Clarence Nash facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Clarence Nash
Nash at the 1982 San 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
Occupation	Voice actor
Years active	1920s–1985
Spouse(s)	Margaret Seamans ​ (m. 1930)​
Children	2
Awards	Inkpot Award (1978)

Clarence Charles "Ducky" Nash (December 7, 1904 – February 20, 1985) was an American voice actor. He is best known as the original voice of the Disney cartoon character Donald Duck.

Clarence was born in Watonga, Oklahoma. A street in his hometown is named after him. In 1993, he was honored as a Disney Legend for his amazing work in Walt Disney films.

Clarence Nash's Career

Clarence Nash became famous in the late 1920s. He was an impressionist on a radio show called The Merrymakers in Los Angeles.

Later, he worked for a milk company. He was known as "Whistling Clarence, the Adohr Bird Man." He rode around with tiny horses and gave treats to kids.

In 1932, Nash visited the Disney Studio. He left his publicity sheet with the receptionist. Walt Disney had heard him on the radio and was impressed. Walt asked Nash to audition.

Becoming Donald Duck's Voice

One story says Nash auditioned for Walt Disney Studios. He did a voice impression of a billy goat. He had been doing this voice since he was a child. The director then told Walt Disney, "I think we have found our duck."

Nash left Donald's "footprints" at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

Another story says Walt Disney heard Nash doing different animal voices. When Nash did his duck family impression, Disney knew he was perfect. He wanted Nash to voice a talking duck in a new cartoon. This cartoon was The Wise Little Hen. The duck was Donald Duck.

Clarence Nash voiced Donald Duck for 51 years! He worked on over 120 cartoons and films. His last film as Donald was Mickey's Christmas Carol in 1983. He kept voicing Donald for commercials until he passed away.

In the 1940s, Nash went on tours for Disney. He used a Donald Duck puppet built by Disney's team. During World War II, he performed at events to support the war effort. He also did radio appearances to promote Disney films.

How Donald's Voice Was Made

Nash made Donald Duck's voice using a special technique. It's called buccal speech. This means he used the inside of his cheek to make the sound. He first discovered this while trying to copy his pet goat, Mary. Before Disney, Nash used this "nervous baby goat" voice in shows.

Donald Duck became one of the most famous cartoon characters. This was largely thanks to Nash's unique voice. The voice sounds like a duck. It can also be hard to understand, especially when Donald gets angry!

To make sure Donald sounded the same everywhere, Nash voiced him in all languages. This meant Donald kept his funny, hard-to-understand voice around the world.

Other Characters Voiced by Clarence Nash

Besides Donald, Clarence Nash also voiced Donald's nephews, Huey, Dewey and Louie. He also voiced Donald's girlfriend, Daisy Duck.

He made the cat sounds for Figaro the kitten in Pinocchio. In Pinocchio, he also voiced the Rough House statue. Nash even voiced a bullfrog in Bambi and some dogs in One Hundred and One Dalmatians. For a short time, he voiced Jiminy Cricket too.

Other cartoon characters sometimes sounded like Donald Duck. These included Little Quacker and Yakky Doodle from Tom and Jerry cartoons. But Clarence Nash did not voice them. He also did not voice the duck in the song "Disco Duck".

Nash appeared as himself in the 1941 film The Reluctant Dragon. This movie showed how Disney films were made. He was also a contestant on TV shows like What's My Line and To Tell the Truth.

In a 1956 episode of Disneyland, Nash appeared with an animated Donald Duck. Donald blamed Nash for his speech problems, and they had a funny argument!

Later Years of His Career

Disney closed its shorts department in 1962. But Nash kept voicing Donald for many years after that.

In the late 1970s, Nash often walked near a school in Glendale, California. He would entertain children with his Donald Duck voice. As he got older, the voice became harder on his throat. So, he mostly performed for groups of children. During recordings, he took breaks and drank water to protect his voice.

One of Nash's last performances was in Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983). Donald was the only character in that film still voiced by his original actor. A documentary series called Disney Family Album featured Nash in its first episode in 1984.

Clarence Nash's Personal Life

Clarence Nash married Margaret Seamans in 1930. They had two children, Kay and Peggy.

Clarence Nash's Death

Grave of Clarence Nash at the San Fernando Mission Cemetery

Clarence Nash passed away on February 20, 1985. He was 80 years old. He died from leukemia in Burbank, California. He is buried in the San Fernando Mission Cemetery in Mission Hills, Los Angeles, California. His tombstone shows a carving of Donald and Daisy Duck holding hands.

Who Voiced Donald Duck Next?

After Nash's death, Disney animator Tony Anselmo took over as Donald's voice. Tony was trained by Clarence Nash himself. Tony Anselmo also voices Huey, Dewey, and Louie.

Other actors have voiced characters that sound like Donald Duck. These include Jimmy Weldon (who voiced Yakky Doodle), Frank Welker, Luba Goy, and Red Coffey.

A Disney historian named J.B. Kaufman is currently writing a book about Clarence Nash. He is working with Nash's granddaughter, Margaret Barnes.

Clarence Nash's Work

Here are some of the projects Clarence Nash worked on:

Radio Shows

Films and Shorts

Television Shows

Discography (Albums)

• Mickey and the Beanstalk (1947) as Donald Duck
• Donald Duck's Singing Lesson (1949) as Donald Duck
• Cinderella (1949) as Lucifer, Bruno, Major, Additional Animal Voices
• Donald Duck, Fire Chief (1953) as Donald Duck
• Mickey Mouse's Christmas Party (1954) as Donald Duck
• Goofy's Dance Party (1959) as Donald Duck
• Mousercise (1982) as Donald Duck

See also

In Spanish: Clarence Nash para niños

• Donald Duck talk