 Preceding his death in 1989, Kent journeyed to Kent, England (the Anglo-Saxon namesake of his adopted surname) to view the cliffs of Dover.At the time of his visit, he donated an original manuscript of the song "(There'll Be Blue Birds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover" and participated in the preliminary stages of planning a war commemoration tourist center.Walter Kent died at the age of 82 on March 2, 1994 in Los Angeles.