The world has lost a great lady. Dame Angela Lansbury, the award-winning actress who enjoyed an illustrious movie and stage career and starred in the long-running CBS detective series “Murder, She Wrote,” passed away peacefully in her sleep on October 11. She was 96.
Aside from solving mysteries as TV’s Jessica Fletcher, she will be most remembered by Disney fans for her role in the musical fantasy “Bedknobs and Broomsticks,” and as the voice of Mrs. Potts in the animated film “Beauty and the Beast.”
Angela’s Accolades
In 1966, Angela won the first of her five Tony Awards for her performance as Mame Dennis in the musical “Mame.” Her other notable stage roles include Rose in “Gypsy,” and Mrs. Nellie Lovett in “Sweeney Todd.”
Her peers also recognized Lansbury’s talents in television and film. Her honors include six Golden Globe Awards, 18 Primetime Emmy nominations, and three Oscar nominations. She also received the National Medal of the Arts and the Kennedy Center Honors, and was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 1994.
A Disney Legend
Although she appeared in only a few films for the Walt Disney Company, she left an indelible mark on the company’s legacy during her illustrious career. In 1995, Lansbury was recognized for her contributions and was inducted as a Disney Legend alongside Wally Boag, Fulton Burley, Dean Jones, Edward Meck, Fred Moore, Thurl Ravenscroft, Wathel Rogers, and Betty Taylor.
Let’s take a closer look at the Disney films of Angela Landsbury…
Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)
Angela made her musical comedy motion picture debut in 1971 in Disney’s musical fantasy “Bedknobs and Broomsticks.” The production benefitted from Lansbury’s distinctive voice and charisma, and her ability to carry a film.
In the film, three children are evacuated from London during the Battle of Britain to Pepperinge Eye, where they are placed in the reluctant care of Miss Eglantine Price (Lansbury). The cast includes David Tomlinson, John Ericson, Ian Weighill, Cindy O’Callaghan, and Roy Snart.
“Bedknobs and Broomsticks” was released on October 7, 1971, and received kudos for seamlessly mixing live-action with animated sequences. The film received five Academy Awards nominations winning one for Best Special Visual Effects.
Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Twenty years after casting a spell in “Bedknobs and Broomsticks,” Lansbury returned to Disney to lend her voice for Walt Disney Animation Studio’s 30th theatrical film, “Beauty and the Beast.” The role of Mrs. Potts would be her most-remembered role for Disney fans.
During the film’s production, lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken wrote the film’s main ballad with Lansbury in mind. She recorded it with a live orchestra in just one take.
Directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise and produced by Don Hahn, “Beauty and the Beast” won the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, the first animated film to ever win that category.
The crown jewel of Disney’s classic features is the first animated film to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, where it won the Oscar for Best Original Score and Best Original Song for its title song, “Beauty and the Beast.”
At the 1992 Academy Awards, Angela Lansbury presented two of the nominated songs, which reunited Paige O’Hara, Richard White, and Jerry Orbach on stage to sing “Belle,” and the title song, “Beauty & The Beast.”
In 2002, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the United States National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”
Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas (1997)
“Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas” is a follow-up to the 1991 Disney animated film “Beauty and the Beast.” Produced by Walt Disney Television Animation, the direct-to-video animated Christmas musical fantasy reunited the original film’s main cast.
Although reviews of the film were lukewarm, the film sold 7.6 million VHS tapes upon its original release. In 2019, the film was released on Disney+.
Lansbury also voiced Mrs. Potts in Disney’s video game “Kingdom Hearts II” in 2006.
Fantasia 2000 (1999)
For Disney’s first animated feature film of the 21st century, Lansbury served as a segment host for the millennial experimental film and sequel to 1940’s “Fantasia,” introducing Igor Stravinsky’s “The Firebird Suite.”
Produced by Roy E. Disney and Donald W. Ernst, the film also featured James Levine, Steve Martin, Itzhak Perlman, Quincy Jones, James Earl Jones, Bette Midler, and Penn & Teller.
The film won an Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Animated Effects in an Animated Production.
Mary Poppins Returns (2018)
For her last Disney performance, she portrayed the balloon lady in the musical “Mary Poppins Returns.” In the film’s final scene, she starts the magic and leads off the musical number “Nowhere to Go But Up.”
Like “Bedknobs and Broomsticks,” the film combines live-action and traditional hand-drawn animation in some of the musical sequences.
Bonus Clip: Angela Lansbury Sings “Beauty and the Beast” at Disneyland Paris
Opening with the name Euro Disney, Lansbury helped usher in Disney’s second foray into an overseas Magic Kingdom style park to an international TV audience. Lending her unique voice, she charmed guests with a special performance of “Beauty & The Beast.”
Referencing the lyrics to the song “Beauty and the Beast,” NASA paid tribute to the legend by posting a photo of a “cosmic rose.” The picture of the interstellar cluster of newborn stars was obtained with NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope.
Tale as old as time
True as it can beIn memory of Angela Lansbury, we offer this cosmic rose plucked by our Spitzer Space Telescope. https://t.co/V1N0QynRDJ pic.twitter.com/zPduniVBsl
— NASA (@NASA) October 11, 2022
Our deepest admiration to a remarkable talent and warm and generous lady. She will be missed, but her legacy lives on through an incredible portfolio of work we can all continue to enjoy. please share your memories, favorite films, and stories of the one and only Angela Lansbury.
You must be logged in to post a comment.