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Bob Hyde's ODYSSEY OF A TARZAN FANatic The 1990s Decade

I did a lot of traveling in 1991.

I read that Mike Grell, a former Tarzan Sunday-page artist, was going to attend a comic book convention in Chicago, so I made airplane reservations and plans to stay with my wife's sister, and traveled to see him. I almost missed him; he had closed his table and was packing to leave when I arrived.

I had him autograph some of his work in my collection book of Sunday pages, and then I commissioned him to do an original drawing of Tarzan for me. It was almost a year before it finally arrived. Now it hangs on the wall of my collection room.

I had made arrangements with Mitch Harrison and Alan Freedman, part of "The Normal Beans" Burroughs Bibliophiles Chicago chapter to discuss the 1991 Dum-Dum. The 1991 World Science Fiction Convention was going to be part of it. I talked Mitch and Alan into being guests for the Dum-Dum. They made arrangements at the Hyatt-Morton Hotel, within walking distance of the WorldCon hotel. They were able to set up the Dum-Dum for the same Labor Day weekend as the WorldCon. They did a great job on very short notice.

I prepared a handout on the history of the Dum-Dums for distribution at the convention:

I was able to have another visit at Mitch Harrison's home and examine his great collection, including two sets of first editions.

In early May I drove to New England to visit my Alma Mater, Yale University, and to see my old dormitory room. It had been changed since I lived there. There were more fire walls and doors. I set off a fire alarm by opening a door that hadn't been there before. On my way back I s topped at the Comic Art Museum in Rye Brook, New York, which occupied a castle-like building and displayed many original daily and Sunday comics. A life-size drawing of Tarzan on cloth by Joe Kubert was hanging in a stairwell.

Pulpcon was held in Dayton, Ohio in late June. The author Howard Browne was the Guest of Honor, and I was able to get him to autograph his two Tarzan-like Tharn novels, Warrior of the Dawn and The Return of Tharn, and the Amazing Stories version. He told me that he had wanted to become a writer and had studied ERB's style in great detail to become successful.

The 1991 ECOF gathering was hosted by Mike Conran in Williamston and Okemos, Michigan in late June. I was able to attend and see Mike's great collection. That was well worth the trip. I am no longer going to describe the Burroughs gatherings in any detail Others have done so in the ERBapa and other fanzines and have produced detailed write-ups.

In mid-July I traveled to Kunkletown, PA for a three-day visit with the Sunday-page artist Gray Morrow and his wife, Pocho. I purchased an original drawing of his Sunday Tarzan page #2931 for 10-18-87 of Tarzan's return trip to Pellucidar. He autographed pages where he had used my likeness for one of the bad-guy characters. He allowed me to ink the foliage in the background on pages #3133 & 3134 (9-1-91) & (9-8-91). So look up those pages and see my great artistic talent on the foliage!

The 1991 Dum-Dum was held at the Hyatt Morton Hotel on August 31 and September 1, hosted by the Chicago B.B. chapter, "The Normal Beans," as I noted above. Fortunately for me, I was again able to attend. Author Earling Holtsmark agreed to George McWhorter's request to be the Guest of Honor. He spoke of his research for his critical work, Tarzan and Tradition, and the biographical Edgar Rice Burroughs. Mike Chapman told us about a book he was working on about Glenn Morris.

We were fortunate to have the Ballantine Books Tarzan cover artist Richard Powers come over to our hotel from the WorldCon to be an unplanned speaker at our Sunday brunch. This, of course, resulted in my obtaining some more autographs.

Joe Kulbert Drawing

Bob Hyde and Howard Browne

Erling Holtsmark

Bob Hyde and Richard Powers

Later on Sunday I went with Dennis Larson to view the grave site of J. Allen St. John in Rosehill Cemetery. Both J. Allen and his widow Ella share the same headstone.

In early November Mitch Harrison came to Pittsburgh to visit me and see my Burroughs collection. Of course the other two Thurians, Walt Albert and Jack Daley, plus Bob Horvath, came over to visit with Mitch.

In late November a comic book show took place at the Pittsburgh Sheraton Hotel. Mike Kaluta was there to autograph his art work, which naturally I obtained. I had him do an original drawing of Carson Napier and Duare.

Unfortunately we lost Hully Burroughs on August 8, at age 81. He suffered his last illness for too many years. I was probably the last fan to visit him, in 1986. He was very ill then and his wife Marion was not thrilled that Danton obtained Hully's permission to visit. He had told Danton he wanted to see me. Marion let me know it was not her wish.

Hulbert Burroughs

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Chapter LX ~ Part One
1992
First appeared in ERBapa No. 82 ~ Summer 2004

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Even though I did a lot ot traveling in 1991, my traveling continued in 1992.

In January I went north to Toronto for a visit with Fred and Wanda Lukas, He invited me to see his great art collection, which contained original Roy Krenkel drawings and paintings. While I was there, Geoff St. Andrew stopped by to visit Fred and me. Fred and I then visited with Doug Denby, who is John Roy's nephew, to see what he had obtained from John's collection. He had many of John's Burroughs items, but not all.

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Later in May, Fred and Wanda came to Pittsburgh to see my ERB collection, so I invited the two Thurians, Jack and Walt over for a little get-together.

In June I flew to Wichita to get a viewing of Bob Barrett's fabulous art collection. All the wall space in his house is covered with original paintings, drawings, and posters. It is truly a fabulous collection, actually an art gallery.

From Wichita I flew to Denver for the ECOF gathering, hosted by John McGuigan at the Oxford Alexis Hotel. Some of us got ot see John's collection. He had a very impressive ERB first-edition set, all but one autographed by Burroughs. I did manage to trade one of mine for one of his, autographed by "OB" (Old Burroughs). Some of us also went to Roy and Dela White's home to examine their great ERB collection.

After the banquet at Baby Doe's Restaurant, I was actually at a loss for words when I was presented with the "Outstanding Achievement Award" plaque. I had no hint that this was going to happen. I was at such a loss that I had to wait until the Farewell Breakfast on Sunday to express my thanks and gratitude for such thoughtfulness. The plaque hangs on the wall above my desk.

In July, Pulpcon was held in Dayton, Ohio, where I picked up a few needed pulp magazines for my collection. After the Pulpcon, Walt Albert and I went to Hamilton, Ohio, searching for the monument honoring Captain John Symmes. We found it in a park. Symmes was honored for his theory of a hollow Earth with polar openings. He wrote about his theory in the early 1800s. His theory also proposed that living creatures or beings were living inside the hollow earth. He made several unsuccessful attempts to get the U. S. Congress to provide funds for an expedition to search for the North polar opening. To quote ERB: "As every schoolboy knows, Pellucidar is a world within a world, lying, as it does, upon the inner surface of the hollow sphere, which is the Earth."

The 1992 Dum-Dum, hosted by George McWhorter, was held at the Galt House Hotel in Louisville. Guests were Burne Hogarth and Frank Westwood, from England. Both Rita Coriell and Bob Zeuschner received the Golden Lion Award. Burne Hogarth now is famous for giving the longest after-banquet speech in the history of the Burroughs Bibliophiles. He also holds the record for putting to sleep the largest number of banquet attendees.

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Chapter LX Part 2 is featured in
ERBzine 1199