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dean-winchesters-clit · 2 years

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With the release of the Little Mermaid (2023) trailer, I want to tell you all about the gay man who saved Disney

After the death of Walt Disney in 1966 and Roy Disney in 1971, the Disney Animation Studio floundered for over a decade and a half. The movies released following the Disneys’ deaths did not do well at the box office or with critics, and the company began losing money quickly. It didn’t help that during the production of The Fox and The Hound, Don Bluth along with a bunch of other Disney animators left the company to start their own animation studio.

After The Fox and The Hound released in 1981, Michael Eisner (best known as the inspiration for Lord Farquad) took over after Walt Disney’s nephew resigned as CEO. Michael Eisner came into the company with the sentiment that they “had no obligation to make art”, and released The Black Cauldron in 1985 to critical and commercial failure. The company hit rock bottom and in response, Eisner moved the animation studio out of the buildings that were DESIGNED FOR ANIMATORS TO ANIMATE IN and into various hangers, warehouses, and trailers. Eisner was about to get rid of the animation studio for good until Walt Disney’s nephew intervened. Thanks to the mild success of The Great Mouse Detective and Oliver and Company, Eisner gave the animation studio another chance.

That’s where our man comes in.

Howard Ashman was born in Baltimore, Maryland in May of 1950. He and Alan Menken (the composer for many many many Disney films) collaborated on The Little Shop of Horrors. Ashman was the lyricists, librettist, and director of the project while Menken wrote the music. They were nominated for a Grammy Award and Ashman received a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics. Ashman then wrote the screenplay for the Frank Oz film adaptation of the musical.

Ashman was brought in to Disney to write a song for Oliver and Company. While there, he was told about several projects the animation studio had on the back burner, one of which was The Little Mermaid.

Ashman became a driving force behind the creation of The Little Mermaid and subsequently, all of the Disney films made between 1989 and 1999. He explained to the animation team how musical theater and animated films were made for each other, and how they had the exact same amount of suspension of disbelief for audiences, which made them a perfect substitute for live action movie musicals which had gone out of fashion after the 1960s.

Ashman wrote all the lyrics to the songs in The Little Mermaid and insisted that Alan Menken be brought on to write the score and music. It was Menken’s first ever movie score and he fucking nailed it. Ashman was the one who insisted on bringing on actors who had musical theater backgrounds. He also insisted that Sebastian the crab be Jamaican so he could include Caribbean inspired music and have an “up” number during the movie. He explained to the writers how musicals were structured, where to include songs, and how those song would weave themselves into the story and feel natural. Ashman was credited as a producer on the film, which was released in 1989 to ENORMOUS SUCCESS. Ashman then went on to write the lyrics to the songs in Beauty and the Beast and three songs from Aladdin, the latter of which he pitched to Disney as an animated musical and wrote a treatment for.

After the release of The Little Mermaid, Ashman revealed to Menken that he had tested positive for HIV/AIDs. Jeffery Katzenburg, the then animation director at Disney, fully supported Ashman during the making of Beauty and the Beast, even creating a studio near his home in New York so he could work easier while receiving treatment. He got to see a private early screening of Beauty and the Beast before he lost his eyesight. He died of heart failure seven months before the film was released in November of 1991.

Beauty and the Beast received a standing ovation at its premiere and was the first and only animated movie to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, a decade before the Best Animated Feature category was added. The film is dedicated to Howard Ashman, a message at the end of the film reading, "To our friend Howard, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul, we will be forever grateful.“ Beauty and the Beast won for Best Original Song at the Oscars, the award presented to Alan Menken and Howard Ashman. Ashman’s partner Bill Lauch accepted the posthumous award for Ashman, making it clear to the audience that he and Howard were a couple and loved each other. Disney was furious that Lauch had said those things during his acceptance speech.

Following Ashman’s death, the 2002 special DVD release of Beauty and the Beast added the song “Human Again” which Ashman and Menken wrote but was cut from the original film. The DVD also featured a special short called Howard Ashman: In Memorium. It features many people from the animation studio talking about Ashman and his invaluable contributions to the films he worked on. Jeffery Katzenburg said that there were two angels watching over them during his days at Disney: Walt Disney himself, and Howard Ashman.

If it weren’t for Howard Ashman, a gay man who died of AIDs in 1991, Disney would not be what it is today. They would have continued to flounder and eventually have gone under. Ashman brought Disney back to life and gave us unforgettable films and inspired countless others. He was the backbone of the Disney Renaissance, creator of the formula that these films followed and allowed them to succeed where previous films hadn’t.

And the modern Disney Corporation refuses to acknowledge his existence. While doing research for this post, I found a documentary on Disney+ about Howard Ashman. It has a one minute long trailer on the Disney+ YouTube account and that’s it. There’s no other marketing for this documentary, no one posting about it, NOTHING. It came out in 2018. FOUR YEARS AND NO ONE KNOWS IT EXISTS. Disney has been erasing the existence of queer people in their history and continue to profit off of the work that queer people did to keep their company afloat. The Beauty and the Beast remake was the first Disney movie to make over a billion dollars and in doing so, they butchered the work of a dying gay man who didn’t even get to see the finished film he worked so hard on.

So, as you make art and gif posts about The Little Mermaid (2023) as more and more trailers and promotional material come out for it, remember Howard Ashman. Remember the man who gave many of us our childhoods, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul.

Rest in peace, Howard.

Here is a video the goes more in depth about Howard’s contributions to Disney and the history surrounding the importance of The Little Mermaid:

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thesecretdiaryofa90sgirl · 2 years

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Walt Disney's Cinderella (1950)

#disney #cinderella #walt disney #classic disney #disney classics #disney characters #disney animated classics #disney movies #disney movie icons #disney moodboard #disney animation #disney animated movies #vintage #vintage disney #vintage cartoon #vintage cartoons #vintage movies

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tellemonstar · 2 years

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@pscentral gif gift exchange for @maria7potter

3 multi image gifs featuring The Lion King (1994). It's been fun working on this and getting to know you secretly (even though I think I flubbed and gave it away at one point.) Enjoy!

#the lion king 1994 #simba #nala #disney animated classics #pscentral #psc gift exchange #my stuff #by tellemonstar #maria7potter

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misespinas · 1 year

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I have so many mixed feelings on Disney's 2D vs 3D animation.

On one hand, the earlier 2D animation made the heroines look more like age appropriate and more normal proportions. The downside is that their storylines are more misogynistic and their noses are typically non-existent.

Cinderella (1950), Snow White (1937), Sleeping Beauty (1959)

Meanwhile, a shift begins to form where their faces start to look less realistic, their eyes are drawn larger compared to the sizes of their faces for a “cuter” effect. Intellect is applied to the female characters more in this 2D period, but the storylines are still pretty misogynistic.

Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), Tarzan (1999), The Little Mermaid (1989)

Then the 3D animation comes in and it just becomes the uncanny valley. The storylines become better for female heroines, but they're designed to have disturbing inaccurate human faces, and they more closely resemble toddlers than the ages they're supposed to be.

Frozen (2013), Brave (2012), Moana (2016)

The problem with modern animation is its focus on making it “cute” to the point of the art losing the resemblance of real girls/women.

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whiterosealchemy · 1 year

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Vote on Best Disney Renaissance Film

Vote on Best Disney Golden Age Film

Vote on Best Disney Wartime Era Film

Vote on Best Disney Silver Age Film

Vote on Best Disney Bronze Age Film

Vote on Best Disney Post-Renaissance Era Film

#disney #disney animated classics #disney animation #encanto #raya and the last dragon #whiterose says stuff #polls

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the-goodkhush · 1 year

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i shall now impose upon you the greatest disney film to ever grace your eyes: meet the robinsons. it is so good and anyone who disagrees better have a damn good reason bc that movie has everything you could ask for. dinosaur?? yes. singing frogs?? yep. cool robot?? ofc. time travel?? you got it. evil hat apocalypse??? no problem! genius orphan main character and this kid from the future??? AND AN MISUNDERSTOOD GUY WITH A MUSTACHE????? honestly what more could you ask for. what a classic film, i would give so much money to be able to see it again for the first time

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photo-art-lady · 2 years

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Annie Leibovitz's Photography

Over the last few years, acclaimed photographer Annie Leibovitz has partnered with Disney to create stunningly colorful pictures of celebrities posing as Disney characters from classic animated Disney films.

#disney characters #photography #art #photographers on tumblr #women photographers #fine art photography #female photographers #photo-art-lady #photography blog #photoblog #portraiture #walt disney #disney #disney movies #disney art #disney animated classics #disney animation #disney princess #disney films

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miffyxl · 1 year

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I know it was a different era but you have to be shitting me if you want me to believe for one second that seemingly purebred dogs are both in a pound and been there long enough to be casually nihilistic about their circumstances.

ESPECIALLY A FUCKING GOOD LOOKING BORZOI LIKE BORIS OR A PEKINGESE LIKE PEGGY

At MOST I would buy Bull, and maaaybe Pedro and Dachsie. But New England doesn't seem like the over breeding area for that time.

Maybe I'm just too passionate about animated dog movies but still!

#lady and the tramp #disney movies #disney #disney animated classics #Dog #Dog breed #dog breeds #borzoi #pekingese #bulldog #chiuahua #dashund #Dog nerd #Empassioned rant over animated dogs

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mywetdiapie-blog · 1 year

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Gots some dollies in the mail today I have almost the whole collection! I'm missing aruora cinderlla repunzle & pocahontas

#autistic adult #autisum #babycore #age dreamer #safe agere #sfw agere blog #agere post #sfw babyre #noncom agere #sfw littlespace #disney quotes #disney adults #disney animated classics

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iboopedyournose · 2 years

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Thinking again about my subconscious penchant for big-eared boys and how it definitely stems from my childhood Dumbo trauma lmaoooooo

#Dumbo is a horror movie #I sobbed when they took his mother away and my parents had to turn it off #I was like 4 #Dumbo #disney #tom holland #jonathan bailey #luke thompson #literally they all have huge ear wtf #i’m so weird #actually traumatized #disney animated classics

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lirasprivatelyownedspiralgalaxy · 2 years

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2D Disney films >>>

#Disney #disney tumblr #disney animated classics #disney animation #disney films #disney movie #disney movies #lira loves to ramble

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savage-kult-of-gorthaur · 7 months

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MORE POSTCARDS OF THE SUPER-SEVENTIES -- AMERICAN STYLE ANIMATION EXPORTED TO EUROPE.

PIC(S) INFO: Part 2 of 3 – Spotlight on assorted Italian & French postcards by Grafiche Biondetti S.R.L., Verona, Editions Krôma, Caissargues, & G. Picard, Paris. Image: Walt Disney Productions. Publicity stills for "Robin Hood" (directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, 1973).

Source: https://filmstarpostcards.blogspot.com/2020/01/robin-hood-1973.html.