Last day of my Disney cosplay - what a fun week Beauty and the Beast was actually started by Walt Disney way back in the 1930s after the success of Snow White but it wasn t until the 1980s that it picked up any steam A retelling of the 1800s romance the animated character of Belle was intended to have the feel and mannerisms of Judy Garland while the actress who voiced Belle tried to make her feel a bit like a Katherine Hepburn style character