Donnie Dunagan, the original voice of Disney’s Bambi, dies at 92

Donnie Dunagan, who voiced young Bambi in Disney’s 1942 classic, died Nov. 4 of lung cancer, his agents told Variety. Bambi was his last film before a 25-year Marine Corps career, where he kept the role to himself.

The little deer who cried out for his mother grew up to be a Marine major.

Donnie Dunagan, the original voice of young Bambi, died Wednesday, Nov. 4, of lung cancer at 92, his agents confirmed to Variety on Monday, Nov. 9. The Hollywood Reporter first reported his death, through film historian Tom Weaver.

His agents, Kris Jones and Nery Lemus of CelebWorx, said he asked them “not to be sad due to the great life I lived.”

Who was Donnie Dunagan?

A child actor who became a career Marine. Born Donald Roan Dunagan in San Antonio on Aug. 16, 1934, he moved with his family to Memphis as a small child, according to a biography Weaver wrote for IMDb. He was 3 when a $100 prize at a talent contest caught a movie scout’s attention, and the family headed to Hollywood.

He made seven films in about four years. Bambi was the last one.

How did Donnie Dunagan become Bambi?

Walt Disney asked for him. Dunagan told The Presbyterian Outlook in 2011 that Disney himself called his mother, and that he was about 6 and a half when he got the part. He said he was also the facial model for the young deer.

Dunagan recalled that a kind woman coached him through the hardest scene, the moment Bambi loses his mother. She used flash cards that showed the deer at each beat and never used the word “killed,” ComicBook reported.

Disney broke with animation habit on Bambi and cast real children as several of its young animals, including Peter Behn as young Thumper, Animation World Network reported. Bambi himself had four voices as he grew up, according to the BFI:

• Baby Bambi: Bobby Stewart

• Young Bambi: Donnie Dunagan

• Adolescent Bambi: Hardie Albright

• Young adult Bambi: John Sutherland

Bambi had its world premiere in London on Aug. 9, 1942, and opened in the U.S. on Aug. 13 at Radio City Music Hall. Dunagan turned 8 three days later.

Why did he keep Bambi a secret in the Marines?

He didn’t want to be called “Major Bambi.” Dunagan enlisted after his acting years and became the youngest drill sergeant in Marine Corps history, Variety reported. He told NPR in 2015 that he never said a word about the movie to anyone during his Marine career, and Weaver’s IMDb biography says that career included counterintelligence work.

His service record, as reported by Variety, AWN and The Daily Beast:

• Length: 25 years in the Marine Corps

• Vietnam: three tours

• Decorations: a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts

• Rank: major, when he retired in 1977

What else did Donnie Dunagan act in?

Son of Frankenstein is his other famous role. In the 1939 Universal horror film, he played Peter von Frankenstein, the young son of Basil Rathbone’s baron, alongside Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi.

His seven films, according to The Daily Beast and AWN:

• Mother Carey’s Chickens (1938): his film debut

• Son of Frankenstein (1939): Peter von Frankenstein

• The Forgotten Woman (1939), Tower of London (1939), Vigil in the Night (1940) and Meet the Chump (1941)

• Bambi (1942): young Bambi, his last film

Did Donnie Dunagan ever talk about Bambi?

Yes, once the secret was out: he and Peter Behn recorded their parts separately and didn’t meet until decades later, the two said at a 2017 Disney press day for the film’s 75th anniversary. Dunagan also turned up at Bambi screenings, including the TCM Classic Film Festival in 2016 and the Academy’s 75th anniversary showing in 2017.

How did Bambi do in 1942?

Not well at first. Bambi opened in the middle of World War II and made little money in its first run, according to D23, Disney’s official fan club. It still earned three Oscar nominations, for Best Sound, Best Song for “Love Is a Song” and Best Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture.

Disney rereleased it in theaters six more times between 1947 and 1988, D23 notes, and the American Film Institute later ranked it No. 3 on its list of the 10 greatest animated films.

Bambi turns 85 next August.

Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.

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Hat Tips:

• Variety (Nov. 9, 2026), the date and cause of death, his agents’ statement, his birth date, the drill sergeant record and his 2016 TCM festival appearance

• Cox Media Group (Nov. 9, 2026), The Hollywood Reporter’s first report through Tom Weaver and the 2017 Academy screening

• Animation World Network (Nov. 9, 2026), his last film, his 25 years in the Marines, the “Major Bambi” story and Disney’s child voice cast

• The Daily Beast (Nov. 9, 2026), his filmography, Vietnam tours and decorations

• Yahoo Entertainment (Nov. 9, 2026), his 2011 Presbyterian Outlook interview

• ComicBook (Nov. 9, 2026), how he was coached for the mother scene

• NPR (July 31, 2015), keeping Bambi quiet in the Marines

• IMDb (Tom Weaver’s biography), his Memphis childhood, the talent contest and his counterintelligence work

• BFI (Aug. 13, 2023), Bambi’s four voices

• D23 (Disney A to Z), the premiere dates, Oscar nominations and rereleases

• MousePlanet, the Radio City Music Hall opening

• 5 Minutes for Mom (May 23, 2017), the 2017 press day with Peter Behn

• Daily Herald (June 2, 2017), the AFI ranking

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