This article lists information of fictional characters from Disney's Beauty and the Beast franchise, covering the 1991 film, its direct to video midquel, a short story collection, and the stage musical adaptation.
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| Gaston | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Created by | Ben Bartley Andreas Deja |
| Voiced by | Richard White |
Gaston serves as the main antagonist of the original film. He is rude, conceited, small-minded, narcissistic, and spends his time fighting, drinking and hunting. He is considered by many townspeople to be the town hero.[1] Gaston believes that Belle would best suit as his wife based purely on her beauty, but Belle is not as shallow as Gaston and refuses his every advance. His desire to marry Belle leads him to evolve from a narcissistic but harmless and humorous buffoon to a menacing, murderous villain.[2] Gaston was not a character in the original fairy tale. The 1946 French film did, however, feature the character of a handsome suitor, named Avenant, whom Belle rejected and who ultimately tried to kill the Beast.[3] Disney claims to have added Gaston as a character to the film in order to create a heightened sense of danger as well as to showcase the theme of inner versus outer beauty.[1]
Supervising animator Andreas Deja's initial drawings of Gaston were as an arrogant, burly, mustached man with a small brow and a large jaw. However, Jeffrey Katzenberg insisted that he be drawn more seriously to push the "don't judge a book by its cover" message. Deja revised his drawings with the idea of Gaston being more "soap opera handsome" than a typical casanova.[4] The animator's interpretation would show that Gaston is superficially handsome, but ugly inside.[4] Richard White, who finally won the role of voicing Gaston, believes many people were interested and auditioned for the role besides himself.[5]
As Gaston believes he is the best man in town, he sets his sights on marrying the most beautiful woman in town, Belle. However, she refuses his proposal when he throws a wedding party without her prior knowledge. Thoroughly humiliated, he sulks, but when her father Maurice shows up claiming she has been captured by a hideous Beast, he comes up with the idea of having him thrown into an insane asylum, unless Belle agrees to marry him. His plan goes awry when Belle proves the Beast does exist, and she claims that he is her friend, and that he is a better person than Gaston. He becomes jealous and decides to gather a mob to kill the Beast, playing off the villagers' fears that the Beast might wreak havoc on their village.[6] In the ensuing fight, he shoots the Beast with an arrow and beats him down, taunting him about his hideous appearance, and still refusing to believe that Belle will not marry him. The Beast has no heart to fight until he sees that Belle came back for him, when he easily overpowers Gaston and intends to kill him. However when Gaston begs for his life and claims that he will do anything, Beast is reminded of how Belle was willing to do anything, and chooses to spare his life, climbing back up to Belle. Gaston then stabs the Beast in the back, but loses his balance when the Beast swings his arm backwards at him; consequently, Gaston falls from the castle to his death. In an interview, White admitted that he did not even know whether or not Gaston died pointing out that Gaston was never seen to die, and so it was questionable if he actually survived the fall.[5] However, a 2002 DVD commentary from the film's screenwriters confirmed his death.[7]
Gaston has appeared in the television series Disney's House of Mouse, and was voiced again by White.[8] A running gag in the series is Gaston, now reduced to mere comic-relief, stating randomly that "Nobody can (perform a specific action) like Gaston", often getting on other characters' nerves to the point that Hades remarks that "Nobody can be extremely annoying like Gaston". Gaston also makes sporadic appearances in Sing Me a Story with Belle, mostly acting as a comedic foil. He is the only Disney Villain to be absent in the Kingdom Hearts series, despite a level based on Beauty and the Beast called "Beast's Castle", featured as a playable level (in Kingdom Hearts II and Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days).
Gaston's character in the musical is the same as that in the film.[9] Besides the songs "Belle", "Gaston", and "Kill the Beast" (which were from the Disney movie), Gaston performs "Me" (in which he self-centeredly proposes to Belle), "Gaston (Reprise)" (in which he and Lefou sing about his wicked plan and he admits he "won't feel the least bit remorseful" so long as it works), and "Maison de Lunes" (in which he recruits the asylum owner to have Maurice committed). In the Melbourne stage production of the film, he was played by Hugh Jackman.[10] Notable actors who have played the role on Broadway include Burke Moses, Marc Kudisch, Christopher Sieber, and Donny Osmond.
| Maurice | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Rex Everhart |
Maurice, Belle's father, is the village inventor. However, he is considered by the majority of the village to be insane.
During the beginning of the movie, he is working on a machine that automatically chops up firewood. Once it is successfully working, he leaves for the County Fair to display his invention. However, he is unable to make it to the fair due to getting lost in the woods. After going down a path that results in the loss of his horse and cart, and being attacked and nearly killed by a pack of rabid wolves, he winds up at the gate of a dark castle. When he enters the castle to stay for the night, he ends up being locked up by the Beast, the castle's master.
Belle learns of what happened and goes to the castle, attempting to release her father. She then tries to convince the Beast to release him from the castle. She succeeds in convincing the Beast to release him, under the condition that she is to take her father's place, to Maurice's protests. He later tries to seek the villagers' help in trying to rescue Belle, but he learns that they don't believe him, and they consequently throw him out of the tavern.
Determined to not give up on Belle, he decides to return to the castle alone. However, it doesn't take long before he succumbs to an unknown illness. Luckily, Belle discovers that her father is in trouble via the Beast's Magic Mirror and is released by the Beast so she can save him. Shortly after arriving back home, Le Fou has alarmed the villagers of their return. Shortly thereafter the keeper of the Maison de Lunes Insane Asylum and the other villagers come to take Maurice to the insane asylum in an intricate plan to blackmail Belle in to marrying Gaston. Belle reveals that Maurice's rants are true and that the Beast does exist. Both she and Maurice are locked up by Gaston in the cellar, to stop them from interfering with Gaston's goal to kill the Beast. Chip has managed to stow away in Belle's satchel and uses the automated firewood cutter to destroy the door to the cellar. Maurice and Belle leave for the castle to stop Gaston from killing the Beast. He is last seen in the ballroom as he happily watches Belle and the Beast (who is now transformed back into a handsome prince) dance while he laughs at Chip's question whether he still has to 'stay in the cupboard'.
He only makes a cameo in its midquel, Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas as one of the people listening to the story Mrs. Potts is telling.
| Lumière | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Jerry Orbach (films, House of Mouse) Jeff Bennett (Kingdom Hearts 2) Masashi Ebara (Japanese) |
Lumière is the movie's secondary supporting character, next to Gaston. He is the Beast's kindhearted but rebellious maître d', Cogsworth's counterpart and rival. Because of the curse placed by the Enchantress, he was transformed into a candelabra. He allows Maurice to come into the castle to stay. Later, he and Cogsworth lure Belle to Maurice in hopes that she will break the spell. He suggests that Beast try and move her to a better room. Lumière tries to help Beast become more civil for Belle, and sometimes rebels against the Beast if it suits the other characters' needs (like allowing Belle to have dinner despite Beast's refusal to let them feed her). Later, after the Beast rescues Belle from more wolves, and Belle nurses the beast back to health, earning his affections in the process, Lumière, aware of what would impress such a voracious reader, astutely suggests that the Beast give Belle the castle's immense library as a gift, which has the desired effect. He also tries to help the Beast learn how to do the waltz. He is initially upset that Belle leaves the castle, but he remains optimistic at the same time, since he's still convinced that she'll break the spell. When he discovers that the castle is going to be invaded by Gaston's lynch mob, he plans the battle. He then decides to set up a trap where all of the furniture is in the foyer, and he gives the signal to attack. While he is unable to stop Gaston from deserting the battle to kill the Beast, Lumière saves Fifi the Featherduster from being plucked apart by a villager and is earlier himself saved from Le Fou by Cogsworth. He, Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts rush to aid the Beast who is fighting against Gaston, but arrive after the battle's end, when the Beast dies from a mortal wound from Gaston, who fell to his death from the West Wing. The spell breaks, however, reviving the Beast and returning Lumière and the others to their original forms. In the end, he gets into an argument with Cogsworth about who told who about Belle breaking the spell (it was Lumière).
In The Enchanted Christmas, he tries to help bring Christmas back into the castle (even if it means disobeying his Master to do so). Also, he and Cogsworth help get a Christmas tree with Belle upon Forte's suggestion (unaware of Forte's plan). When Forte decides to try to destroy the castle, he and Cogsworth try to save the rose.
He later appears in Kingdom Hearts II and Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days as a supporting character in the Beast's Castle world. In 358/2 Days, he and Cogsworth serve as the castle's patrol guards, forcing Roxas, Xion and Xaldin to evade their sight during missions in that world, and in Kingdom Hearts II, he is locked in the dungeon by the Beast along with the other servants in an attempt to protect him by the Beast's rage, fueled by Xaldin, but he is freed by Sora, whom he helps by opening a secret passage out of the undercroft. He later plays a small role in the final battle against Xaldin.
| Cogsworth | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | David Ogden Stiers |
Cogsworth is the Beast's tightly wound and extremely loyal Majordomo, and both Lumiere's counterpart and rival. When the Enchantress curses the Beast, he is transformed into a pendulum clock. He initially tries to stop the others from allowing Maurice stay at the castle (as he knows the Beast would not approve), but ultimately gives in. When the Beast arrives, he tries to explain what happened, but the Beast is too angry to hear what happened. He tries to get Belle to come to dinner, but she refuses. When he reports to the Beast her refusal, he tries desperately to calm him down, as well as keep him calm when trying to get her to join him for dinner. He follows the Beast's orders to deny her dinner, but he eventually relents, telling them to at least keep the noise down. He is eventually swept up in the boisterous "Be Our Guest" number. Later he learns that the Beast let Belle go, much to his dismay. He then tells everyone the bad news, and seems resigned to his fate (as the rose is nearing the last petal). When the residents of the castle learn of the upcoming invasion, he tries to come up with a plan to stop the villagers, but the others leave him before he can finish. He later participates in the battle and saves Lumiere from Le Fou by sliding down the banister and prodding Le Fou's rear end with a pair of scissors. He, Lumiere and Mrs. Potts rush to aid the Beast who is fighting against Gaston, but arrive after the battle's end, when the Beast dies from a mortal wound from Gaston, who fell from the West Wing. The spell breaks, however, reviving the Beast and returning Cogsworth and the others to their original forms. In the end, he gets into an argument with Lumiere about who told who about Belle breaking the spell.
In The Enchanted Christmas, he is initially opposed to the idea of Christmas (mainly due to his master's opposition), but eventually decides that Christmas in the castle wouldn't be such a bad idea. He and Lumiere try to help Belle find a Christmas tree under Forte's guidance, unaware of Forte's plan. Later, when Forte tries to destroy the castle, he attempts to save the rose.
He later appears in Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days and Kingdom Hearts II in his homeworld, Beast's Castle. In the former, he serves as a patrol guard in the castle, and in the latter, he aids Sora in the brief fight against the Beast, under Xaldin's influence. He later plays a small role in the final battle against Xaldin.
| Mrs. Potts | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Angela Lansbury |
Mrs. Potts is the kitchen's head of the castle, and has a loving, motherly feel. When the Enchantress curses the Beast, she is transformed into a teapot. In her first appearance, she helps Maurice get comfortable. She helps comfort Belle when she is made to stay at the castle in exchange for her father's freedom. Mrs. Potts also tries to help the Beast try and become more civil to Belle, although the efforts fall apart when Belle refuses to come to dinner. Later, Mrs. Potts entertains Belle when she's having dinner. When the Beast is wounded, she tries to tend to his wounds with Belle. After learning that there are invaders coming to the castle, she tries to get the Beast to do something, but he declines, still depressed about Belle leaving. She later participates in the battle of the castle by having the rest of the dishes pour hot liquid on the villagers.
In The Enchanted Christmas, she serves as the narrator of the tale. She later appears in Kingdom Hearts II in her homeworld, Beast's Castle. She aids Sora, Lumiere and Cogsworth in opening the secret passage out of the dungeons by extinguishing the darkness surrounding the lanterns with the help of Sora's Keyblade.
| Chip Potts | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Bradley Pierce (first film) Haley Joel Osment (second film) Gregory Grudt (Belle's Magical World) Tress MacNeille (4 episodes of House of Mouse) Nikita Hopkins (1 episode of House of Mouse) |
Chip is the son of Mrs. Potts. As a result of the Enchantress' spell, he is transformed into a teacup. He befriends Belle and looks up to her. He gets admonished by his mother when he does a bubble trick to Belle and when he giggles at how the Beast handles a spoon. Also, he stows away when she has to leave the castle to save her father Maurice, and wants to find out why she left. He later frees Belle and Maurice, who are trapped in the cellar by Gaston, by commandeering Maurice's invention, an automatic firewood chopper, to break open the cellar door but destroying the invention in the process.
In Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas, he is seen trying to open presents for Christmas. Also when Adam gives him a present, he's excited about it being a storybook. He helps Belle make a storybook to make the Beast feel better. Also, in the flashback depicting the Enchantress placing the spell on the castle ten years earlier, he is present as a child, implying that the spell stopped him and the other servants from ageing during the ten year period.
He cameos in Kingdom Hearts II.
| Featherduster (aka Fifi/Babette) | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | (Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Kimmy Robertson |
The Featherduster is a maid of the castle, who is also Lumiere's girlfriend. She is transformed into a feather duster as a cause of the Enchantress' spell. She appears in Beauty and the Beast and Belle's Magical World. A similar looking featherduster also makes a cameo in Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas. There have been some changes to her name throughout the different shows produced; in Beauty and the Beast, she is credited as "featherduster", in the musical, she is called Babette; and in Belle's Magical World, she is called Fifi.
In the Belle's Magical World segment, "Fifi's Folly", Fifi misunderstands Belle as Lumiere's new girlfriend when Belle helps him rehearse for his 5th Anniversary date with Fifi. However, in the end of the segment, Lumiere tells her he loves her after a series of events and they get back together again.
In the first and third films, Featherduster/Fifi is voiced by Kimmy Robertson. Babette/Featherduster also appeared in Disney's House of Mouse and Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse.
| Wardrobe | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | (Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Jo Anne Worley |
The Wardrobe is the former opera singer of the castle, turned into a wardrobe. The character of Wardrobe was introduced by visual development person Sue C. Nichols to the then entirely male cast of servants, and was originally a more integral character named "Madame Armoire". Her role was later expanded upon and ultimately taken over by Mrs. Potts.[11] Wardrobe is known as "Madame de la Grande Bouche" in the stage adaptation of the film. Her stage name supposedly means "Mistress of the Big Mouth" in a semi-literal English translation.
She later appears in Kingdom Hearts II in her homeworld, Beast's Castle. In the game, she blocks Sora's way to the undercroft to free the servants from the dungeon, forcing Sora to push her out of the way while she is sleeping. As in the film, she is Belle's closest confidante in the castle after Lumiere.
| Le Fou | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | (Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Jesse Corti |
Le Fou (French for "The Madman", also a phonetic pun on "The Fool") is a local villager who accompanies Gaston. He is often mistreated by Gaston, but he doesn't seem to mind. He seems unsure about Gaston marrying Belle, but decides to help him anyway. During the attempted wedding, he acts as a conductor to signal the playing of a fast tempo version on "Here Comes the Bride". When Gaston comes up with a plan to arrange for Maurice to be sent to the insane asylum to force Belle to marry him, they head to Belle's house, but both she and Maurice are gone. Gaston decides to have Le Fou stay near the house and let him know when they return, much to Le Fou's chagrin. After a while, when Belle brings Maurice home, Le Fou alerts Gaston so he can put his plan into action. After learning that the Beast exists, he accompanies Gaston and the rest of the lynch mob to the castle to kill the Beast singing "The Mob Song" with everybody. He picks up Lumiere upon entering the castle, and Lumiere's signal begins the battle. During the battle, Le Fou attempts to kill Lumiere by waving a torch perilously close to Lumiere's head, but Cogsworth saves him by poking scissors in Le Fou's rear end. He is last seen escaping with the rest of the villagers.
In the beginning of The Enchanted Christmas, despite the rest of the villagers being invited to the castle for a Christmas party, Le Fou is not present.
In the movie, Le Fou was voiced by Venezuelan Voice Actor Jesse Corti. On a slightly related note, this makes Le Fou one of the few characters to share the same voice actor in two different dubs of the movie (as Jessie Corti also voiced Le Fou in the Spanish version).
In the Seaford stage production of the film, Le Fou was played by Michael Visconti.
| Monsieur D'Arque | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Disney's Beauty and the Beast |
| Voiced by | Tony Jay |
Monsieur D'Arque is the owner of the local madhouse or Asylum for Loons. Gaston bribes him to take part in a scheme to blackmail Belle into marrying him, in which D'Arque will threaten to have Belle's rather eccentric father, Maurice, sent to the madhouse. He is only seen in these two scenes, and his fate after the Beast's existence is revealed is left ambiguous.
Despite being a minor character, it was the role of Monsieur D'Arque which led to Tony Jay being cast to voice another notable Disney villain, Claude Frollo, in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
| Claudia, Laura, and Paula | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast (1991) |
| Voiced by | Mary Kay Bergman andKath Soucie |
The Triplets, also known as the "Bimbettes" and the "Babettes" (not to be confused with Fifi the Featherduster, whose name in the musical is also Babette), are a trio of beauty blonde women who fawn over Gaston. The real names of the girls are Claudia, who wears a red dress, Laura, who wears yellow dress, and Paula, who wears a green dress. They think Belle is crazy when they see her refusing Gaston's advances. They are also upset when Gaston decides to marry Belle, as they are seen crying when he is announcing that he will propose to Belle. They are later seen comforting and fawning over Gaston in the bar. They are not part of the mob who tries to kill the Beast.
In the beginning of "The Enchanted Christmas," despite the rest of the villagers being invited to the castle for a Christmas party, the Triplets aren't present.
In the Musical, their roles are the same, although they are given more dialogue and their role is expanded slightly.
They have made regular appearances on "Disney's House of Mouse."
The Enchantress is an off-screen, minor character, but she is responsible for the events in the story, as revealed in the prologue that it is she who curses Prince Adam as the Beast. She pays a visit to the castle one cold winter night and poses as an ugly, old peddler woman, offering a single rose for shelter. After being turned away by the prince twice, she reveals her true self (young and beautiful) and punishes him by transforming him into the Beast, his servants into objects, and his castle into a horrific version of itself laden with ugly gargoyles and grotesque statues. The Enchantress left the Beast with only two items, a magic mirror as the only window to the outside world, and the rose she had tried to give him. It turns out the rose is enchanted, working as an hourglass: it will bloom until his 21st birthday, when its petals will begin to fall. When the last petal falls, the prince will remain a Beast forever. The spell can only be broken if he can learn to love and receives love in return. Her curse is broken at the last second by Belle's confession of love for the Beast.
In The Enchanted Christmas, it is revealed that the Enchantress' visit that resulted in the curse occurred on Christmas Day, which resulted in Adam's dislike for the holiday. The Enchantress is voiced by Kath Soucie in the flashback scene of the midquel.
| Phillipe | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast |
| Voiced by | Hal Smith (original film) Frank Welker (sequel) |
Phillipe is a horse owned by Belle and Maurice. He is very scared of wolves and a loud toot noise.
| Stove | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast |
| Voiced by | Brian Cummings |
An unnamed stove that served as the Beast's chef. He was disappointment that Beast cancelled dinner and had to throw away what he had made. When the villagers attacked the castle, he and the knives ended up scaring away the villagers that chased Sultan into the kitchen.
| Forte | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas |
| Voiced by | Tim Curry |
Forte is the composer of the castle and serves as the main antagonist of the midquel. When the Enchantress curses the Beast, he is transformed into a pipe organ. Unlike the other cursed denizens, he enjoys the new form that he has for its power, as he feels that he's more useful to the Beast in this form than as his human form. As such, he intends to sabotage the Beast and Belle's relationship to ensure that the spell is never broken. He also uses Fife the Piccolo to carry out his plan, promising him his own musical solo when he succeeds (though he never actually intends to give the solo to him). He tries to lure Belle away from the castle to get a Christmas tree in an area beyond a frozen lake. While she's away, Forte tells the Beast that Belle has abandoned him, thus fueling more anger into the Beast. He then proceeds to tell the Beast to destroy the Enchanted Rose, but the Beast ultimately decides not to when a rose petal lands on the storybook from Belle, thus allowing the Beast to regain his senses.
Angered at this failure, and refusing to "fade away", he decides to destroy the entire castle with his music, as the Beast and Belle can't fall in love if they are both dead. He ultimately meets his end when the Beast rips out his keyboard and wrecks it, causing Forte to try to kill the Beast by lunging at him, but he ends up being dislodged from the wall.
| Fife | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas |
| Voiced by | Paul Reubens |
Fife is a resident of the castle. When the Enchantress curses the Beast, he is transformed into a piccolo. He is tricked by Forte into trying to sabotage the relationship under the promise of his own solo. Fife lures Belle into Forte's room for him to tell Belle where a suitable Christmas tree is located. However, shortly after she leaves, Forte tells Fife to follow her to the tree (presumably so he can cause the ice to break with his sound). Fife later regrets this action and decides to help Belle and Beast mend their relationship. Forte decides to destroy the castle, and Fife tries to stop Forte. Forte reveals that he never intended to give him a musical solo (via expelling blank note sheets). No longer loyal to Forte, Fife tells the Beast that Forte's power comes from the keyboard, and Beast uses this knowledge to kill Forte. In the ending of the movie (taking place in the present), Fife seems to have taken over Forte's job of conductor of the castle.
| Angelique | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas |
| Voiced by | Bernadette Peters |
Angelique is the castle decorator. When the Enchantress curses the Beast, she transforms into a Christmas angel ornament. She initially opposes the idea of Christmas, but then reconsiders after Belle tells her the joys of Christmas. She later comforts Belle in the dungeon.
| Webster | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Belle's Magical World |
| Voiced by | Jim Cummings |
Webster is the castle's writer, transformed into a dictionary. While he means well, he has a rather long tongue, often speaking out of the right moment. This leads to the other servants, particularly Lumiere and Cogsworth, to dislike him greatly. During the first segment of Belle's Magical World, he infuriates the Beast by giving unwanted synonyms to Belle's insults during a row, leading the Beast to strike him. Wracked with guilt after Belle and the Beast stop speaking to each other, he forges a letter of apology from Belle with his two best friends, Crane (a set of paper sheets) and LePlume (a quill). He is exiled from the castle when the Beast finds out, but amends are made after Belle brings him back.
| Crane | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Belle's Magical World |
| Voiced by | Jeff Bennett |
Crane is a set of paper sheets that is one of Webster's friends.
| LePlume | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Belle's Magical World |
| Voiced by | Rob Paulsen |
LePlume is a quill that is one of Webster's friends.
| Chandeleria | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Belle's Magical World |
| Voiced by | Rob Paulsen |
Chandeleria is a chandelier that resides in the Beast's castle.
| Witherspoon | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Belle's Magical World |
| Voiced by | none |
Witherspoon, interestingly, is the only one of Beast's servants who is not a household object. In contrast, he is an intelligent pigeon in charge of delivering the Beast's messages to the village for placing orders or anything similar. While it is possible that he was already a pigeon before the Enchantress placed the spell on the castle, his previously being a human servant may be the only possible explanation of his capability of understanding English with no apparent problem.
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