A wealthy merchant lived in a mansion with his three daughters. They were all very beautiful, but only the youngest, twenty-year-old Belle, was lovely and pure of heart; her sisters, in contrast, were wicked and selfish. The merchant eventually lost all of his wealth in a tempest at sea. As a consequence of this, he and his daughters were forced to live in a small farmhouse and work for their living. After some years of this, the merchant heard that one of the trade ships he had sent off had arrived back in port, having escaped the destruction of its compatriots. He returned to the city to discover whether it contained anything valuable. Before leaving, he asked his daughters if they would like him to bring any gifts back for them. The oldest two asked for jewels and fine dresses, thinking that his wealth had returned. Belle was satisfied with the promise of a rose, as none grew in their part of the country. The merchant, to his dismay, found that his ship's cargo had been seized to pay his debts, leaving him without money to buy his daughters their presents.

During his return, he became lost in a forest. Seeking shelter, he entered a dazzling palace. He found tables inside laden with food and drink, which seemed to have been left for him by the palace's invisible owner. The merchant accepted this gift and spent the night there. The next morning as the merchant was about to leave, he saw a rose garden and recalled that Belle had desired a rose. Upon picking the loveliest rose he could find, the merchant was confronted by a hideous 'Beast,' which told him that for taking his most precious possession after accepting his hospitality, the merchant must die. The merchant begged to be set free, arguing that he had only picked the rose as a gift for his youngest daughter. The Beast agreed to let him give the rose to Belle, but only if the merchant would return.

The merchant was upset but, accepted this condition. The Beast sent him on his way, with jewels and fine clothes for his daughters, and stressed that Belle must never know about his deal. The merchant, upon arriving home, tried to hide the secret from Belle but, she pried it from him and willingly went to the Beast's castle. The Beast received her graciously and informed her that she was mistress of the castle, and he was her servant. He gave her lavish clothing and food and carried on lengthy conversations with her. Every night, the Beast asked Belle to marry him, only to be refused each time. After each refusal, Belle dreamt of a handsome prince who pleaded with her to answer why she kept refusing him, and she replied that she cannot marry the Beast because she loved him only as a friend. Belle did not make the connection between the handsome prince and the Beast and became convinced that the Beast was holding the prince captive somewhere in the castle. She searched and discovered multiple enchanted rooms but, never the prince from her dreams.

For several months, Belle lived a life of luxury at the Beast's palace, having every whim catered to by servants, with no end of riches to amuse her and an endless supply of exquisite finery to wear. Eventually she became homesick and begged the Beast to allow her to go to see her family. He allowed it on the condition that she would return exactly a week later. Belle agreed to this and set off for home with an enchanted mirror and ring. The mirror allowed her to see what was going on back at the Beast's castle, and the ring allowed her to return to the castle in an instant when turned three times around her finger. Her older sisters were surprised to find her well fed and dressed in finery. They were envious when they heard of her happy life at the castle, and, hearing that she must return to the Beast on a certain day, begged her to stay another day, even putting onion in their eyes to make it appear as though they were weeping. They hoped that the Beast would be angry with Belle for breaking her promise and would eat her alive. Belle's heart was moved by her sisters' false show of love, and she agreed to stay.

Belle began to feel guilty about breaking her promise to the Beast and used the mirror to see him back at the castle. She was horrified to discover that the Beast was lying half-dead from heartbreak near the rose bushes her father had stolen from and she immediately used the ring to return to the Beast.

Upon returning, Belle found the Beast almost dead, and she wept over him, saying that she loved him. When her tears struck him, the Beast was transformed into the handsome prince from Belle's dreams. The Prince informed her that long ago a fairy turned him into a hideous beast after he refused to let her in from the rain, and that only by finding true love, despite his ugliness, could the curse be broken. He and Belle were married and they lived happily ever after together.

The Beast was a prince who lost his father at a young age, and whose mother had to wage war to defend his kingdom. The queen left him in care of an evil fairy, who tried to seduce him when he became an adult; when he refused, she transformed him into a beast. Belle's story reveals that she is not really a merchant's daughter but the offspring of a king and a good fairy. The wicked fairy had tried to murder Belle so she could marry her father the king, and Belle was put in the place of the merchant's dead daughter to protect her. She also gave the castle elaborate magic, which obscured the more vital pieces of it.

* “Beauty and the Beast,” by Gabrielle‐Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve (1740)
* ”The Blue Fairy Book” (1889)
* The Now‐a‐days Fairy Book, by Anna Alice Chapin (1911)
* “Beauty and the Beast,” by John Erskine (May 1929)

* Directions for a Mother Goose Party, by George B. Bartlett (1876)

* Fairy Tale Parade #6
* Famous Funnies #3
* Jingle Jangle Comics #11
* Modern Comics #50
* Fairy Tales #11

* Black Cat #25
* Uncle Sam Quarterly #4
* Undercover Girl #5 [A-1 #62]
* International Crime Patrol #6
* Mister Mystery #11
* Red Mask #49
* Mysterious Adventures #21: A woman avoided her execution by promising to bring the king the fortune of the Beast. She then tried for months to get the beast to kiss her and turn into a prince, but he avoided her. So she tried to kill him, but failed. When she did manage to kiss him, he turned into a handsome prince and she turned into a hideous beast.

*The beginning of the original tale is very similar to the Brothers Grimm version of Cinderella.

*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beauty_and_the_Beast Wikipedia]
*[https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Belle Belle] & [https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Beast The Beast] @ Disney Wiki
*[http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0006325/?ref_=tt_cl_t1 Belle] & [http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0026705/?ref_=tt_cl_t2 The Beast] @ IMDB
*[http://www.comicvine.com/belle/4005-58052/ Belle] & [http://www.comicvine.com/the-beast/4005-7319/ The Beast] @ ComicVine
*[http://onceuponatime.wikia.com/wiki/Belle_%28Enchanted_Forest%29 Belle] & [http://onceuponatime.wikia.com/wiki/Rumplestiltskin The Beast] @ the Once Upon a Time Wikia
*[http://fables.wikia.com/wiki/Beauty_%28Comic_Series%29 Beauty] & [http://fables.wikia.com/wiki/Beast_%28Comic_Series%29 The Beast] @ the Fables Wikia
*[https://fictional-characters-in-media.fandom.com/wiki/Beauty_and_the_Beast Fictional Characters in Media Wiki]
Category:Fairy Tale Characters
Category:Protagonists
Category:Monster Characters
Category:Royal Characters
Category:Duos
Category:Real Name Unknown
Category:Unknown Creator
Category:Unknown Debuts
Category:Disney Characters
Category:Animated Characters
Category:Movie Characters
Category:Literary Characters
Category:Television Characters
Category:Webseries Characters
Category:The Langs' Fairy Books Characters
Category:ABC Characters
Category:Once Upon a Time Characters
Category:Ever After High Characters
Category:Descendants Characters
Category:Comic Book Characters
Category:Marvel Characters
Category:DC Characters
Category:Boom! Studios Character
Category:Dell Characters
Category:Fantagraphics Characters
Category:Gilberton Characters
Category:First Characters
Category:Archie Characters
Category:CBS Characters
Category:Vertigo Characters
Category:Fables Franchise Characters
Category:Video Game Characters
Category:League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Characters
Category:Sesame Street Characters
Category:Muppet Characters
Category:Kingdom Hearts Characters
Category:RWBY Characters
Category:Age of Ishtaria Characters
Category:Sid Story Characters
Category:TCG Characters
Category:Monsters in My Pocket Characters
Category:Unwritten Characters
Category:South Park Characters
Category:Mad Magazine Characters
Category:Jay Ward Productions Characters
Category:Gwandanaland Characters
Category:LEGO Characters
Category:Funko Characters
Category:Theme Park Characters
Category:Cracked Magazine Characters
Category:Toys
Category:Musical theatre Characters
Category:Theatre Characters
Category:Aeon Crash Characters
Category:Seven Stories Press Characters
Category:VeggieTales Characters
Category:Shrek Characters
Category:Robot Chicken Characters
Category:Epic Mickey Characters‎
Category:Classics Illustrated Characters
Category:Manga / Anime Characters
Category:Hanna-Barbera Characters
Category:Academy Awards Characters
Category:Wreck-It Ralph Characters
Category:Cherry Tale Characters
Category:Grimlight Characters
Category:Streaming Television Characters
Category:Mobile Game Characters
Category:Lorcana Characters
Category:Stop-Motion Characters
Category:Adult Swim Characters
Category:Crossy Road Characters
Category:Rodeo Stampede Characters
Category:Board Game Characters
Category:Tsum Tsum Characters
Category:Transformers Characters
Category:SLG Publishing Characters
Category:CW Characters
Category:Disney Speedstorm Characters
Category:Little Golden Books Characters
Category:Animaniacs Characters
Category:Cookie Run Characters
Category:Saturday Night Live Characters
Category:Empires & Puzzles Characters
Category:King's Throne Characters
Category:Rock of Ages Characters
Category:Evertale Characters
Category:Lies of P Characters
Category:Mythwars Puzzles Characters
Category:Destripando la Historia Characters
Category:Costume Characters
Category:Playing Card Characters
Category:Puzzle Characters