Howard Ashman
American playwright and lyricistWikipedia
78
MENTIONS
37
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35
PODCASTS
Search complete. 78 mentions across 37 episodes found for "Howard Ashman".
Oct 27, 2026
Kolsky MatthewsGUEST
It's nice to know that.
Kolsky MatthewsGUEST
I think that kicked off the careers of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, who are the Disney Renaissance composers, composers and lyricists.
Kolsky MatthewsGUEST
And that's how they like, that was part of their journey to getting to Disney and revolutionizing the musical basically.
Kolsky MatthewsGUEST
Okay.
Miquita OliverHOST
Actually, what happened in the 90s is really interesting.
Miquita OliverHOST
A man called Howard Ashman, oh, it breaks my heart.
Miquita OliverHOST
A man called Howard Ashman, documentary about him on Disney, and I just watched it, and it was fucking amazing.
Miquita OliverHOST
So when everything changed, Little Mermaid, Aladdin.
Jordan StephensHOST
Yeah.
Miquita OliverHOST
Beauty and the Beast, right? Suddenly the characters kind of had more darkness and there was like a different kind of humor.
Miquita OliverHOST
And it's because this brilliant man called Howard Ashman, who had come from like off-Broadway theater in New York, who was part of the LGBTQ plus community.
Miquita OliverHOST
He was a real like curious motherfucker with like cultural influences from jazz and disco.
speaker_8SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
Wandering free, wish I could be part of that world.
speaker_10SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
Like they really nailed the formula with the Little Mermaid and Alan Menken was instrumental in that, but even more so Howard Ashman, his collaborator and lyricist who passed away from AIDS just before Beauty and the Beast premiered and was actually like directing Paige O'Hara as to how to record her lines from his deathbed.
speaker_10SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
And he was actually credited as a producer on The Little Mermaid because he became so involved.
speaker_10SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
And I think if you examine The Little Mermaid from a historical perspective and a story perspective, first of all, Hans Christian Andersen is, from a scholarly perspective, is believed to have been gay himself.
speaker_10SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
And I think Howard Ashman really identified with that theme.
speaker_10SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
and injected it into the film.
speaker_10SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
And the whole thing can really be read as an allegory for a gay person existing in a straight world and wanting, you know, a world that they fit in.
Gene SiskelSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
The songs are not classics.
Gene SiskelSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
Nurses Howard Ashman, who worked on all three films, died during the production.
Gene SiskelSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
But on the positive side, Aladdin also takes greater risk it isn't just built for kids it does stretch the animated form and i do recommend it highly and i think that robin wins does deserve to become the first voice to be nominated for best supporting actor
speaker_22SOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
and then aladdin again he's just this rough and tumble ragtag guy and then again jasmine is a little adventurous wants to do something different she has an animal bestie
Matthew KrulHOST
And these are songs that are not just memorable, but they've been... nominated and have won oscars golden globes grammys even more than that so we talked a little bit about the secret sauce of characters what is the magic for creating iconic disney songs
Ron ClementsGUEST
Well, the beginning of the magic, I would say, was Howard Ashman and Alan Menken.
Ron ClementsGUEST
They brought the magic, and they brought the magic of theater.
Ron ClementsGUEST
I think Mermaid, and that was the first film, and we did not bring Howard on.
Matthew KrulHOST
Yeah, you're right.
Matthew KrulHOST
And when you think about kicking off what's referred to as the Disney Renaissance, it really started with The Little Mermaid.
Matthew KrulHOST
Thinking about Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, we take for granted as fans the number...
Matthew KrulHOST
I'm just thinking of how often we listen to Part of Your World.
DaveGUEST
Beauty and the Beast soundtrack by Walter something.
DaveGUEST
Afanasyaf, Howard Ashman, and Alan Menken.
DaveGUEST
Diva by Annie Lennox.
DaveGUEST
Is it Ingenue by Katie Lang? And Unplugged by Eric Clapton.
Lily MasliaHOST
Yeah.
PJ AdzimaGUEST
They wrote this show, like Howard Ashman, Alan Menken, and, you know, this amazing company of scrappy artists.
PJ AdzimaGUEST
Put on a show, became a little hit.
Lily MasliaHOST
Yeah.
Scott RockfileHOST
Little Shop of Horrors was a low budget 1960 film that they filmed on some used sets, got it out the door for $30,000, and it kind of became a cult classic.
Scott RockfileHOST
Then in the early 80s, Howard Ashman, who worked with Disney on Little Mermaid and things like that, worked on a Broadway stage version of this.
Scott RockfileHOST
Frank Oz was hired to bring it to life in a theatrical life, and he did an amazing job, I think.
Scott RockfileHOST
He's got an incredible cast.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Directed by Frank Oz.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Written by Howard Ashman.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Edited by John Gimsoni.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Cinematography by Robert Painter.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Directed by Frank Oz.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Written by Howard Ashman.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Edited by John Gimsoni.
Michelle RubensteinHOST
Cinematography by Robert Painter.
27 more episodes mention Howard Ashman.
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