Beauty And The Beast: 20 Fiendishly Clever Easter Eggs You Probably Missed
5. The Touching Dedication
The end of the film carries a touching dedication to composer Howard Ashman, who completed work on the movie before sadly dying eight months before it was released:
"To our friend Howard, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul, we will be forever grateful."
Ashman had been diagnosed as HIV positive midway through the making of The Little Mermaid, and was forced to work from home on Beauty And The Beast (with the animation team flown out to him). After the first screening of the film, which Ashman couldn't attend, the team visited him in hospital to find him weak and fading, but wearing a Beauty And The Beast sweatshirt.
His legacy on the film - which he had supreme faith in as a potential success - extended beyond the music: it was he who came up with the idea of turning the enchanted household objects into living characters with unique personalities.