Howard Ashman and Alan Menken at the recording session of Be Our Guest

The late lyricist and productor Howard Ashman and the composer Alan Menken at the recording session of Be Our Guest (Disney's Beauty and the Beast) with Jerry Orbach (Lumière), Angela Lansbury (Miss Potts) and Paige O'Hara (Belle).

El letrista Howard Ashman y el compositor Alan Menken en la sesión de grabación de "¡Qué festín!" del Clásico Disney La Bella y la Bestia con Jerry Orbach (Lumière), Angela Lansbury (Señora Potts) y Paige O'Hara (Bella).

©Disney

[alexanderpytko]

Walt Disney actually wanted to do "Beauty and the Beast" after finishing "Pinocchio" but he just couldn't figure out how to make it as magical as "Snow White" and "Pinocchio." Walt tried a few more times to make "Beauty and the Beast" but kept reaching dead ends before getting far in, they just couldn't get the story going. Walt finally put the idea aside and it was kept aside for decades. They tried again, in the 80's to make it but once again, reached a dead end and had to start all over. Given Howard's success with "The Little Mermaid, " Disney felt that Howard was probably the one who could finally break through that barrier and he was. He was then put as the one in charge of making "Beauty and the Beast." Howard, being a big fan of Disney, was able to tackle something that even Walt Disney couldn't. That IS something.

[alexanderpytko]

Howard Ashman and Alan Menken were the perfect team for making musicals. Alan's brilliant music making and Howard's brilliant lyric writing, made songs perfect for movies and musicals. If Howard were still alive we'd still be getting these incredibly magic movies. Howard left the world too soon. :(

[rrfirefly]

Howard was intense, as is often the case when someone has great intelligence and a passion for what he does. His understanding of the role that a song plays in a story's arc brought a new dynamic to Disney's animated musicals.

[JustSomeCanadianGuy]

Howard Ashman and Alan Menken would have won an Oscar every year if Ashman was still around.

[alexanderpytko]

They're in a studio in NYC close by where Howard lived. Whenever they needed to work with Howard, everyone and everything had to come from LA to NYC where Howard was. Everyone including Howard knew it would be much easier if Howard just came from NYC to LA but because Howard was dying from AIDS he could not travel. Whenever they couldn't come to NYC to see Howard, they would perform the dialogue, the singing and music in LA and have Howard listen to it over the phone and he'd give them his feedback. It was not an easy way to make a movie but it was all worth it given that the movie was a HUGE success. Howard was really committed as he kept working on it almost until he died. This was Howard's most successful movie and it sucks that he didn't live to see it's completion. He was the master mind behind this whole movie and yet he was the only one who didn't get to share in it's success.

[alexanderpytko]

They're working on, "Be Our Guest, " here. I think this is when they decided that the song be sung to Belle and not Maurice. They at first made the objects sing the song to Maurice when he arrives but one member of the team said, "Aren't they singing to the wrong person? Shouldn't they be singing to Belle, instead? It's her story." They realized the man had a point, it's a big song and Belle is a big character. If the objects want Belle to break the spell then they should make her feel welcome at the castle as a guest and not as a prisoner. So they went to NY to see Howard and Alan and told them that the song should be sung to Belle instead of Maurice. Howard and Alan strongly agreed. So Howard changed the lyrics a little bit. Jerry Orbach had to re-sing and re-record the song. The animation scenes with Maurice in them had to redone with Belle in Maurice's place. This was a very smart change to make.

[andi]

Wow, Alan Menken had kind of a spectacular 90s mullet, LOL!

[alexanderpytko]

This was about 10 months before Howard Ashman passed away. I think at this point, no one except Alan Menken knew that Howard was dying. By this time, Howard had actually known for about 2 years that he was HIV positive. I think it much later on that Howard revealed everything to the cast and crew and when he did, they were all shocked. They had no idea that he was so ill because he did such a good job hiding it from them.

[iainfisher]

May Howard and Jerry on there rest in piece

[joewhitehead]

Huges props to Ashman for working this hard while he was gravely ill

[Samarastube]

Oh my gosh Jerry and Angela!!! What a hang!

[VikingFyre]

It’s sad we never got that Murder She Wrote and Law and Order crossover. Although Jerry did guest star in an episode of MSW so close enough I guess

[LPJack]

RIP Howard Ashman (May 17, 1950 – March 14, 1991), aged 40
You will always be remembered as a legend.

[ashleybohnert]

Howard ashman save the Disney company he like another walt disney

[King_Colombia_Inc]

Howard has been with me since i was only a baby. His lyrics were like stories coming to life. I had never discovered something absolutely amazing before, and thanks to Howard's legendary talent, i went and named one of my original characters after him, a bubbly female musician named Emily... her surname? Howard-Ashmann.

[josephpurdue]

Bella Y Bestia Son - This is great! Do you have anymore more of this footage or of any Menken recording sessions? His music is powerful, I love seeing it being played for the recordings. Thanks.

[rodneyconyersjr]

Where is the rest of this footage at??

[kennywohl]

After the release of The Little Mermaid Howard wanted Aladdin to be his Next Project He reluctantly Agreed to Beauty and the beast as a favor for the Studio

[stcc]

If I was David Friedman, and Menken spoke to me like that, I’d headbutt the man so hard he’d be chewing on his mullet!