Hi folks! Welcome to my My Own Personal Nerdy Disney and Animation Scrutinizing Analysis blog. A blog where I'm analyzing several Disney films, Disney or Animation in general! These entries are just meant to be my analyses. Not reviews or statements. Just fun analyses! Though I'll make some personal remarks now and then, the content of these entries are meant to be depicted objectively. They're made for entertainment purpose only and the pictures/clips are copyright Disney or other companies.
Make sure to leave a comment if you like this site! And if there's something you think could be improved, please let me know. But in a constructive way, please. And just a note; I'm not a Native English writer, so my incorrect grammar may be notable.
And finally; If you haven't seen the films, beware of spoilers! And the funny lines aren't meant to be nothing than funny. So I hope you won't find them offensive. If so, I apologize
I'm Walt's stand-in :) |
Usually
in my entries I've happened to mention that Disney is often scrutinized
or cherished for their spcific components. Yet not coincidentially, the
music is often discussed at the last parts in my entries. Througout
Disney's long history there's been several songwriters who's
been regular tunesmiths and made their impact on Disney's legacy. Some
of them are actually well known (as for example the Sherman Brothers).
But it's remarkable how some of them haven`t been regular tunesmith`s in
a row.
I'm not Mozart, nor am I copying him :) |
Trivia & Backstory
Alan Irwin Menken was born July 22, 1949 in New Rochelle, New York (at French Hospital). Being the son of actress and writer Judy Menken and boogie-woogie piano-playing dentist Dr. Norman
Menken (in a family of several dentists), Menken lived in Astoria,
Queens and came from a Jewish background, mixed with Eastern European
and German ancestry. Alan was a two months premature, having a breech
birth. When he was 2 years old, he could vocally hit a note his father
played for him on the piano perfectly by Rodgers and Hart,
Gershwin songs book and some Broadway tunes. His father had the biggest
Collection of 33 1/3 albums of musical shows, going back to South Pacific. Alan tried to play the piano as toddler. And as hackneyd as it sounds, music is where Alan wanted to feel free and fly.
He
was more interested in creating his own tunes as a child, than
practicing the songs assigned to him by his piano and violin teachers. At age 9, at the New York Federation of Music Clubs Junior Composers Contest, his original violin composition Bouree was rated excellent by the judges. Menken started originally to play the piano with Mr. Higgs and later, Emily Harris. Afterwards
he took the violin, where his violin teacher, Areth Abraham, encouraged
him to compose. Menken was credited for his skills at his young age. He
thought first that conducting meant to point to the notes, making
himself tired. He listened to Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphony and imagining what it was about, he realized that it was more than music. Instead of learning pieces, Alan would get the basic idea of a Beethoven Sonata or a Bartok`s Mikrokosmos.
He spend the rest of his practice time faking his own compositions in
those styles. When his teachers realized what he was doing, they wisely
suggested that it be encouraged.
Trivia & Backstory Part II
Alan went to NYU as a pre-med. Afterwards he went to school in 1967, having a teacher Lehman Engel. Who teached him the structure of a musical. In 1967 he was a concert
master for the New Rochelle High School.. taking orchestral occasional
musical liberties with variations on the themes of The Masters. He drifted
from Pre-Med to anthropology to philosophy, to finally graduating with a
Bachelor's degree in musicology from University College of Arts and
Science. In december 1968, he wrote his first full musical, Separate Ways.
produced at NYU. A fellow student, Elyce Wakerman, wrote the book.
Which was a rock musical about hippies living in an apartment building
with more conservative neighbors.
In
1971, Alan was admitted into the BMI Musical Theater Workshop. Mentored
by conductor/composer Lehman Engel. Also in 1971, he wrote Children Of The World.
A rock ballet for the Downtown Ballet Company. In a review it was sai
that “His score has the vigor of protest. Yet it`s lyrical, affecting
and effective.”
Menken became afterwards a part of a community of writers who wrote for
a living. He performed in clubs and wrote jingles. And right out of
college he wrote a rock ballet, where the Downtown Ballet Company
commissioned him to do it.
Afterwards he put together a band. A ballet dancer joined the company in 1972, Janis Roswick. Who later became
his wife (he greeted her when she was meditating and she wanted to get
her meditation done before greeting him), having written a song for her.
They married that same year. Despite
how Alan’s plan was to become a rock-star/recording artist, he would
dabble in writing musicals. And through that workshop found his first
and best network for learning and growing into the composer we now know. During 1974 to 1978, BMI showcased Midnight, Apartment House (lyrics by Muriel Robinson), Conversations with Pierre, Harry the Rat, Messiah on Mott Street.
Alan`s Previous Work
Alan Menken is mostly associated with Disney. But happens to have a long
resume besides the House of Mouse. Between 1975 and 1979, Alan
performed on the New York City Cabaret Circuit. In addition to
showcasing his own music, he also acted as musical director and arranger
for other performers. He often played The Ballroom, Reno Sweeny and Tramps. He contributed material to revues like New York's Back In Town, Big Apple Country and The Present Tense.
In 1979, Alan developed a review of his own material. In which he sang and played at the piano with 4 additional performers. Patch, Patch, Patch
opened in the Summer of ’79 at the West Bank Café. In what is now The
Laurie Beechman Theater. That review garnered rave notices. But with
Alan’s focus moving towards new partnerships, the show was never seen
past that run. In 1980, along with lyricist-librettist Steve Brown, Alan wrote this send-up of Flash Gordon as told from the point of view of Ming the Merciless called Atina, Evil Queen of the Galaxy. It was produced by Michael Bennett and directed by Tom O’Horgan.
At least it's not Patch of Heaven :) |
Not copyright Rihanna anymore :) |
Ursula would've loved this :) |
Alan`s Previous Work Part II
Alan Menken continued to work througout the late 1980's. The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz opened in Zellerbach Theatre, Philadelphia, September 1986. With Menken providing the music and lyrics by David Spencer. In 1989, he did Polly: The Wonderful World of Disney. Based on Disney's Pollyanna, inspired from the classic novel from the same name (Menken and Jack Feldman wrote a song for it called By Your Side). In 1990, Cartoon All-Stars To The Rescue was
a project that came to Alan and Howard Ashman as a request from Roy
Disney, Jr. to pen an anti drug song. “Back in the late 60's I would
not have been the poster boy for this cause. But when we were asked to
write Wonderful Ways to Say No, how could we say no?”
And believe it or not, but Alan wrote music and lyrics for Measure Of A Man, the closing credits song for the Rocky V. film with Sly Stallone. Records in London with Elton John performing. Alan
was a Civil War buff growing up. Mostly based on the fascination of the
old photos of soldiers and politicians and the America of the 1860’s
had for him. So in 1992, when Peter Kunhardt asked him if he’d be
interested in scoring a mini-series about Abraham Lincoln for ABC,
simply called Lincoln, he was very inclined to say “yes”. His influences are pretty easy to identify; Aaron Copland and Randy Newman.
Without any r angers :) |
Alan`s Other Works
In December 1994, A Christmas Carol
previews at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden. With original music
by Alan, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, book by Mike Ockrent. The show ran
seasonally for 10 years at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden. 10
years later, it was made for Television (With Kelsey Grammar, Jane Krakowski, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Jason Alexander). In
1997, Alan and Tim Rice were approached by the Jerusalem 3000 Committee
to write a work dealing with the life of King David. Instead of
performing the work at the Sultan’s Pool outside the walled city of
Jerusalem, King David had its premiere at the New Amsterdam Theater on 42nd
Street on Broadway.
In 2004, Noel was released (with Penelope Cruz). With original score and songs by Menken, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and directed by Chazz Palminteri. In 2006, Menken composed the score for The Shaggy Dog. In 2009, Sister Act
opened to rave reviews on the West End in London. With lyrics by Glenn
Slater and Whoopi Goldberg (as the producer) took the stage for a brief
stint, this time playing the role of Mother Superior. Following up on a
successful run at the Paladium on the West End, Sister Act made a
successful transition to Broadway. Patina Miller
re-created her successful role as Deloris Von Cartier at the opening.
With Alan behind the music and Glenn Slater with the lyrics. In
January 2015 Menken joined Galavant, an ABC-TV series. This
fairy-tale comedy was written by Dan Fogelman and lyrics by Glenn
Slater. King Richard, a despotic ruler steals the rapturous Madalena,
the love of Prince Galavant's life. Galavant, seeking revenge is
appalled to find that Madalena has decided she actually prefers the
King's wealth and power to Galavant's affections. In 2017 he wrote the song Strange Sensation for Holmes & Watson. As of 2019, Menken is reuniting with his Newsies creators Jack Feldman and Harvey Fierstein to develop a new musical called Greetings from Niagara Falls. A reading was held in January 2019. However, there is no word on future plans for the project at this time. As for TV series, in 2020 he wrote the song Spoiler Alert for Central Park and Star Spangled Man with David Zippel for The Falcon and the Soldier. In 2020 Alan and Slater were working on an musical adaptation of George Orwell`s The Animal Farm. However, Menken happened to work for Disney properties that has no relation to any movies. For Tokyo DisneySea, he wrote an original song called Compass of Your Heart. For Sindbad’s Storybook Voyage. As well as an unproduced stage musical based on the story of The Snow Queen, long before it became Frozen.
Alan and David Zippel co-wrote a song for 2011's Captain America entitled Star Spangled Man. After 10 years in the creative process, Leap of Faith opened
and closed in a very disappointingly short period of time. Despite
the fact that it was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Musical. In 2013, ABC-TV's The Neighbors Sing Like A Larry Bird depicts
the aliens expressing their artistic side by writing their own Broadway
show.
Well, Shaggy needed his dog avatar :) |
Alan`s Resume From His Works With Howard Ashman to The Disney Animated Features
Don't worry, someone brushes my teeth for me :) |
It may not be a shop, but it's horror :) |
Well, I'm not so small anymore :) |
We had to share title, otherwise he would've eaten me :) |