Donnie Dunagan original voice of Bambi dies at age 92

Early career and military service

Born in San Antonio on August 16, 1934, Dunagan moved to Memphis before winning a talent contest at age three. An RKO scout arranged his travel to Los Angeles where he debuted in Mother Carey's Chickens in 1938. He subsequently played Peter von Frankenstein opposite Basil Rathbone and Boris Karloff in Son of Frankenstein and Tower of London. Walt Disney called the family home in Westwood to ask for a child's expression on a deer character. Dunagan spent over a year recording the animated film before it became his seventh and last movie role. After college he joined the military in 1952 and served for twenty-five years as a U.S. Marine.

Recording process and public reaction

At six years old, Dunagan recorded the heartbreaking scene where Bambi cries out for his mother while an assistant director instructed him to imagine losing his own parent. He recalled that a coach asked how he would cry if his real mother were in danger which made the performance easy. The original script showed Bambi's mother dying on screen but Disney altered this edit before release. Dunagan received considerable hate mail from the hunting community following the film's release after the attack on Pearl Harbor delayed its launch.

Regrets and lasting legacy

Dunagan never told his comrades about his Hollywood work during his quarter-century in the military service. He stated that one of the biggest regrets of his life was lacking the courage to tell close personal friends in the Marine Corps about Mr Disney's wonderful work. In 2015 he reflected on the experience calling it pure joy that both children and eighty-year-olds can enjoy the film together. He noted that being known as the voice of Bambi made him an immediate adopted grandfather to many fans.