Hey howdy hey! We have a few weeks of spring left, and I couldn’t help but think of one of my favorite classic Disney films for this week’s Treasure Thursday theme. Drip drip drop little April shower brings May flowers… and by May flowers I mean vintage Bambi goods for this week’s vintage Disney roundup!
Walt Disney’s Bambi (1942): a film with no villain in the traditional sense, no comic sidekick, and no grand adventure. Just life in all its beauty and heartbreak, seen through the eyes of a young deer.
— Original Vintage Movie Posters
The film is based on Bambi, A Life in the Woods, a 1923 novel by Austrian author Felix Salten. Disney actually acquired the rights back in 1933, but the project proved to be one of the most technically and emotionally challenging the studio had ever taken on. Walt wanted the film to feel genuinely naturalistic – so much so that he brought live deer into the studio for animators to study.
Bambi’s early scenes, where he’s still learning to walk, remain a masterclass in physical comedy grounded in genuine animal behavior.
Set in an unnamed woodland, the story follows Bambi from his first wobbly steps through the seasons of his life. We all know the scene: the death of Bambi’s mother remains one of the most impactful moments in animation history. Walt made the deliberate choice not to show it, trusting the audience to feel it without seeing it.
— Bambi visual development from Tyrus Wong
The voice cast featured Bobby Stewart, Donnie Dunagan, Hardie Albright, and John Sutherland across the different stages of Bambi’s life. The film’s score, composed by Frank Churchill and Edward Plumb, earned an Academy Award nomination, as did the song Love Is a Song.
Walt wanted the film to feel less like a cartoon and more like a painting come to life. The driving force behind the film’s dreamlike look was largely thanks to the Chinese-American artist Tyrus Wong, who joined the production as a background artist. Inspired by the principles of Chinese Song Dynasty landscape painting, Wong created a series of concept sketches using soft, impressionistic washes of color creating misty forests and light filtering through trees in watercolor-thin layers.
What makes Bambi endures is its sincerity. It treats its young audience with an emotional honesty that was (and still is) rare. Growing up means losing things; the forest changes… and somehow, you find your way through it anyway.
Now, let’s jump back and shop some vintage goods made for this Walt Disney classic:
If there’s one thing you know about me, let it be that I’m a big fan of little woodland critters. Squirrels, chipmunks, little blue birds. Few things in life make me happier than those forest scenes as seen in Snow White and Bambi. This vintage baby plate features Disneyland‘s Sleeping Beauty Castle front and center, with Bambi, Thumper, Flower and some of those cute critters along the edge.
Available HERE | $37.50
Including their original classic packaging, these vintage wall decorations would surely add a pop to your Disney-themed wall! Those chipmunks look awfully familiar…
Available HERE | $39.95
As always, there is no shortage of classic Disney film plushies out there. But here is one of my favorites of Thumper. Even his Mickey-shaped tag is still attached! If you can’t say nothin’ nice, don’t say anything at all…
Available HERE | $39.95
Standing at just under 3″ tall, this vintage porcelain egg diorama straight from Disneyland Park is the epitome of an old theme park knick knack. It’s downright dainty, rare, and adorable.
Available HERE | $59.99
Nothing says 1950s kitsch like a foil art print. Baby Bambi literally shines in this one!
Available HERE | $20.39
Move over Kit-Cat Klock… Last up for today, we have an extra kooky rare find: a 1950s Walt Disney Productions wall clock — with a moving eyeball.
Available HERE | $115
If you enjoyed this week’s brief deep dive into Disney history and vintage merchandise, check out my other Treasure Thursdays here!
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