Ben Gannon (producer)

He died of cancer, at home in Sydney on 4 January 2007, aged 54. He had been treated for cancer in 2003.

Gannon was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2006 "For service to the performing arts as a producer contributing to the development of film, television, and theatre in Australia, and in promoting Australian productions and talented actors overseas, and to the community".

In 1998 Gannon co-produced with London producer Robert Fox, Australia's highest-grossing theatre production The Boy from Oz, based on Enright's book and directed by Gale Edwards – which was successfully presented on Broadway, receiving a 2004 Tony Award nomination for Best Musical, and winning the Tony for Best Male Performer in a Musical for its star, Hugh Jackman.

Believing that there was a stage musical in the life and compositions of the Australian songwriter/performer Peter Allen after being alerted to him by Stephen MacLean, he commissioned a book to be written by Nick Enright, based on MacLean's earlier biography. Enright's version was published as Peter Allen: The Boy From Oz. He first produced a documentary of the same name for ABC Television, which aired in 1995.

Gannon returned to Australia in 1980 and was appointed general manager of Associated R & R Films, the Robert Stigwood/Rupert Murdoch joint venture which produced the acclaimed film Gallipoli, of which he was associate producer. After forming his own production company, View Films, he produced two mini-series Shout! The Story of Johnny O'Keefe (starring Terry Serio) and Shadow of the Cobra (starring Rachel Ward and Art Malik).

After schooling at Melbourne's Xavier College Lanbury House, Gannon graduated from the then production course of the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney in 1970.

Bernard Norman Gannon AO (23 September 1952 – 4 January 2007), known as Ben Gannon, was an Australian film, television and stage producer.