May 10, 1956 – Disney Legend Paige O’Hara is Born
Paige O’Hara at the Disney Legends Awards. Photo credit: broadwayworld.com
“I had been a Disney fanatic from the time I was little. As soon as I heard about [Beauty and the Beast], I called my agent and said, ‘I have to be seen for this…I knew [Belle] was my part. It was just one of those things you know.” – Paige O’Hara
Paige O’Hara, best known as the voice of Belle in the 1991 classic animated film Beauty and the Beast, was born on May 10, 1956, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She made her first professional appearance in the Broadway revival of Showboat as the character Ellie May Chipley. Since then, O’Hara has gone on to star in the title role in The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and Ado Annie in the national tour of Oklahoma.
O’Hara auditioned five times for the part of Belle, and as the film became wildly successful, it thrust O’Hara into the spotlight. She continued to voice the character in two sequels: Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas and Belle’s Magical World, as well as voicing the character in the Kingdom Hearts video games. O’Hara was also given a cameo in the 2007 film Enchanted as a character in a soap opera. O’Hara was awarded as a Disney Legend on August 19, 2011. “She was a first, in a lot of ways, for a Disney Princess,” O’Hara has remarked on her character, “and was ahead of her time in the film and for Disney. I think that’s why, almost 20 years later, people still love her.”
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