THUMPER BAMBI SCENE MOVIE

It’s a forward awareness and thinking that Walt obviously brought to the movie. It’s one of my strong beliefs that we have to do everything we can to keep it from getting worse.

THUMPER BAMBI SCENE MOVIE

I think the movie is truly a very strong statement in favor of protecting the environment and the concern that man was ruining it or even make it worse which unfortunately I personally believe. Peter: One of my strongest feelings about the movie is the amazing fact that back in the 30s, Walt Disney was so aware… far ahead of his time in the environmental concerns. Photo Credit: What do you envision and hope for the legacy of Bambi going forward? Now, she didn’t tell me this is fun, right. And then I would say them back or mimic them, try to mimic them with the same kind of inflection.ĭonnie: Remember when the mother is shot, right? When that recording was required I did not do it as well as I should have. So the director would read the lines with the inflection that was needed. Peter: What I remember is going into the sound booth where they have a voice director who informed my reading abilities weren’t all that good. And that’s why Disney was successful.Ĭan you tell me about the recording process? Most of the time I saw him, he was participating in things. At one time they had deer and some rabbits and other creatures so the animators could actually see the anatomy of the animals and help them with their drawings.ĭonnie: When I first saw him… he had his sleeves rolled up and he was working and they introduced us to him. He showed me the little Disney zoo that they had. He wasn’t one dealing directly with me anyway. Peter: I did meet him a couple of times but not on a regular basis. What was it like working with Walt Disney himself? So, I have seen it over the years a few times but not a lot. Later of course, it came out on VHS and then it came out on DVDs and that sort of thing. So we didn’t have the opportunity of seeing it. Back in those days I don’t think it was even out on any kind of media. Peter: I was at the premiere and then I didn’t see the film for quite some time.

Peter enjoys the “green” home aspects such in his creations, such as photovoltaic power, a wind generator, solar panels, rain harvesting system, vegetable garden, chickens, eggs and more!ĭid you watch BAMBI over and over again its release? He later became a real estate broker and homebuilder. Later in life, Peter volunteered for the Army where he served in the Army Security Agency doing teletype interception as well as Morse code. And what was Peter’s favorite Thumper line? “ Eating greens is a special treat, it makes long ears and great big feet.

In years following his debut as Thumper, Peter continued to do voiceover work for Disney. While Peter lost the role to Donnie, animators Frank Thompson and Olli Johnston thought he would be perfect for the role of Thumper, Bambi’s rabbit sidekick. One time BAMBI was being shown on base, and Donnie knew he would be found out! These days Donnie embraces his legendary Hollywood role.Īs for Peter, he was just four years old when his father, famed screenwriter Henry Behn, took him to audition for the voice of Bambi. After graduation, Donnie returned to the Marines.ĭuring the conversation, it was funny for Donnie to re-tell how he never informed his Marine comrades that he was the voice of Bambi.

Later in life, Donnie entered the Marines, and later graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering. It was then in 1942 did his voice appear on the big screen as the voice of young Bambi in the Disney classic. He made seven films between 19, making his film debut in Mother Carey’s Chickens (1938), playing the son of the Son of Frankenstein (1939). Donnie won and talent scouts arranged for him to go to Hollywood. Donnie entered show business at the young age of three-years-old, as he was taught to tap dance by a neighbor and entered a talent contest at the local Orpheum Theatre. Now let’s start with a little background on each of the voice actors. It really was an honor to be able to speak with Donnie and Peter. Much of the talent from those years is no longer for interviews and press junkets, such as the one I attended. Words cannot truly describe how it feels to meet anyone from that classic Disney era. Did you know that BAMBI is actually among the films selected for preservation in the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry? To celebrate the 75th anniversary, not only is Disney releasing BAMBI as part of the Walt Disney Signature Collection (May 23 for Digital HD and June 6 for Blu-ray), but they also invited myself and 24 other bloggers to participate in a conversation with Donnie Dunagan (voice of “Bambi”) and Peter Behn (voice of “Thumper”), moderated by Disney Archivist Becky Cline! How amazing is that? That’s a long time, isn’t it? BAMBI has stood the test of time and to this day, 75 years later, it is still one of the most popular Disney classic animated features.

Thumper bambi scene