Clarence Nash | |
|---|---|
 Nash at the 1982San Diego Comic-Con | |
| Born | Clarence Charles Nash (1904-12-07)December 7, 1904 Watonga,Oklahoma Territory, U.S. |
| Died | February 20, 1985(1985-02-20) (aged 80) Burbank, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | San Fernando Mission Cemetery,Mission Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Ducky Nash |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1928–1985 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Inkpot Award (1978)[1] |
Clarence Charles "Ducky"Nash (December 7, 1904 – February 20, 1985) was an American voice actor and impressionist. He is best remembered as the original voice of theDisney cartoon characterDonald Duck. He was born in the rural community ofWatonga, Oklahoma, anda street in that town is named in his honor.[2] In 1993, he was posthumously made aDisney Legend for his contributions to Walt Disney films.[3]
Nash made a name for himself in the late 1920s as an impressionist forKHJ, aLos Angelesradio station, on their show,The Merrymakers.[4] He later was employed by the Adohr Milk Company for publicity purposes. Dubbed "Whistling Clarence, the Adohr Bird Man", Nash rode the streets with a team ofminiature horses and gave treats to the children.[4] In 1932, Nash happened by the Disney Studio with his team of horses, and decided to leave a copy of his Adohr publicity sheet with the receptionist.[4] As it turns out, his name was recognized from a reprise appearance onThe Merrymakers a few days previous, andWalt Disney had been impressed by Nash's vocal skills. He was asked to make an informal audition.[4]
One source indicates Nash auditioned before a casting director for Walt Disney Studios and did a voice impression of a billy goat that Nash had started doing as a child in Watonga. The director then reached for the intercom and toldWalt Disney, "I think we have found our duck."[2] Another version indicates Nash went through several of his voices, and Walt Disney happened by when Nash gave his impersonation of a family ofducks. Disney declared Nash perfect for the role of a talking duck in their upcoming animated short,The Wise Little Hen. The duck was Donald Duck, who Nash went on to voice for 51 years, in over 120 shorts and films. The last film to feature Nash's famous voice was 1983'sMickey's Christmas Carol, although he continued to provide Donald's voice for commercials, promos, and other miscellaneous material until his death.
As early as 1938, promoters fromlecture circuits were approaching him on his unique voice of Donald. Disney reportedly did not like the engagements at first, feeling that a human doing the voice would be spoiling the illusion, but then long after he had second thoughts. In early 1941, Nash was traveling on personal appearance tours sponsored by Disney. During World War II, Nash, with his ventriloquist puppet of Donald, which was built by Disney's character modeling department, became a regular performer atUSO bond rallies and other events to support the war effort. In the mid-1940s, Roy and Walt approved the Donald puppet and they decided to harness it for the 1944 re-release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.RKO and Disney were unsure how the film would do the second time around at the box office after its initial blockbuster run, so they did a promotional campaign with Disney characters including Nash performing with the Donald puppet. During the promotional period ofFun and Fancy Free, he did multiple radio appearances from May to September 1947, with one of those appearances starring Disney himself. He voiced Donald for 1950s TV commercials.[5]
Nash's Donald Duck voice was achieved by what is calledbuccal speech: analaryngeal form ofvocalization which uses the inner cheek to produce sound rather than thelarynx.[6] He first discovered it while trying to mimic his pet goat Mary. In his days before Disney, Nash performed invaudeville shows where he often spoke in a "nervous baby goat" voice.[7]
Donald Duck became one of the world's most famous cartoon characters, in great part due to Nash's voice.[citation needed] The voice is distinctive both for its ducklike quality and the fact that it is often very difficult for anybody to understand, especially when Donald flew into a rage (which happened fairly often). To keep Donald's voice consistent throughout the world, Nash voiced the character in all foreign languages the Disney shorts were translated to (with the aid of thephonetic alphabet), meaning Donald retained his same level of incoherency all across the globe.
In addition to Donald's voice, Clarence Nash also voiced Donald's nephewsHuey, Dewey and Louie and his girlfriendDaisy, andMickey Mouse inPlutopia,R'coon Dawg,Pluto's Party andPluto's Christmas Tree. He provided the meows and yowls ofFigaro the kitten and some donkey brays inPinocchio and in a handful of shorts. He also did some bird sounds inSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs, voiced a bullfrog inBambi and Mr. Bluebird inSong of the South, did some dog sounds inOne Hundred and One Dalmatians and background bird sounds inEnchanted Tiki Room, and voicedJiminy Cricket for a brief period of time afterCliff Edwards's death in 1971.[8][9][10][11]
Nash's iconic Donald Duck voice would be impersonated elsewhere in animation, most notably in theTom and Jerry cartoons directed byWilliam Hanna andJoseph Barbera with the characterLittle Quacker (voiced byRed Coffey) and Hanna-Barbera'sYakky Doodle (voiced byJimmy Weldon),[12] whileHarry E. Lang did Donald Duck-like voices in cartoons atMGM Cartoons andColumbia Pictures, includingTom Cat in the early shorts whenever he hisses.[13] As with most Hanna-Barbera productions, these characters used celebrity impersonations, in these cases an impersonation of Clarence Nash's Donald Duck voice. Because both were much similar to Nash's voice they were often mistakenly attributed to Nash.[12] Likewise, contrary to popular belief, he did not perform the duck voice forRick Dees' "Disco Duck", which was done by one of Dees' acquaintances.[14] Nash would also use his duck voice onThe Burns & Allen Show during the 1940s, playing Gracie's pet duck Herman.[10]
Nash appeared as himself in the 1941 filmThe Reluctant Dragon, which shows how Disney films were produced, and was a contestant on a 1954 episode ofWhat's My Line[15] and a 1964 episode ofTo Tell the Truth.[16] Nash also appeared as himself in a 1956 episode ofDisneyland entitled "A Day in the Life of Donald Duck", in which he interacts with an animated Donald who blames him for his speech problems: the two end up arguing mainly due to Donald's short temper.[17] He was also a guest on a 1976 episode ofThe Mike Douglas Show. The 1984 specialDonald Duck's 50th Birthday included several clips from Disney films andDisneyland episodes.[18]
When Disney shut down their shorts department in 1962, Nash continued to voice Donald in various projects over the next two decades. In 1971, he devoted himself to charity work, making personal visits to hospitals and homes and entertaining children with his Donald Duck voice.[9][19] As he passed the age of 70, he found the harsh voice increasingly straining on his throat and so limited public performances to groups of children. During recording sessions, he would take frequent breaks and drink plenty of water to avoid overexerting himself.[citation needed]
One of Nash's final performances was inMickey's Christmas Carol (1983), which made Donald the only character in the film to be voiced by his original actor. His career at Disney was the subject of the premiere episode ofDisney Family Album, a 1984 series of documentaries about behind-the-scenes personalities at the studio.
Nash married Margaret Seamans in 1930, and they were married for over 50 years; they had two daughters, Kay and Peggy.[20][9]
Nash died on February 20, 1985, ofleukemia in theProvidence Saint Joseph Medical Center inBurbank, California, at the age of 80 and was interred in theSan Fernando Mission Cemetery inMission Hills, Los Angeles, California.[9] The tombstone of the grave he now shares with his wife Margaret Nash depicts a carving of Donald and Daisy Duck holding hands.
After Nash's death, Donald's voice has been taken up by Disney animatorTony Anselmo, who was trained under Nash personally. Anselmo is also among the many voiceover artists to have voiced Huey, Dewey and Louie over the years. Later characters whose voices owe considerable credit to Nash's duck voice have been voiced by actors such asJimmy Weldon,Frank Welker,Luba Goy andRed Coffey. The most prominent of these is Weldon'sYakky Doodle forHanna-Barbera.
It was announced in 2020 that Disney historianJ.B. Kaufman was working with Margaret Barnes, Nash's granddaughter, on a biography of Nash.[5]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | The Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air | Donald Duck | |
| 1941–1943 | The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show | Herman the Duck | |
| 1945 | Command Performance | Donald Duck |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1934 | The Wise Little Hen | Donald Duck | (voice) |
| The Flying Mouse | Bat | ||
| 1935 | Pluto's Judgement Day | Kitten, Cat Judge, Cat Jury | |
| 1936 | Elmer Elephant | Joey Hippo | |
| 1939 | Donald's Penguin | Tootsie the Penguin | |
| 1947 | Mickey and the Beanstalk | Donald Duck | |
| 1983 | Mickey's Christmas Carol | Nephew Fred/Donald Duck |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940 | Pinocchio | Figaro | (voice) |
| 1941 | The Reluctant Dragon | Himself, Donald Duck | |
| 1942 | Bambi | Bullfrog, Hunter Dogs | |
| Saludos Amigos | Donald Duck | ||
| 1944 | The Three Caballeros | ||
| 1946 | Song of the South | Mr. Bluebird | |
| 1947 | Fun and Fancy Free | Donald Duck, Cat | |
| 1949 | The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad | Ichabod's Horse, Cat | |
| 1950 | Cinderella | Birds | |
| 1951 | Alice in Wonderland | Dinah | |
| 1961 | One Hundred and One Dalmatians | Dogs | |
| 1965 | Donald Duck Goes West | Donald Duck |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954–1985 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Donald Duck/Himself | Voice & live-action |
| 1954 | What's My Line? | Himself (Voice of Donald Duck) | Live appearance[21] |
| 1963 | To Tell the Truth | Himself-Challenger | Live appearance |
| 1984 | Donald Duck's 50th Birthday | Himself/Donald Duck | Live-action & voice Final role |
| Preceded by None | Voice of Donald Duck 1934–1985 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
