Clarence Charles Nash (1904 - 1985)

Born 7 Dec 1904 in Watonga, Blaine, Oklahoma, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Margaret Ida (Seamans) Nash — married 25 Jan 1930 in San Francisco, California

Died 20 Feb 1985 at age 80 in Burbank, Los Angeles, California, United States

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Biography

Clarence Nash is Notable.

Clarence "Ducky" Nash was a voice and sound effects actor, best remembered as the voice of Donald Duck for 50 years

Clarence was born 7 Dec 1904 in Watonga, Oklahoma. He was the fifth of six children born to Everett Nash and his wife, Kattie (Jacoby) Nash. In 1910, Clarence was a five-year-old boy, residing with his parents and five siblings in Watonga, where his father worked as a house carpenter.^[1] As a child, Clarence Nash delighted in imitating the made by birds, insects, and barnyard animals.

By 1920, Clarence's family had relocated to Blue Township, Jackson County, Missouri, where, at age fifteen, he was attending school.^[2] Sometime in the late 1920s, Clarence moved to California, where, on 25 Jan 1930, he married Margaret Seamans in San Francisco. He was 25; she was 19. That year the couple was renting an apartment at the South Myrtle Apartments, located at 901 Bush Street in San Francisco, for $37.50/month. He was then working as a clerk for the postal telegraph. She was working as a secretary for a lumber company.^[3]

In 1940, Clarence and Margaret were residing at 3427 Sierra Vista Avenue in Glendale, California, with their two daughters, Kathleen (age 9) and Margaret (age 1). Also residing with the couple was Margaret's sister, Marie Seamans.^[4] Clarence was then described as a sound artist for an animated motion picture studio. In late 1933, Clarence had been hired to craft the voice of a newly created cartoon character named Donald Duck, for his first movie, The Wise Little Hen (1934). Thereby began a Disney career that lasted 50 years, ending only in 1983. From 1934 to 1972 Nash was the principal voice of Donald Duck. He also voiced Donald's nephews, Huey, Dewey, and Louie; Daisy Duck; Uncle Scrooge; and even Mickey Mouse on occasion. Additionally, Clarence recorded (uncredited) animal sounds heard in Silly Symphonies and in several animated films including Bambi (1942), The Three Caballeros (1944), Song of the South (1946), and 101 Dalmatians (1961). He was also the voice of Figaro the cat in Pinocchio (1940) and Dinah the kitten in Alice in Wonderland (1951).

On 16 Oct 1940, at age 35, Clarence registered for the World War II draft, at the local draft board in Montrose, California. He listed his employer as the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank. Either mistakenly or perhaps brazenly, he listed himself as the person who would always know his whereabouts. On his draft card, Clarence described himself as 5' 5.5", 140lbs., with brown hair, brown eyes and a light complexion, with a scar on the third finger of his right hand.^[5]

In 1950, Clarence, Margaret and their two daughters were still residing in the same home on Sierra Vista in Glendale, California. That year, Clarence's occupation was listed as a "Donald Duck imitator" for animated cartoons. ^[6]

Nash retired from Disney in 1971 and devoted himself to charity work, often performing in his duck voice for children in hospitals. In 1981 and 1983 the studio called him back to voice a bear in The Fox and the Hound and for one last stint as Donald Duck in Mickey's Christmas Carol.

Clarence passed away from leukemia, 20 Feb 1985, at St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California. He was 80 years old. He was buried at San Fernando Mission Cemetery in Mission Hills, California. Find A Grave: Memorial #2578

Sources

1. ↑ 1910 U.S. Federal Census. Oklahoma, Blaine County, City of Watonga, Ward 4, ED 45, sheet 15 B, dwelling 359, family 359, household of Everett O. Nash. Image available at Ancestry.com $$ (image 7).
2. ↑ 1920 U.S. Federal Census. Missouri, Jackson County, Blue Township, ED 286, sheet 13B, dwelling 313, family 316, household of Everett Nash. Image available at Ancestry.com $$ (image 26).
3. ↑ 1930 U.S. Federal Census. California, San Francisco County, San Francisco, ED 365, sheet 3A, dwelling 4, family 61, household of Clarence C. Nash. Image available at Ancestry.com $$ (image 5).
4. ↑ 1940 U.S. Federal Census. California, Los Angeles County, Glendale, ED 19-232, sheet 13B, family 386, household of Clarence C. Nash. Image available at Ancestry.com $$ (image 26).
5. ↑ U.S. World War II Draft Cards, Young Men, 1940-1947, California, Los Angeles County, Local Board #181, Serial #2383, Order #2691, Clarence Charles Nash (16 Oct 1940).
6. ↑ 1950 U.S. Federal Census. California, Los Angeles County, Glendale, ED 64-4, sheet 16, dwelling 177, household of Clarence C. Nash. Image available at Ancestry.com $$ (image 17).

See also:

• The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture: Clarence Charles Nash
• Wikipedia: Clarence Nash
• Wikidata: Item Q372838
• IMDB: Clarence Nash
• Disney Wiki: Clarence Nash
• WikiTree: Classic Disney Project