Hollywood Memorial

Nash made a name for himself in the late 1920s as an impressionist for a Los Angeles radio station, on their show, The Merrymakers. 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 of miniature horses and gave treats to the children. 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. As it turns out, his name was recognized from his radio show and Walt Disney himself had been impressed by Nash’s vocal skills. He was asked to make an informal audition. Nash went through several of his voices, and Walt Disney happened by when Nash gave his impersonation of a family of ducks. Disney declared Nash perfect for the role of a talking duck in their upcoming animated short, ‘The Wise Little Hen.’ The duck, of course, was Donald Duck, who Nash went on to voice for more than 50 years, in over 120 shorts and films. Donald Duck went on to become one of the most famous cartoon characters in the world, and a great part of this was due to Nash’s distinctive voice. It may well be one of the most recognizable character voices in history. The voice is distinctive both for its duck like 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 Donald’s voice in all foreign languages the Disney shorts were translated to (with the aid of the phonetic alphabet), meaning Donald retained his same level of incoherency all across the globe. The last film to feature Nash’s famous voice was ‘Mickey’s Christmas Carol,’ released in 1983. In addition to Donald’s voice, Nash also voiced Daisy Duck (in her earliest appearances, when she was little more than a female version of Donald), as well as Donald’s nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie. Nash also provided the meows of Figaro the kitten in a handful of shorts. Clarence Nash died in 1985 of leukemia and was interred in the San Fernando Mission Cemetery in Mission Hills, Los Angeles, California. The tombstone of the grave he now shares with his wife Margaret Nash (who died in 1993) depicts a carving of Donald and Daisy Duck holding hands over a heart.