Ashman wrote the book and lyrics for the musical “Little Shop of Horrors,” and the lyrics to songs in the Disney films “Aladdin,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “The Little Mermaid,” all featuring music by Alan Menken. He died of AIDS in 1991 at age 40.
Last summer his sister Sarah Ashman Gillespie launched a beautiful tribute site, Howard Ashman: Part of His World. It’s a place for fans to learn and explore but it also seems to be an outlet for Sarah to rediscovered who her brother was.
I can’t carry on Howard’s singular talent as a writer and director but I can carry on other things he taught me. Like love for the arts and the sharing of ideas and enthusiasms. His enormous energy motivated so many of us to find our own creative selves. And that’s what I hope to continue here.
She’s been writing regular blog posts with family photos and personal reflections, such as Leisure Suit Christmas and How I Learned My Brother Was Gay. You go, little sister!
Wow. Thank you so much for writing this. The site is my way to pay tribute to my beloved brother. It’s not so much that I’m trying to rediscover him as I’m hoping to tell others how special he was – not only as an artist but as a man.