The Las Vegas Review-Journal is reporting that Danny Gans died in his sleep last night.

Gans had opened at Steve Wynn's Encore just three months ago.

Encore Las Vegas and representatives of the Danny Gans show report the Las Vegas headliner died in his sleep early this morning. He was 52.

The cause of death is unknown.

Henderson Police spokesman Officer Todd Rasmussen said this morning they received a call about 3:45 a.m. from a woman inside the home at 761 Ricota Court in Henderson. The woman said that a 52-year-old male was having breathing problems. When officers and paramedics arrived they found the man unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Rasmussen said, as per department procedure, police are conducting a death investigation at the home.

Gans has been a Las Vegas entertainer for more than 12 years performing as a self-described "musical impressionist."

In an official statement from Gans' manager Chip Lightman, he said Gans died in his sleep around 3 a.m.

"Danny Gans will not only be remembered as a Las Vegas entertainer, but as a man who loved his family, loved God, and loved the City of Las Vegas.

"Danny Gans has been my partner and dear friends for over 18 years, I will truly miss him. My thoughts and prayers are with his wife of 28 years, Julie Gans, and 3 children, Amy, Andrew and Emily."

Casino developer Steve Wynn also released a statement about the entertainer.

"Elaine and I and all of us in the company are devastated at the loss of our brilliant, talented and loving friend. One of the most unique human beings and entertainers in the world has been taken from us in an unexpected moment. A profoundly tragic event that leaves us all sad and speechless. The loss of Danny to his wife Julie, his children Amy, Andrew and Emily is at this moment impossible to comprehend. We will all try to go on with our lives without our dear friend. At this moment it seems almost impossible."

Gans' show at The Mirage earned him title of "Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year" for 11 years in a row.

In February, Gans changed venues and had been performing his show at the new Encore Theater.

The original Aladdin neon signage designed by Yesco. Brian "Buzz" Leming was part of the design team

Origina Caesar's Palace neon signage designed by Yesco. Brian "Buzz" Leming was part of the design team.

Neon sign designed by Brian "Buzz" Leming

Architecture and Neon in Clark County is the topic of the May 1 panel discussion at 6 pm at the Clark County Government Center. This month we throw the spotlight on the neon and the architecture that made mid-century Las Vegas famous.

Panelists include

Brian “Buzz” Leming, long-time sign designer who mentored under Betty Willis, worked with some of the great sign designers at YESCO and is still designing signs today for Federal Heath.

Helga Watkins, Associate Professor, UNLV Art Dept.,

architect Eric Strain

Dr. David Schwartz, UNLV Library Special Collections.

Friday, May 1st

Clark County Government Center

Clark County Commisioner Chambers

6:00 pm

The discussion, which is free to the public, is part of the ongoing First Friday series “Centennial Stories: Examing Our Past” commemorating 2009 Clark County’s Centennial. The discussion will be broadcast live on CCTV 4. Audience members are encouraged to ask questions

I miss a lot of the Classic era of the Las Vegas Strip, I miss the neon probably most of all, but this last trip to town made me realize that I really do miss that era for more than the neon.  I miss the customer service of days gone by and the feeling that you were entering a special place that wanted to help ensure that you had an enjoyable vacation.

My husband and I just returned from a week in Las Vegas as he attended the National Association of Broadcasters convention.

We stayed off the Strip at the Orleans.  We enjoyed our stay at the Orleans and what follows should not be considered a slam against that property as it is not meant as that.

But, after staying at various Strip hotels over the last 14 years that we have been going to NAB, I am tired of getting nickeled and dimed to death by the hotels.

In the old days, you pulled in your car to the Valet area so that you could then go to Hotel Registration.  A bellman brought the luggage cart and loaded it up with your suitcases and accessories.  That bellman then took your bags up to your room.  You gave him a good tip.

Today's new improved Strip idea is that you pull into Valet Parking.  A bellman still unloads your luggage and your accessories onto the luggage cart.  You tip him.  He takes your bags about 500 feet where they will be stored while you register.  Once you have registered, another bellman will take your bags to your room and unload them for you.  You have to tip him as well.

You have to pay $12.99 a day for internet access.  If you need a small refrigerator in your room, that will cost you extra as well.

Everytime you turn around, it feels like you are paying and paying and paying.

I understand the reasoning behind mega-resorts, the more people you can house, the more money you will make.  But the down side to mega-resorts is that everything is larger and it takes twice as long to get anywhere in the hotel.

We stayed at Bally's last year.  Balley's, of course, is the old (and original) MGM Grand Hotel.  While the hotel has two towers it never has that meg-resort feel to it.  You can valet your car (be sure to tip coming and going), walk across the casino to the hotel elevators and not feel like you just hiked 10 miles from the front entrance to the elevator.  Once you get to your floor, your room is not an additional 5 mile hike.

There's something to be said for hotels that understand that concept.  For years, we enjoyed staying at the Rio Hotel.  When they built the Masquerade Tower, they at least included a parking garage with an elevator and walkway that connected to the hotel.  You could park in that garage and the walk from the side entrance to the hotel elevators didn't leave you feeling like you were in a marathon.

Too often today, staying in the newer hotels, everything feels like a hike, an not a short one.

The restaurants in these mega-resorts are not always good.  As I said, we enjoyed our stay at the Orleans.  One of the big reasons was because the various restaurants had good food and good service, from the Coffee Shop to the Prime Rib Loft and the other eateries in between, we didn't have a bad meal.

Last year at Bally's we were hard pressed to find a single restaurant in that hotel that we liked.  From the Coffee shop to the Steak House, all were forgettable.

We've stayed at the Rio and had some great dining experiences there and some miserable ones.  Same goes for the Venetian, which does have my favorite steak restaurant, Delmonico's.  We ate in the high-end Circo at Bellagio one year and have never returned because it wasn't a memorable meal.

I guess all this is just a long-winded way of saying, I really miss the old-style service.  I liked when hotel owners took pride not only in the casino but in the entire experience and wanted their guests to have a memorable time.

I don't like having a miserable dining experience.  It turns me off the hotel.  I really enjoyed staying at Bally's but I don't like the idea of having to go over to Paris to have a good meal.  Surely, Harrah's could do something to improve the dining experience at Bally's.

Not likely, though,  in the current economic crisis.

So, I guess I'll have to walk down memory lane when staying on the Las Vegas really made you feel special.

Last night there was a meeting with the developers of a new proposed high-speed train and the community.

The proposed train by DesertXpress is not to be confused with the proposed Maglev train.

Besides that there are some other important differences.

The DesertXpress would initially run from Victorville to Las Vegas.  Yes, you read that right, Victorville.  DesertXpress executives are talking to Barstow officials about a possible stop in Barstow.  The trip from Victorville to Las Vegas would take approximately an hour and a half and would cost $50 one-way for each passenger or $100 roundtrip per person.

They hope to connect to a terminus in Palmdale at a later date.  Construction on this first phase of Victorville to Las Vegas would take four years.  According to published reports about the meeting, 

"DesertXpress would share existing transportation corridors, mostly Interstate 15. For example, an 85-mile stretch from Yermo, Calif. to Mountain Pass would be built in the freeway median and alongside it, said Scott Steinwert, president of CirclePoint in San Francisco. CirclePoint is DesertXpress’ environmental consultant.

A span of the train could be built along the Union Pacific Railroad into the Las Vegas area, north of Jean. And a section of I-15 in the southern Las Vegas Valley could be built over the median – Steinwert called this an “aerial structure” – akin to the elevated AirTrain over the Van Wyck Expressway in Queens, N.Y.

A potential Las Vegas station could be near I-15 and Flamingo Road, Steinwert said. A maintenance facility could be built near I-15 and Wigwam or I-15 and Robindale Road."

DesertXpress says that the costs of building their train would be substainly less than the costs fo the proposed maglev train.

However, the Maglev train has two things going for it that the DesertXpress does not.  The Maglev would terminate in Anaheim about two miles from Disneyland and they would have a terminal in Palmdale as well.

As someone who drives the route to Las Vegas on a very regular basis, I'm intriqued by the whole high speed rail idea.  It has been talked about for more years than I can remember, at least thirty at this point.

Back in the 1970s and the 1980s, Amtrak ran the "Desert Wind" between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.  The big problem with the train was that you could drive the route faster than the train could get you there.

My biggest problem with the proposed DesertXpress is that you would have to drive all the way to Victorville and leave your car there while you travel onto Las Vegas.  Once in Las Vegas, you would either have to rent-a-car or travel around car by cab.  Both add to the cost of the trip.

I'm one of those people who believe that there is more to do in Las Vegas than just hanging out on the famed Strip.  In fact, our upcoming Untold Stories next month (May 7th) focuses on Cultural Tourism, and so being carless in Las Vegas is not really an option for me.

The terminus in Victorville basically ensures that no one will travel from Las Vegas to visit Southern California.  I cannot imagine renting a car in Victorville and then driving on into Los Angeles or down to San Diego (and dealing with the traffic) for a long weekend.

This is where the Maglev train has the advantage in my book.  If Las Vegans could travel by train to Anaheim and be within two miles of Disneyland, then the potential for people in both states using the train increases.

The terminus in Palmdale that is proposed by the Maglev train makes it more beneficial for me as I travel the Antelope Valley/Mojave Highway 58/Interstate 15 route as opposed to the standard Interstate 10 to Interstate 15 route.

Also, the big thing that concerns me with the DesertXpress is that the proposed construction for putting the train, in certain areas, down the median of Interstate 15 will cause road work and traffic delays in the extreme on a stretch of highway that is one of the country's busiest in the west.

Lastly, whoever wins this debate will hopefully be farsighted enough to ensure that their technology works with the proposed high speed rail that will connect Palmdale to Northern California.

According to Richann Bender, the Executive Director of the company proposing the Maglev train, there is only room for one of the two proposed trains along the Los Angeles to Las Vegas corridor.

So, the debate will go on and in the meantime, The FRA approved DesertXpress’ draft environmental document last month. Comments from meeting attendees, as well as written testimony submitted by May 22, will be included in the final environmental document, said Wendy Messenger, the FRA’s project manager for the study.

But a high speed train that caters to both Californians and Nevadans would seem to the more advantageous of the two.

The Moulin Rouge

The Moulin Rouge sign is coming down today and being taken over to the Neon Boneyard for safe-keeping while the new owners of the property decide what to do with the Moulin Rouge property.

If anyone gets a chance to go down and take photos please let me know!