Beauty and the Beast

The legacy of “Beauty and the Beast” is forever linked with the last days of Howard Ashman. When we started writing our songs Howard’s health issues were something he was keeping secret.

AIDS was a death sentence, both physically and professionally. But, as we worked on our songs, his angst, his anger and his anxiety would create an unbearable writing and demoing process. The smallest issues would become magnified into personal crises. And I didn’t understand why. Then, following our Oscar wins for “The Little Mermaid”, Howard let me in on what was happening and, from that point forward, as heavily as his impending mortality weighed on us, we were united in understanding the road ahead. The score is forever tinged with the idea of undying love and the movie was deepened by the personal drama that was being played out behind the scenes.