today is March 14th, which is the anniversary of Howard Ashman’s premature death in 1991, 25 years ago. Ashman was the playwright and lyricist behind musical Little Shop of Horrors and responsible for the lyrics of many classic Disney songs, including every song from The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.
Ashman was one of the leading factors behind Disney’s continuation in making animated musicals. he would hold story meetings and explain that Disney’s animation style fit perfectly with the musical partnership of him and Alan Menken, and how necessary it was for Disney to continue animating musical films.
he was also responsible for many casting choices, providing us with the voices we’ve come to adore today. Ashman and Menken won an Academy Award for The Little Mermaid.
after finishing up on TLM, Ashman pitched the idea of Aladdin to Disney. Menken and Ashman wrote a group of songs for the film and were excited to work on it together. Ashman wrote a 40 page film treatment remaining faithful to the plot and characters of the original story.
however, during Ashman’s early creation of Aladdin, Disney approached Ashman and Menken in a desperate plea to help save the production of Beauty and the Beast, which was going nowhere as a non-musical film. Ashman, who wanted to focus on Aladdin and his health, reluctantly agreed.
on the night that Ashman and Menken won their Oscar for The Little Mermaid, Ashman told Menken they needed to have an important talk, where Ashman revealed he was HIV positive. he had been diagnosed in 1988 halfway through making TLM.
as Ashman and Menken agreed to save Beauty and the Beast, animators had to go to Ashman’s home in New York to work but were not aware why. many animators thought the reason was Ashman being a ‘big shot’, but soon it became clear that he was seriously ill.
he grew weaker, but remained productive and continued to write songs.
on March 10th, 1991, Disney animators had their first screening of Beauty and the Beast. it was an enormous success.
afterward, they visited Howard in hospital. he weighed 80 pounds, had lost his sight and could barely speak. his mother showed animators that he was wearing a Beauty and the Beast sweatshirt.
the animators told him that the film was incredibly well received by the press and described to him how the screening went. he nodded appreciatively to the news.
as everyone said their goodbyes, producer Don Hahn leaned over to Howard and said “Beauty and the Beast is going to be a great success. Who’d have thought?” to which Ashman replied, “I would have.”
four days later, Ashman died at age 40 due to complications from AIDS. Beauty and the Beast is dedicated to him: “To our friend Howard, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul, we will be forever grateful.”
Aladdin went through drastic changes from Ashman’s original concept and of the 18 songs he and Menken wrote together, only 3 made it into the film.
Menken, however, continued to work on the film and finished his songwriting partner’s beloved project after Ashman’s death. Aladdin was released in theatres on November 25th, 1992 to worldwide acclaim.
without Howard Ashman, “Under The Sea” and “Part of Your World” would not exist. Beauty and the Beast would not exist, for Menken and Ashman saved the project. the Disney renaissance might not have existed, and movies like The Princess and the Frog and Frozen would not exist, as Disney would not have continued making animated musical films without Ashman’s contributions.
today, we should all appreciate this man’s hard work and the sacrifices he made to create such wonderful musicals!
pasts, presents and futures would not be the same without his ideas, because so many childhoods would not have been influenced by his works!! he changed the world of animation with his lyrics, and that is an amazing thing to think about!!! he gave up his beloved project of Aladdin to save Beauty and the Beast, and it became the first animated movie to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture!!!
and he did all of this while fighting for his life against an awful, awful illness!! how amazing is that??
Howard was survived by his partner Bill Lauch, and when Ashman was awarded his second Oscar posthumously for Beauty and the Beast, Lauch accepted the award in his stead.
Howard was named a Disney Legend in 2001, a hall of fame program at The Walt Disney Company that recognises individuals who have made an extraordinary and integral contribution to The Walt Disney Company.
today is the 25th anniversary of his death.
