Donnie Dunagan, Young Bambi’s Voice, Dies at 92

Donnie Dunagan, the child actor who supplied the voice of young Bambi in Disney’s animated film, died of lung cancer on November 4. He was 92. The film, released in 1942, was his final acting role; Hardie Albright voiced Bambi as an adolescent.

Dunagan began acting as a child after an RKO talent scout spotted him at a Memphis talent contest. He made his screen debut in 1938 and later appeared in Son of Frankenstein and Tower of London, including performances alongside Basil Rathbone and Boris Karloff.

He spent more than a year working on Bambi. In the scene where the young deer calls for his mother, a studio coach asked Dunagan to imagine how he would react if his own mother were lost and in danger. Dunagan later recalled that the direction helped him deliver the moment.

After leaving film, Dunagan enlisted in the Marines in 1952. He served three tours in Vietnam and retired as a major in 1977, having received three Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star, among other military honors. He kept his years in Hollywood private during much of his military career.

After the Marines, he worked for financial companies and served as chief executive of Pace Corp. Disney later invited him to take part in a Bambi DVD release, and he appeared at conventions and festivals and represented the company. He is survived by his wife, Dana, whom he wed in 1992.