Disney animated movies have brought many fairytales to life, and in the process, created wonderful showtunes. "Colors of the Wind" from Pocahontas won the 1995 Best Song Academy Award and the film also won Best Original Score, both created by Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz.
But Pocahontas is not a fairytale; it's the story of a real Native American woman, who stood out among women in that time and culture. She may have saved Captain John Smith from death at the hands of her father. She would have been about 12 at the time. She later "became civilized" and married an Englishman, John Rolfe. Sadly she died at the age of 21 or 22, but her legend lives on.
In the Disney movie, Pocahontas falls in love with John Smith and educates him in the wonders of the world and the importance of appreciating its beauty. Here "Colors of the Wind" is sung by English stage actor Michael Crawford.
