Howard Ashman in the recording studio

The Legend Behind the Lyrics of Beauty and the Beast

By William Keck “To our friend Howard, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul, we will be forever grateful.” This dedication in the closing credits of Beauty and the Beast pays homage to the film’s lyricist, Howard Ashman, who never lived to see the final print. Were only real life as just …

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Belle

Tales of the Songs and Score for Beauty and the Beast

By Alexander Rannie In hindsight it seems a no-brainer that Beauty and the Beast, Disney’s 30th animated feature, would have begun life as a musical. But as many folks know, this wasn’t the case. Songwriters Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, fresh off their success with The Little Mermaid, immediately began working on songs for Aladdin. …

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Beauty and the Beast

Beauty and the Beast: Journey to a Classic

By Jim Fanning A beastly leading man, a bookworm princess, a brittle brood of supporting characters in a story confined to a dark castle. These unlikely elements make up one of the most well-known yet unlikely fairy tales ever—and only the magic of Disney animation could bring it to the screen with such unforgettable enchantment. …

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Beauty and the Beast

How to Make a Beauty Fall in Love with a Beast

By William Keck One of the greatest challenges facing the creative team behind Beauty and the Beast was convincing their audience that a lovely young French maiden with her head buried in books could fall in love with a monstrous buffalo-headed creature sporting a lion’s mane, wolf’s tail and the tusks of a boar. Not …

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Alan Menken

23 Questions with Alan Menken

Every few seconds, a pastel-colored clamshell glides into a melodious room of spinning starfish, dancing crustaceans, and instrument-playing sea dwellers in Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid at Walt Disney World. More than 20 years after The Little Mermaid’s film release, timeless Alan Menken songs (“Under the Sea” and “Kiss the Girl,” …

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