Donnie Dunagan, Original Voice of Bambi, Dies at 92

Donnie Dunagan, who provided the voice of young Bambi in Disney's 1942 animated classic, died Wednesday at age 92, author and film historian Tom Weaver reported to The Hollywood Reporter. The cause was lung cancer.

Born Donald Roan Dunagan in San Antonio on August 16, 1934, he began performing at age three, winning a talent contest that brought him to Hollywood. His early film credits included Mother Carey's Chickens (1938), Son of Frankenstein (1939) alongside Basil Rathbone and Boris Karloff, and Tower of London (1939).

Walt Disney personally called Dunagan's mother to ask the boy to help animators "put a child's expression on a deer." Dunagan spent more than a year on Bambi, recalling that a coach helped him find the right tone for the scene where Bambi cries out for his mother by asking how he would cry if his own mother were lost and in danger. The film's release was delayed by Pearl Harbor, and the studio received hate mail from hunters who felt the movie traumatized deer shooting.

After Bambi, Dunagan's parents divorced and he lived in boarding homes before joining the Marines in 1952 at age 18. He served three tours in Vietnam, becoming the youngest drill instructor in Marine Corps history and retiring as a major in 1977. His decorations included three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star, a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with V device, an Army Commendation Medal, and two Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals.

Dunagan kept his Bambi role secret during his 25-year military career, saying he had "a dislike for showoffs" and didn't want to be called "Major Bambi." He later worked for financial companies and as CEO of Pace Corp. in Los Angeles.

When Disney learned he was still alive, Dunagan participated in DVD releases and spoke at conventions as a company ambassador. "I could be working in the White House and children could care less," he said. "But let someone say, 'That dude over there was the face or voice of Bambi,' and I am an immediate adopted grandfather to them. That is just an unmatchable joy and a real responsibility."