a gravestone inscribed with, "I wish I'd spent more time at the office?"

Thank you, Las Vegas, for providing my family and I with, in the words of Jimmy Stewart, "a wonderful life."