Disney Legend: Alan Menken

     If you hum Friend Like Me while walking down the street, waltz to Beauty and the Beast on your date, or belt out Part of Your World in the shower, then you need to stop what you're doing right now and honor a true Disney Legend.

     For those of you who don't know this face, it's Alan Menken, an American composer for both film and musical theater and pianist. Menken joined forces with the Walt Disney Company in the 1980's and has been working with them since bringing fantastic music to the hearts of millions.

Within his time with the company he has composed the entire soundtrack for movies like:

• The Little Mermaid (1989)
• Beauty and the Beast (1991)
• Aladdin (1992)
• Newsies (1992)
• Pocahontas (1995)
• The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
• Hercules (1997)
• Home on the Range (2004)
• Enchanted (2007)
• Tangled (2010)

     Keeping in mind those are just films, he also went on to compose the music for the Broadway versions of Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Newsies, and most recently Aladdin as well as Hunchback that's just starting rehearsals this week.

     Aside from entire soundtracks, Menken has also written music for the ABC series, The Neighbors, and even the big musical number in the middle of the first Captain America film.

     Menken has brought in 8 Academy Awards for his work on Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and Pocahontas making him the living person with the most number of Academy Awards (Take that Leonardo DiCaprio). In 2001, he was named an official Disney Legend, the highest honor the company has to give it's collaborators.

    Alan shows no sign of slowing down even at his age of 65, and I'm glad he's not. This man has written the soundtrack of my life and he has nothing but respect from me.

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Thank you, to the man making musical tales as old as time.