Died On This Date (May 1, 1986) Hugo Peretti / Songwriter & Producer
themusicsover Hugo Peretti
December 6, 1916 – May 1, 1986
Hugo Peretti was one half of the songwriting and producing team, Hugo and Luigi. Luigi was his cousin, Luigi Creatore. Throughout his career, Peretti wrote or co-wrote such hits as “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” and “Can’t Help Falling In Love.” As a producer, he worked with Jimmie Rodgers, Sam Cooke, Perry Como and more. Peretti also owned parts of Roulette and Avco Records. He died of unknown causes at the age of 69.
A long time headliner in Las Vegas, Danny Gans was known as “The Man of Many Voices.” Before he went into entertainment, Gans played baseball for the Durham Bulls, but an injury derailed his sports career so he set his sights on Broadway where he perfected his one man show. In 1996, he moved to Las Vegas, starting at the Stratosphere. He eventually moved his show to the Rio, the Mirage, the Encore, and most recently, the Encore. The sign advertising his show is reportedly the largest free-standing marquee in the world. In 1992, Gans portrayed 
Steve Gideon was a musical theater actor who has appeared in such plays as Marry Me and Naked Boys Singing. Gideon began performing in local theater while still in high school in North Carolina and could also be heard DJing at a local radio station. After high school, Gideon attended Harvard where he continued to perform on the stage. He eventually moved to Los Angeles where he became very active in the local theater scene. In 1995, Gideon released a CD, Feels Like Home. On May 1, 2009, Steve Gideon passed away at his home while battling colon cancer.
As a writer for Cream and Rolling Stone magazines, Lester Bangs was a highly influential rock music journalist. Bangs’ first review to be published came in 1969 when he answered a Rolling Stone ad looking for readers’ reviews. He sent in a negative critique of the MC5’s Kick Out The Jams, and never looked back. Bangs wrote for the magazine until 1973 when he was fired for allegedly being too critical and disrespectful toward the musicians he wrote about. Bangs relocated to Detroit where he edited and wrote for Cream. It was Cream that Bangs began to build his reputation as a brilliant if not confrontational music journalist. In the ensuing years, he contributed to Playboy, the Village Voice and NME. Bangs died of an accidental overdose at the age of 33. Drugs he had been taking to treat a cold adversely interacted with each other.