Howard

Howard Ashman, a Jewish man from Baltimore, grew up with a passion for musical theater. He opened a theater in New York, struggling to produce shows until his adaptation of Little Shop of Horrors became a huge Off-Off-Broadway hit. He then collaborated with Marvin Hamlisch on Smile, but it was a disappointment. Ashman fled to Los Angeles, where he met with struggling animators and wrote Oscar-winning songs for The Little Mermaid with Alan Menken. Despite the film's global success, Ashman kept his HIV diagnosis a secret, as it was a death sentence at the time. He continued working on Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast from his hospital bed, leaving a lasting legacy in Broadway productions and live-action remakes.