DEERLY DEPARTED

Disney Legend and 3-Time Purple Heart Recipient Dies at 92

The actor was scouted at just three years old.

#4

Donnie Dunagan, the voice of Disney’s Bambi, has died. Dunagan passed away at age 92 on November 4 after a battle with lung cancer, according to his agent. “We were proud to represent a Marine, beloved by fans around the world,” Kris Jones and Nery Kemus said of Dunagan. After voicing Bambi, the voice actor enlisted as the youngest drill sergeant in the corps’ history. Dunagan retired as a major after serving three tours in Vietnam, ending in 1977 after he received a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts. The native Texan moved to Hollywood with his parents after a talent agent scouted him at age three. He then made his debut in Mary Carey’s Chickens in 1938, later appearing in Son of Frankenstein as Peter von Frankenstein in 1939, as well as The Forgotten Woman and Tower of London that same year. By 1942’s Bambi, he had also been in 1940’s Vigil in the Night, and 1941’s Meet the Chump. His agents concluded their goodbye message, saying, “He had an infectious smile, a warmth and charisma that never shook the childlike spirit of his acting youth… We will always love you, Donnie. You were the best of us.”