Al
Bohl is producing a documentary about the 1918
Tarzan of the Apes
film that was partially made in his home state of Louisiana.
He attended the 2009
Dum-Dum where he interviewed many of the dedicated ERB fans and scholars
for the documentary. Accompanied Al was his daughter Allison, who is an
accomplished film producer.
To date he has been on the Tarzan
swamp tour where they shot the 1918 film and has interviewed people in
Morgan City with knowledge of the filming process. He has heard from
many people who are fans of the film. Unfortunately the city archive is
very small but they do have a spear that the natives carried. He has also
been contacted by a man who owns a boat used in the movie. It was exhibited
at the '84 World's Fair and is now in a boat museum in South Louisiana.
He is still hoping to meet someone who was in the film over 90 years ago.
Before arriving at the Dayton convention
he and Allison spent a day at the Ekstrom Library in the University
of Louisville where they got invaluable interview footage with George McWhorter
and a full tour of the Edgar Rice Burroughs Memorial Collection.
A highlight of the Dayton Dum-Dum
was Al's presentation in which he showcased an overview of the project
and shared some of the raw footage. He also took away new footage which
showed the dedication of ERB fans in a convention setting.
Following the Dum-Dum Al moved on
to California where he visited ERB, Inc. in Tarzana and also interviewed
many Hollywood notables, including Elmo Lincoln's daughter Marci'a Lincoln.
Al may be contacted at: al@albohl.com
Phone: 1.318.426.8530
AL
BOHL: A MAN OF MANY TALENTS
Animator and Author
In addition to Al's talents as a documentarian
he is also a respected animator and author.
Bossier City artist is 'Way Out There!'
Shreveport
Times ~ July 22, 2009
Bossier City artist Al Bohl has always had a love of the
arts and a sense of humor to match.
That love has led to a deal that may strike gold. Bohl
recently finalized a development deal for his cartoon series "Way Out There!"
"I'd been working about a year and a half when I got the
call from Canada," Bohl said.
Toronto-based animation and distribution company 9 Story
Entertainment bought the concept and is making a pilot about a boy who
attends a boarding school on the Planet Nu-B-On. The fish-out-of-water
story has the boy as an intergalactic foreign exchange student whose best
friend is in a city in a glass jar, whose bully is a jock and whose teacher
goes by "Blah Blah."
The deal is even sweeter because for the last 10 years,
Bohl has been the art director at Sci-Port: Louisiana's Science Center
in Shreveport. During the summers, Bohl teaches cartooning and animation
classes for all ages through the Continuing Education Department of LSUS.
For years, Bohl had been developing "Way Out There!" and
pitching the concept at festivals and animators workshops. At the Ottawa
International Animation Festival, Bohl was approached by 9 Story. The story
is meant to appeal to young boys who can identify with the main character.
"We were thrilled to be introduced to such a fresh and
highly creative property," said Liliana Vogt, vice president of development
for Story 9, in a release. "Al's designs and concept for the series instantly
resonated with our sensibilities, our brand and our objective, which is
to find unique, character-driven comedy material with solid international
appeal."
Bohl has been freelancing his cartoon ideas since earning
his bachelor of arts degree in liberal and fine arts in 1984 from LSUS.
All told, he has designed covers for and written or illustrated nearly
50 books, including his futuristic superhero, Zaanan.
He is married to Doris Gibson who has worked as a surgical
nurse for the past 20 years. They have three grown children. Capt. Aaron
Bohl is a Cobra Attack Helicopter pilot in the U.S. Marines. Allison Bohl
is a filmmaker who mostly produces documentaries. Allison and her co-producer,
Connie Castille, were selected as the Louisiana Filmmakers of the Year
in 2007 for their film "I Always Do My Collars First." Al and Doris' youngest
son, Alex Bohl, a recent La. Tech graduate and works at CenturyLink in
Monroe.
Al Bohl is always willing to talk to others about cartooning
and the arts. He can be reached by e-mail at al@albohl.com
Allison and Al
Songwriter and Recording
Artist
Listen to a sample of Al's songwriting and vocals on the
following recordings:
Oh My Famous Last Words
http://www.erbzine.com/mag28/av/famouslastwords.mp3
"I wrote this for my father.
He will always be my hero. He was a strong, former Marine, who taught
me to be a good person and father. I finished recording this song
before he died and he asked me to play it during his funeral. I always
envisioned Johnny Cash recording it but he died before I could get it to
him."
Someone To Love
http://www.erbzine.com/mag28/av/someonetolove.mp3
"I wrote this one for Allison when she began to take
boys more serious. I always tried to teach her to "guard her heart."
Naturally, she was dating a guitar player at the time."
You Moved Me
http://www.erbzine.com/mag28/av/youmovedme.mp3
"I wrote and recorded this for my wife for an anniversary
a couple of years ago. This past August we celebrated 34 years together."
TARZAN: LORD OF THE LOUISIANA JUNGLE NEWS RELEASE
February 16, 2009
Media Contact: Al Bohl 318-426-8530 al@albohl.com
Tarzan’s Louisiana Connection Explored in Documentary
A documentary film is being made about the 1918 silent
motion picture "Tarzan of the Apes" which was shot in Morgan City. Executive
producer Al Bohl is working in partnership with the award winning Cinematic
Arts Workshop of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette to produce this
documentary. “The making of the original film is a fascinating story,”
says Bohl, “with more layers than an onion.”
Mr. Bohl lives in Louisiana and has always been a fan
of the Ape man created by Edgar Rice Burroughs. According to Bohl,
years ago a man from Morgan City told him about the film and said live
apes had been used in the film and just left behind when the film wrapped.
That bit of information was enough to keep the Bossier City native hooked
into the story. However, it wasn’t until the movie industry started
coming to Louisiana that Bohl began investigating more into this particular
Tarzan film.
“This film was the first feature film made on location
in the U.S. and one of the first films to gross one million dollars at
the box office,” says Bohl. That is about $25 million in today’s money.
This documentary to be entitled “Tarzan: Lord of the Louisiana Jungle,”
hopes to not only find out if there are monkeys in the bayous but also
find out if a real lion was killed on screen and why, of all places, Louisiana
was chosen as the place to make the movie.
Bohl and the Cinematic Arts Workshop team will travel
throughout the United States interviewing scholars and fans finding these
answers and much more. The project is already stirring interest among
Tarzan enthusiasts around the nation and has the blessing of Edgar Rice
Burroughs, Inc. Elmo Lincoln played the part of Tarzan in the first
film. Mr. Lincoln passed away in the 1950s but his daughter has been
very excited about this documentary project.
Mr. Bohl would like anyone with first or second hand knowledge
of the Morgan City film to contact him through his website www.albohl.com.
“I have high hopes that at least one person is still alive and willing
to talk to us who was somehow affiliated with the movie made some 90 years
ago. A great find would be an ape costume worn in the movie.
I can always dream,” adds Bohl.
