HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALAN MENKEN AND FACE THE MUSIC AND DANCE

Well today is Alan Menken's 58th birthday and what a happy and very busy composer is he. Of course "The Little Mermaid" opens on Broadway on November 3rd and "Enchanted" the movie opens November 21st with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. He is also taking a stab at a Hans Christian Andersen story as a musical show for Tokyo Disneyland called "The Snow Queen"-- that was the very first Hans Christian Andersen story that i ever read. He comes from a large family who are mostly dentists-- his father was, his grandfather was, his uncles are-- becoming a real composer he called "pulling teeth out of the odds of life" He met Howard Ashman only by sheer chance and he has been just about the luckiest person on the planet so far. He does admit that turning down "The Lion King" was his single worst mistake because it made him a "persona non grateful" during the last of the troubled Michael Eisner years. He finally got back in with the disastrous animated movie"Home On The Range"-- pretty desperate stuff. They have released on CD the score for the troubled "Pirate Queen" and an old chestnut from Irving Berlin: a 1932 musical called "Face the Music". The score features "Face The Music and Dance" and Let's Have Another Cup of Coffee"--those you've heard of. But the lost Berlin treasures are "I Say It's Spinach" and the absolute lost classic "I Don't Want To Get Married-- I Just Wanna Be Friends" Now does that state what is happening today or what? And remember, this song was written in 1932!Well, I have the day off today on this beautiful Sunday. Happy Birthday Alan-- God love you! I'm sure dear Howard Ashman is watching and guiding you from heaven!