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Volume 1101
ERB ECLECTICA
ERB-Date: 2010.04



TARZAN OF THE MOVIES
New Releases from Warner Brothers
THE GORDON SCOTT COLLECTION
Tarzan's Hidden Jungle
Posing as a film crew, a team of illegal hunters enters the animal sanctuary of the Sukulu tribe. Their plan: drive the elephants, rhinos and lions out of the sacred land and slaughter them for their hides. When we first meet the Ape-Man in Tarzan’s Hidden Jungle, he’s swimming in the river – a fitting introduction for Gordon Scott, the muscular new Tarzan who was discovered while working as a lifeguard at a Las Vegas resort. Zippy, a favorite on numerous ’50s TV shows, portrays Cheetah. And the sense of jungle love you may detect between Scott and co-star Vera Miles is real. They became an off-screen Mr. and Mrs.

Tarzan and the Lost Safari
Mayday! Mayday! An airplane flying five high-society travelers to Cairo has flown into an enormous flock of birds and gone down somewhere in the African jungle. Fortunately, all five survive. But now they’re in dire need of food, protection and someone to lead them to safety. They need Tarzan. The second of the Tarzan movies starring powerfully built, 6’ 3” Gordon Scott is a first in the entire film series that began nearly 40 years before – the first in color. It also features striking, filmed-in-Africa cinematography.

Tarzan's Fight For Life
Knowing he cannot heal his tribe’s ailing boy chief, a witch doctor steals from a jungle medical center…and mistakenly grabs a bottle of poison. The same tribal medicine man, resentful of Tarzan, hypnotizes an underling and sends him on a mission: kill Jane. It’s Tarzan’s turn for peril when he’s captured by the witch doctor’s minions: they need the heart of a lion for a tribal ceremony, but wouldn’t the heart of the Lord of the Apes be even better? Gordon Scott stars in this filmed-in-color adventure that includes the same Jane (Eve Brent) and Boy (Rickie Sorensen) from Tarzan and the Trappers. Woody Strode (Spartacus) plays the witch doctor’s henchman.

Tarzan and the Trappers
Trappers intrude into the Ape-Man’s domain, poaching for profit and capturing Cheta and Boy. Other interlopers seek to plunder the riches of the lost city of Zarbo, and if that means ensnaring Tarzan in a net – so be it! Edgar Rice Burroughs’ vine-swinging Lord of the Apes (Gordon Scott) is busy in Tarzan and the Trappers and for good reason: the film is an edited version of three episodes intended for a TV series. The series never came to fruition, but fortunately for fans of Tarzan, this event-packed film did, complete with a Jane (Eve Brent) and a turn by Sherman “Scatman” Crothers as Tarzan’s friend Tyana.

Tarzan's Greatest Adventure
The mighty Lord of the Apes (Gordon Scott) is determined to find the diamond hunters (including Anthony Quayle and Sean Connery) who brought terror and death to a peaceful village. But as much as Tarzan is a tracker and avenger, he’s also a protector. An irresponsible gadfly from the so-called civilized world intrudes on his quest and Tarzan knows he cannot leave her to fend for herself. Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure is widely applauded as one of the best and most grownup Tarzan films. It’s “a superior action yarn shot on location in Africa, more adult than most of its predecessors. Tarzan has a much expanded vocabulary” (Leonard Maltin’s Movie Guide).

Tarzan the Magnificent
Through harsh jungle terrain, Tarzan escorts a notorious killer, intending to turn him over to authorities at Kairobi. A motley array of stranded travelers go with him. Meanwhile, the killer’s vengeful kin stalks the group, waiting for the right time to attack. Gordon Scott, in his sixth and final grab of the vine, is indeed magnificent in this dynamic color movie that maintains the mature approach and large-scale production of Scott’s prior Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure. Highlights include the powerful climactic brawl that in a sense is Tarzan vs. Tarzan, because squaring off against Scott is the actor who would succeed him as Lord of the Apes – Jock Mahoney.


JOCK MAHONEY & MIKE HENRY COLLECTION
Tarzan Goes to India (1962)
No need to land the plane when Tarzan flies to India. Just fly over an inland lake and the loin-clothed hero will leap into its blue depths! Jock Mahoney, who two years earlier portrayed Tarzan’s foe in Tarzan the Magnificent, makes his splashy debut as Tarzan in this tale about the Ape-Man’s rescue of elephants who will be doomed when a newly built dam unleashes its waters. John Guillermin (Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure, The Towering Inferno) directs, combining colorful subcontinent locales with battles large and thunderous (massive bull elephants), small and fierce (cobra versus mongoose), cunning and treacherous (Tarzan against human foes). No matter where the jungle, there is but one jungle lord!

Tarzan's Three Challenges (1963)
“No stranger from Africa can turn the course of our destiny.” But never underestimate a stranger named Tarzan (Jock Mahoney). Over miles and obstacles, he will lead the young heir to Thailand’s spiritual throne to his ordination and undo warlord Khan’s (Woody Strode) plot to secure the title for his son. First however, the Ape-Man must prove to the heir that he is Tarzan by passing tests of skill, strength and wisdom. Ahead lies a still greater challenge: Tarzan vs. Khan in a bungee-jumping, sword-clanging, flame-dancing death duel! This second and last of Mahoney’s Tarzans (filmed to colorful effect in Thailand) was not without real-life challenges: illness caused Mahoney to lose 40 pounds from his taut, athletic frame.

Tarzan And Valley Of Gold (1965)
When authorities ask Tarzan what he’ll need to pursue a crime kingpin and his commandos through the wilds of Mexico, the Ape-Man requests only a good knife, a sturdy rope and some soft leather to fashion into a loincloth. “Casual but practical,” he explains to the astonished officials. It’s a new day for fans and for the jungle lord when ex-NFL linebacker Mike Henry grabs the vine for the first of his three portrayals of a Tarzan who has one foot in the power-suited, briefcase-toting urban world and another in the untamed wilds. This new action hero will need all his skills – from relying on animal instincts to commandeering a tank – in this adventure that ends with an explosive showdown in an uncharted city filled with gold.

Tarzan and the Great River (1967)
An ancient killer cult lives…and many people die! Under the leadership of charismatic Bacuna (Rafer Johnson), the murderous tribe has resurfaced, pillaging Amazon River villages, kidnapping inhabitants and enslaving them at Bacuna’s secret enclave. Can Tarzan stop this relentless reign of terror? As in his previous Tarzan and the Valley of Gold, Mike Henry plays the role of a re-imagined Tarzan who is similar to a globe-trotting superspy and equally at ease in a suit or loincloth. Sidekick chimp Cheetah joins the adventure (filmed in scenic Brazil), as does a companion lion named Baron. Not to be missed is the mano-a-mano finale between ex-NFL linebacker Henry and Olympic decathlon champ Johnson. Savor this clash of titans!

Tarzan And Jungle Boy (1968)
Tragedy left a boy orphaned and alone, forced to fend for himself in the jungle wilds. Over the years he survived and thrived, growing in strength, skill and mastery. Sound like a hero you know? He’s the elusive teen the natives call Jukaro, and only someone who’s been through the same improbable experience can track and find him. For the third and last time, former professional-football linebacker Mike Henry offers a reinterpreted Ape-Man who’s accustomed to both the civilized world and the wild. He’s a man of action in either realm and action is at the forefront as his search for Jukaro leads to conflict with a fierce territorial warrior (Olympian Rafer Johnson, who also battled Mike Henry’s Tarzan in Tarzan and the Great River).

ERBzine REFERENCES
Refer to the full film descriptions at

ERBzine Silver Screen

Jock Mahoney: Tarzan Goes to India
Jock Mahoney: Tarzan's Three Challenges
Mike Henry Tribute: Gateway to all three films


TARZAN OF THE BOOKS
NEW: Oxford World's Classics

Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edited by Jason Haslam

Description
A central figure in American popular culture, Tarzan first came swinging through the jungle in the pages of a pulp-fiction magazine in 1912, and subsequently appeared in the novel that went on to spawn numerous film, full-length cartoon, and theatrical adaptations. The infant Tarzan, lost on the coast of West Africa, is adopted by an ape-mother and grows up to become a model of physical strength and natural prowess, and eventually leader of his tribe. When he encounters a group of white Europeans, and rescues Jane Porter from a marauding ape, he finds love, and must choose between the values of civilization and the jungle. Jason Haslam's engaging introduction situates the novel not only in the pulp fiction industry, but also against the backdrop of adventure stories, European exploration in Africa, and the debates over nature versus civilization. This edition also features an up-to-date bibliography, chronology, and helpful notes as well as appendices that include selections of letters from readers to the editor of The All-Story magazine where the novel first appeared, histories of feral children, African explorers, and American advocates of self-reliance. 
Features
Tarzan is a central figure in American popular culture, beginning life in the pages of a pulp-fiction magazine and in a book that inspired numerous film and media adaptations. This new edition of the original novel considers the reasons for its popularity against the backdrop of its period.

The Introduction situates the novel not only in the pulp fiction industry but against the backdrop of adventure stories, European exploration in Africa, the feral child and nature versus civilization.

Appendices include selections of letters from readers to the editor of The All-Story magazine where the novel first appeared, histories of feral children, African explorers and American advocates of self-reliance.

Up-to-date bibliography, chronology, and helpful notes.


Product Details
Paperback, 288 pages
ISBN13: 978-0-19-954288-8 ~ ISBN10: 0-19-954288-0
Price: $8.95

More Recent Editions

Paperback: 352 pages 
Publisher: Penguin Classic 
(Jun 10 2008) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0141036532 
ISBN-13: 978-0141036533 
Price $10.99
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Paperback: 336 pages 
Publisher: Penguin Classic 
(Mar 14 2009) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0141038268 
ISBN-13: 978-0141038261 
Price $10.99
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by Gore Vidal (Afterword), 
Edgar Rice Burroughs (Author),
James Taliaferro (Introduction)
Paperback: 288 pages 
Publisher: Modern Library
(Feb 11 2003) 
Language: English 
ISBN-10: 0812967062 
ISBN-13: 978-0812967067


Booklet offered at:
http://johnswesterngallery.com/

Graphic Novels from Campfire
www.campfire.co.in

Your ship sinks, your rescuers are attacked by a hostile German U-boat built by your own family’s shipyard, and your fate is inextricably tied to those of your fellow survivors and German adversaries. Then, to make matters infinitely worse, you land on a remote, prehistoric island that was assumed to be extinct! How would you survive? Who would you trust and what would you do? 

Bowen, our young hero, could never have imagined the adventures he’d be forced to embark upon when he arrived on the inhospitable coast of Caspak and set up camp there. He could never have fathomed having to cope in an alien landscape inhabited by dinosaurs, Neanderthals, aerial monsters and an almost unearthly flora and fauna… 

The Land that Time Forgot is the first book in the Caspak trilogy, written by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Since 1918, this science fiction story has delighted and enthralled millions of readers and will capture your imagination, by bringing to life the wild, ferocious and dangerous island that is Caspak. 

Adapted by: Scott Alexander Young  | Illustrated by: KL Jones 
 Published: 2008  | Imprint: Campfire  | Format: Paperback, Full Colour | 10.25" x 6.5" | 72 pages 
 ISBN: 978-81-906963-2-6 

 
It was supposed to be a standard rescue… As far as Tom Billings was concerned, all he had to do was set sail for the South Pacific island of Caprona and find the last-known whereabouts of Bowen J Tyler. It sounded so simple. However, arriving on the island with his own private army, Billings becomes separated from his companions after a machine gun fight with what appears to be a prehistoric creature. 

Standing between Billings and Tyler is the interior of the island, known to its local population as Caspak. It is a hot, overgrown, and unforgiving land. We accompany Billings step by step as he experiences strange rituals, vicious creatures and ancient tribes – many of whom want to kill him. There are times when he almost resigns himself to death in the face of insurmountable odds. But, true to his nature, he never gives up. 

The People that Time Forgot is the second book in the Caspak trilogy, written by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Since 1918, this science fiction story has delighted and enthralled millions of readers. Preceded by The Land that Time Forgot, this second book in the Caspak trilogy will capture your imagination, by bringing to life the wild, ferocious and dangerous island that is Caspak. 

Adapted by: Steven Philip Jones  | Illustrated by: KL Jones 
Published: 2009  | Imprint: Campfire 
Format: Paperback, Full Colour | 10.25" x 6.5" | 72 pages 
ISBN: 978-81-906963-8-8 

It is the year 2137… 

The world has been divided into the western hemisphere and the forbidden lands of the eastern hemisphere. 

No one knows better than Jefferson Turck, a lieutenant in the Pan-American Navy, that entering the eastern hemisphere is against the law. 

However, during a terrible storm at sea, Turck is forced to take refuge in a land located within the forbidden zone. In this alternative view of world history, Europe has been isolated from the rest of the world for over two centuries and has spiralled down into primitive barbarism. 

Turck is shocked by the unforgiving lands he finds himself in, and by the fearsome beasts that inhabit them. 

This is the story of Turck’s adventures in the land that was all but lost to the world. 

Adapted by: Anne Moore Odell  |  Illustrated by: Ricardo Arreola 
Published: 2009  | Imprint: Campfire 
Format: Paper Back Full Colour | 10.25 x 6.50 inches | 72 
ISBN: 978-81-907829-1-3 
 
 
 

The John Carter of Mars Collection on Amazon's Kindle

Download the first five Barsoom novels to your Kindle or PC

ERBzine REFERENCES
The Illustrated Bibliography of all ERB titles

www.ERBzine.com/chaser


PHOTO GALLERY
TARZANA PHOTOS

From the Los Angeles Public Library site

Shirely Temple and two calves at Adohr Farms next to Tarzana Ranch, circa 1937
The Adohr Certifed Farm was located at 18000 Ventura Boulevard. It was founded in 1917


Edgar Rice Burroughs' old estate, Tarzana
John Andrews, of the Los Angeles-based John Andrews Group and Rob Davis are the developers of MonteVerde's million-dollar homes, on the former estate of Edgar Rice Burroughs. The author of Tarzan of the Apes, Burroughs bought approximately 550 acres of San Fernando Valley land in 1919 for $125,000; Los Angeles Times publisher Gen. Harrison Gray Otis previously owned the ranch. Burroughs called his estate "Tarzan Ranch," and the community adopted the name Tarzana when incorporated into a city in the 1920s. In those days, Tarzan Ranch included a movie theater, a bowling alley and riding stables. Until the 1980s, sheep grazed on this land. MonteVerde, a community of 30 luxury homes designed in the Spanish Revival style opened in November 2001; homes range in size from 5,100 to 6,600 square feet, and are priced from $2.8 million.
Photo dated: November 14, 2000.




Tarzana Mansions
   An aerial view of suburban sprawl in Tarzana, south of Ventura Boulevard at Reseda Boulevard. The city of Tarzana is surrounded by Reseda to the north, Woodland Hills to the west, Encino to the east, and the Santa Monica Mountains to the south. In 1909 General Harrison Gray Otis, founder and publisher of the Los Angeles Times, purchased 550 acres in the center of modern-day Tarzana. In 1915 Edgar Rice Burroughs, author of Tarzan of the Apes, purchased the land from Otis, built a large home and renamed the property Tarzana Ranch. In 1927, when it was incorporated into a city, local residents adopted the name Tarzana in honor of Burroughs and his famous literary character.
Photo dated: December 23, 2002.
More at:
www.tarzana.ca


Edgar Rice Burroughs

Ula Holt
More at:
www.edgarriceburroughs.ca
and
ERBzine Silver Screen presents
The New Adventures of Tarzan

Two Tarzans Meet

Submitted by Ron de Laat

October 27, 1936 ~ NOTE: This is not Elmo as indicated on the back of the publicity still
Benita Hume ~ Cyril Hume (screenwriter) and Johnny Weissmuller
On the set of Tarzan Escapes

More at 
ERBzine Silver Screen presents
Tarzan Escapes


From the Blogosphere


The Cimmerian: A website and shieldwall for Robert E. Howard, J.R.R. Tolkien,
and the Best in Heroic Fantasy, Horror, and Historical Adventure.

Lupoff and Chabon Talk John Carter of Mars at ERBzine
The Cimmerian Website ~ March 19, 2010
Posted by Deuce Richardson
Those TC readers who have bothered to check the links I've posted in my ERB-related entries probably already suspect that I hold Bill Hillman's ERBzine website in high regard. Such suspicions would not be unfounded. Mr. Hillman hath builded a mighty temple to the Lord of Tarzana that hangs amidst the æther in erudite splendor.

This last January, Bill presented to his readership a most excellent symposium betwixt two major Edgar Rice Burroughs fans: Richard Lupoff and Michael Chabon. Mr. Lupoff, a long-time Friend of The Cimmerian, authored the first serious look at ERB and his works, Master of Adventure, as well as editing ERB volumes for Canaveral Press. Michael Chabon (a past recipient of the Pulitzer Prize) is on record as being a fan of of Robert E. Howard and Fritz Leiber. In his ERBzine interview (conducted by Lupoff), Chabon reveals his life-long love for the fiction of Burroughs. More>>>
Read this Cimmerian article HERE

Read the ERBzine Lupoff/Chabon Interview feature HERE

Edgar Rice Burroughs' The Land That Time Forgot
An article by Al Harron article in The Cimmerian ~ March 19, 2010

HERE LIES JOHN TIPPET ENGLISHMAN KILLED BY TYRANNOSAURUS
10 SEPT., A.D. 1916
R. I. P.
–The reader discovers the fate of Tippet in The Land That Time Forgot,
and quite possibly the greatest epitaph I’ve ever read.

. . . However, as soon as I could read at a sufficient level to tackle real books, I was introduced to a vast range of dinosaur fiction. My first dinosaur book was Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World (or, more properly, a children’s version which was actually rather faithful), and between the iconic Professor Challenger and the setting of Maple White Land, I knew this was what I want to read. Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote another great story of man meeting denizens of a younger earth: what better day than today, the 60th anniversary of his death, to discuss The Land That Time Forgot?

Read the entire Cimmerian article HERE

J. Allen St. John 1st Edition Art

From the Land That Time Forgot movie poster

Land That Time Forgot art by Harry Roland
THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT FEATURES IN ERBzine
Read the e-text of the novel
ERB C.H.A.S.E.R. Illustrated Bibliography Entry
ERBzine Silver Screen presents The Land That Time Forgot

Real-Life Tarzan Shares Home With Big Cats
Former 'Tarzan' Actor Says Spiritual Connection to Lions, Tigers Protects Him and Family
ABC News ~ March 24, 2010

For Steve Sipek, who grew up in Eastern Europe and immigrated to the United States, playing Tarzan on the big screen -- in films including 1972's "Tarzan and the Rainbow" -- was a dream come true. His acting career turned out to be short, but his love of big cats became a lifelong passion.  For nearly 40 years, Steve Sipek has shared his Florida home with tigers, lions and other big cats. Here he cavorts in a pool with one of his pets. "In the pool ... they think they're in a river attacking a crocodile," Sipek said. "They see me as an object -- 'Oh I can get this object' -- because their mind locks up. And when it locks up, you don't want to be there."
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Steve Sipek with a big cat named Bobo, which escaped the compound and was shot dead by authorities in 2004. Steve Sipek's son, Steve Jr., in bed with big cats at Sipek's Florida home in the 1970s. Today Steve Jr. lives in the western U.S.
Steve Sipek as a young man, pictured dozing with his big cats. "If you let them know that you love them, they will accept you into their lives and they'll push that killer instinct away," Sipek said.  Steve Sipek Jr. goes for a walk with a lion in a picture from the mid-1970s.
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Steve Sipek curls up with a tiger. "I have this sixth sense that always works for me," Sipek said. "No tiger can come with the intent to hurt me without waking me up before that happens." Like father, like son: Steve Sipek Jr. dozes with a tiger.
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Photos courtesy  of the Sipek family
Real-Life Tarzan Shares Home With Big Cats
Former 'Tarzan' Actor Says Spiritual Connection to Lions, Tigers Protects Him and Family
ABC News ~ March 24, 2010 

There is no welcome mat at the front door, but the sign on the electronic front gate offers a greeting just as clear: "Trespassers will be eaten." Driving past the slowly withdrawing gate, even invited guests can feel some unease. And the tension only increases upon first sight of the yard. A gravestone is flanked by tusks protruding from the ground. Sculptures of menacing beasts are mixed with nudes of the human form, all showing the wear of wind and rain. It's an atmosphere of a carnival halted by grief. Somehow the place is both wondrous and a monument to the dead. One isn't sure initially who, or what, is buried here. 

READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN OUR ERBzine 1101 REPRINT ANNEX

ERBzine Spotlight Series
The Steve Sipek/Steve "Tarzan" Hawkes Story

TARZAN OF TARZANA
NEWCOMER VAN DIEN LEARNED ROPES WATCHING WEISSMULLER
LA Daily News ~ April 22, 1998

Van Dien, who was seen last year as the bug-killing Johnny Rico in "Starship Troopers" prepared for his role by spending time at Edgar Rice Burroughs' old Spanish hacienda on Ventura Boulevard in Tarzana. Van Dien pored over Burroughs' novels and documentaries, soaking up as much information as Danton Burroughs, the writer's grandson, would give him.

"And then I threw it all away and just went out and had fun," Van Dien says. "After all, this is like an Indiana Jones movie. Not too many deep philosophical discussions."

Here, Van Dien - who can be a philosophical guy - talks about swinging from trees, running from elephants and the pros and cons of leather and animal-skin loincloths.

READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW IN OUR ERBzine 1101 REPRINT ANNEX

Casper Van Dien is featured in our 
TARZANA HALL OF FAME

ERBzine Silver Screen presents
TARZAN AND THE LOST CITY

A  New Eco-Hero for the PlayStation Generation 
as Tarzan Returns to his Roots In new books
London, April 2010. History is littered with examples of brands trying to reinvent themselves to appeal to a new generation, but for one of literature’s most successful franchises, all that’s required is a return to its roots – literally.

Since he first swung onto the world stage in 1912 the bare-chested, savage yet principled character of Tarzan has struck a chord with generation after generation as he fights to protect the jungle, its resources and its inhabitants. 

Now, almost a hundred years later, a partnership between the Edgar Rice Burroughs estate and one of Britain’s hottest writers -- Adam Briggs -- is set to bring Tarzan the Eco Warrior to the PlayStation generation, with a new series of Tarzan novels.

More at ERBzine News April 2010

READ THE ENTIRE NEWS RELEASE IN OUR ERBzine 1101 REPRINT ANNEX

Answering the Call of the Wild: Tarzan's Retreat Is Preserved
LA Times ~ December 16, 1995

The rain forest ecologist, the famously grumpy novelist, the state park executive and the board members of a private school have never met in the same room. But by working the levers of love and obsession independently over the past 20 years, they have fashioned a remarkable deal to preserve the beauty and beasts of a wooded Sherman Oaks canyon. And strangely, one of the ultimate winners may be Tarzan. You remember: Loincloth, "You Jane"? That one.

This week, the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy board approved a land swap in which the state of California would trade several acres of a gorgeous grove of oaks to the private school for 12 sylvan acres that include graded but empty home sites. While the math is a little strange, it's a good deal for nature lovers--the culmination of efforts to preserve a largely pristine glen that one of its admirers, author Harlan Ellison, calls "our sparkling little gem." The tale of Oak Forest Canyon begins in the late Miocene era 10 million years ago, when a red tide in the deep seas that covered Southern California killed off billions and billions of diatoms, the favorite one-celled luncheon meat of many fish. 

Now skip ahead 5 million years, when convulsive plate tectonics created the Santa Monica Mountains and pushed the final resting spot of fossilized herring, lantern fish and shark to the surface of the Earth in Sherman Oaks. Another 5 million years later, in the early 1920s, historians say Edgar Rice Burroughs -- creator of Tarzan and founder of the San Fernando Valley community of Tarzana -- discovered a creek shaded by giant oaks in a little canyon beside that fossil-covered ridge.

According to Ellison, Burroughs would ride up on horseback along a path that became Stansbury Street, wearing jodhpurs and a safari hat. He would picnic with his family and pals such as Los Angeles city engineer William Mulholland and oil baron Edward L. Doheny. And more than likely he would daydream about his characters--Tarzan and Capt. Jack Carter of Mars--while watching deer and rabbits romp through the chaparral. Ellison said his own riotous imagination, the source of best-selling fantasies, screenplays and TV dramas, was lit by reading Burroughs' books as a youth in Painesville, Ohio. And he has wondered ever since why Burroughs has never been honored with so much as a postage stamp.

Read more Tarzana Tales at:
www.tarzana.ca
and
The Edgar Rice Burroughs Bio Timeline
www.tarzana.ca/bio



ERB IN THE PRESS
WAS TARZAN LIVING IN SIN WITH JANE?
School Board Frets
December 28, 1961
Los Angeles (AP) - While Tarzan and Jane were living together in that tree all those years, were they also living together in sin?

Belated rumors of such a jungle scandal are circulating in nearby Downey, where some of the restless natives may be trying to drum Tarzan books right out of their elementary school libraries.

Their suspicion: That there is nothing to indicate Tarzan and Jane were ever legally married. And, if this is the case, that children are being exposed to tales about an ape man who was up to a little monkey business when he whisked Jane over the threshold of his primitive penthouse and invited her to stick around for breakfast.

When the news broke, you could almost hear a young voice imploring: "Say it ain't so, Tarz."

And, from the jungles of Hollywood, the reassuring response: "Don't worry, they can't bend the ape man out  of shape man, man."

The celebrated fictional hero created by the late Edgar Rice Burroughs has been through this sort of thing before. Once, in fact, he was in effect accused of being a dupe of the Communists. Happily, it appears Tarzan's reputation is an indestructible as Tarzan himself.

Supt. Bruce Moore of the Downey Unified School District said the trouble started at the last school board meeting. Board member Robert L. Ryan said he'd been told a librarian at one of the schools removed all the Tarzan books. Ryan's informant did not tell him in which school the books had been banned but said there had been vicious gossip about Tarzan's inability to produce a marriage certificate.

Sol Lesser, who produced many of the Tarzan movies, said the same objections were raised years ago. "I had a long correspondence with a number of people who objected to the fact that Tarzan and Jane were living in a tree house and had a son, all apparently without benefit of matrimony," Lesser said.

"We established that the son known only as 'Boy' was found by Tarzan and Jane and adopted by them. But that didn't help much and the correspondence went on.

"Finally I spoke to Burroughs. He said: 'I would advise you to read my books. In one of my early books it was established that Jane's name was Jane Porter, that she was the daughter of a minister in Baltimore, Md., and that the father went to the jungle and there married Tarzan and Jane.'"

Cyril R. Rothmund, who was Burroughs' manager, confirmed Lesser's story. "In the second Tarzan book Tarzan and Jane were married in the jungle," Rothmund said. He said this book, published in 1915, was titled "The Return of Tarzan."

Actress Maureen O'Sullivan, most famous of all the Janes in the Tarzan films, said similar objections were raised in her day. So, she said, Tarzan and Jane were married on the screen. 

"I believe it was in our second picture," she said. "We had a ceremony in the jungle. We didn't use a ring. Instead, Tarzan (Johnny Weissmuller) put a bracelet on my wrist.

"We had the wedding under the trees and all the animals of the jungle came and watched. They were the witnesses.

"That seemed to satisfy everybody."

ERBzine REFERENCES
ERB and the Press

Lost Words of ERB


CARTOON & MEMORABILIA GALLERY



Tarzan Valentines

Tarzan's Magic Fountain Necktie


From

tarzana.ca
The Fantastic Worlds of Edgar Rice Burroughs
ERB Compantion Sites Created by Bill Hillman

Tarzan.com
Tarzan.com
ERBzine Weekly Webzine
ERBzine.com
Danton Burroughs Website: Tarzana Treasure Vaults
DantonBurroughs.com
Tarzan.org
Tarzan.org
Burroughs Bibliophiles
BurroughsBibliophiles.com
John Coleman Burroughs Tribute Site
JohnColemanBurroughs.com
Tarzine: Official Monthly Webzine of ERB, Inc.
Tarzan.com/tarzine
John Carter of Mars
JohnCarterOfMars.ca
Edgar Rice Burroughs
EdgarRiceBurroughs
ERBzine Weekly Webzine
Weekly Webzine
Danton Burroughs Weekly Webzine
Weekly Webzine
Pellucidar
Pellucidar.org


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