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StumblePolice release incident report, 911 call in Danny Gans death
Published Thursday, June 25, 2009 | 10:41 a.m.
Updated Thursday, June 25, 2009 | 11:59 a.m.
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Sun Archives
- Danny Gans report raises questions from pain specialists (6-11-2009)
- Coroner: Gans’ death was accidental; health problems a factor (6-9-2009)
- Encore Theater packed one last time for Gans (5-21-09)
- As Danny Gans is remembered, we’re reminded to grasp the moment (5-21-09)
- Band member: Gans in ‘top form’ at final show Wednesday (5-2-09)
- Danny Gans was a gifted, unique figure in Las Vegas entertainment history (5-1-09)
- Death of headliner Danny Gans creates gap at Encore (5-1-09)
Julia Gans, the wife of Las Vegas entertainer Danny Gans, awoke early on the morning of May 1 to realize that her husband was no longer snoring, according to an incident report and 911 recording released this morning from the Henderson Police Department.
At about 6 p.m. the night before she had asked her son to get the entertainer for dinner, but he heard his father snoring and decided not to wake him up.
Four hours later she went to the master bedroom and found Gans asleep in bed on his back with his feet slightly elevated, the report indicated.
Gans was still snoring and Julia Gans thought nothing of it since he often snored when he slept. Hours later at 3:40 a.m., she woke up and realized he wasn't snoring.
Julia Gans remains composed on the 911 call as she realizes that her 52-year-old husband is not breathing.
"My husband’s not, um, I can’t seem to wake him up," she tells the operator.
When asked to explain what happened, Julia Gans said she's not sure.
"He was sleeping really heavily and I was just laying here and all of a sudden, the breathing kind of like, just stopped and I came over to try and wake him up and I can’t wake him up," Gans said.
Julia Gans couldn't tell if he was breathing or if he had a pulse. She immediately called 911 and was given instructions on how to administer CPR. She pulled Gans off the bed, put him on the floor and performed CPR until Henderson police arrived. Gans never awoke.
Julia Gans told Henderson Police investigators that at the direction of the police she had gathered and placed all of her husband's medications so they could be examined.
Henderson Police collected the evidence and noted nothing remarkable about the number of pills that were found and counted, the report said.
The coroner's investigators examined Gans' body and noticed that his faced was swollen and red. They found nothing during the examination that suggested foul play.
Clark County Coroner Mike Murphy announced earlier this month that Gans died because of toxic levels of hydromorphone — best known as Dilaudid — in conjunction with other medical conditions.
The impressionist headlined at the Encore.
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It's amazing how composed she is. My prayers go out to Mrs. Gans and their children.
Can anyone imagine the pressure of performing a show like Danny's. Pressure to be perfect every time several nights per week for years and knowing that many others rely on you for their income. It is easy to judge and say that he should have searched for other alternatives for his health problems but when one is in pain and has to go onstage in top form he evidently felt he had no choice but to take this powerful drug.
My deepest condolences go out to Danny's family.
That was the saddest thing I ever heard. Poor family having to go thru all that. So sad.