Danton Burroughs, 63; grandson of Tarzan creator protected the legacy
By Valerie J. Nelson, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer 
LA Times ~ May 15, 2008 

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Danton Burroughs, who spent his life marketing and protecting the work of his grandfather, Tarzan creator Edgar Rice Burroughs, died May 1 at his home in Tarzana, the San Fernando Valley community named after his ancestor's most famous fictional character. He was 63.

Burroughs, who had been battling Parkinson's disease, died of heart failure a day after a fire at his home destroyed a room filled with family memorabilia.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, said Alex Cornelius, a family spokesman.

Bill Hillman, editor of Edgar Rice Burroughs-related websites, told The Times that "it was heartbreaking for Dan to put his life's work into preserving material for the family and see it go up in flames."

The day he died, Danton Burroughs was to be named chairman of Edgar Rice Burroughs Inc., the company his grandfather formed in 1923 to merchandise his abundant fiction, which included dozens of novels and short stories. 

"My grandfather was always smart, taking care of trademarks and copyrights and going after infringers," Burroughs told The Times in 1990. 

In 1972, Burroughs became an officer and director of the family business, overseeing the company from a Mission-style bungalow on Ventura Boulevard that his grandfather built in 1927. The office is on the northern edge of 550 acres that Edgar Rice Burroughs named Tarzana Ranch in 1919. The community began going by the Tarzana name in the 1920s.

Profits from the creation of the fantasy character Tarzan of the Apes, which first appeared in a short story in 1911, allowed Edgar Rice Burroughs to purchase the land from the estate of Gen. Harrison Gray Otis, the second publisher of the Los Angeles Times. 

Decades after the author's death in 1950, revenue from Tarzan-related products continued to roll in as Danton Burroughs negotiated the sale of Tarzan rights for feature films, video games, comic books and such disparate products as stuffed animals, sleepwear, jackknives and multivitamins.

He also carefully protected the source of the family fortune, suing anyone who used the Tarzan name or likeness without a license, according to a 1999 Times story. 

The business is "a multimillion-dollar corporation," Burroughs said in 1985 in The Times. "We don't tell anyone exactly how much money is involved. It's a privately held corporation, and we like to keep a low profile."

Within the business, the gregarious Burroughs was especially valued as a historical archivist, said Jim Sullos, company president.

"Dan had the most intimate knowledge of literature that his grandpa wrote," Sullos told The Times this week. "He could pull out of historical documents things people didn't even know existed."

One of Danton's goals was to market some of Edgar Rice Burroughs' other works, especially the tales of John Carter, who stars in a series of novels that take place on Mars, Sullos said. 

Danton named his daughters Dejah and Llana Jane for two princesses his grandfather invented for his fictional Mars world; the Jane was for Danton's mother, Jane Ralston Burroughs.

Burroughs was born June 21, 1944, in Los Angeles and grew up in Tarzana. In 1972, he earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from Cal State Northridge.

His father, John Coleman Burroughs, was best known for illustrating the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs.

He also was a photographer who documented Los Angeles as early as the 1920s. Many of his negatives burned in the April 30 fire at Danton's home, said Gerald Fecht, president of the Museum of the San Fernando Valley.

A supporter of the Valley museum, Danton also helped found the Tarzana Museum and contributed many artifacts to its collection, which is housed in the Tarzana Community and Cultural Center.

"I don't really expect to meet anyone like Danton again," Fecht said. "He had a sense of wonder, a sense of joy . . . he was absolutely a splendid person. When you were with him, it felt like vacation."

An inveterate collector, Danton showcased his flea-market finds and other collectibles in his hillside home. Outside, his house resembled a mini-castle but inside it was more like a major antique store, friends said. 

Among his thousands of collectibles were jukeboxes and pinball machines, sheet music, street lamps and many literary works.

In the fire, Danton lost treasured pocket watches and antique marbles but he was devastated by the loss of so much memorabilia related to his father and grandfather, Hillman said. 

"He felt, and rightfully so, that the Burroughs legacy was entrusted to his keeping," Hillman wrote in an online tribute. "And this disaster seemed to prove how vulnerable and fleeting such a legacy could be."

He is survived by Linda, his wife of 28 years, and his daughters. Burroughs is also survived by a brother, John Ralston Burroughs, and a sister, Dian Burroughs.

A service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Tarzana Community and Cultural Center, 19130 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana.

Instead of flowers, the family suggests donating to the Danton Burroughs Memorial Fund at Parkinson's Resource Organization, www.parkinsonsresource.org

valerie.nelson@latimes.com
LA Times Obituaries

Danton Burroughs dies at 63
'Tarzan' creator's grandson oversaw usage
Variety ~ May 13, 2008
Danton Burroughs, who oversaw the usage of his grandfather Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan character, died May 1 in Tarzana, Calif. of heart failure. He had previously been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. He was 63.

As chairman of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., Burroughs handled licensing and promotion of properties such as Tarzan Lord of the Jungle and John Carter of Mars, including films, TV shows, comic strips, stage productions and books.

Danton Burroughs was also a collector of art and literary works including sheet music and jukeboxes.
Born in Los Angeles, he spent most of his life in Tarzana, the community his grandfather established and named after the famous character.

He is survived by his wife Linda, two daughters, a brother and a sister.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, May 17 at 2 p.m. at the Tarzana Community & Cultural Center, 19130 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana.

Donations may be made to the Danton Burroughs Memorial Fund at Parkinson's Resource Organization, 74-090 El Paseo, Suite 102, Palm Desert, CA 92260. 

Source: Variety Obituaries

 
DANTON BURROUGHS REMEMBERED
May 2, 2008
Danton Burroughs — the grandson of Edgar Rice Burroughs and a major force in keeping that man's work alive — died Wednesday evening or Thursday morning at the age of 64 from a heart attack. He had been suffering from Parkinson's Disease for some time but was also coping with an emotional upheaval. Earlier this week, a fire had destroyed a a large number of precious, historical artifacts in his collection. Danton was always fierce about the preservation of every possible book, photo or scrap of paper about his family members so one can only imagine the impact the fire had on his health.

Danton died at his home in Tarzana, a suburb named for his grandfather's legendary creation. He was the son of John Coleman Burroughs, who was himself distinguished in the arts as a photographer, illustrator and author.

His passion for the family legacy is legendary. He was genuinely dedicated to that legacy for all the best reasons as evidenced by the multitude of websites that attest to his generosity in perpetuating the work of his father and grandfather and sharing it all with the world. ~ Adapted from NewsFromMe Log

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DANTON BURROUGHS DIES
Museum of the San Fernando Valley ~ May 1, 2008
One of the San Fernando Valley's greatest friends of history, Danton Burroughs has died. Dan died sometime after 10 last evening. He had struggled with Parkinson's Disease for sometime, but his death may have been related to a significant fire among his historical treasures on April 30th. Danton was the grandson of the beloved author Edgar Rice Burroughs, creator of Tarzan.

Danton died at his home in Tarzana, a San Fernando Valley suburb named by his grandfather. Danton was the son of the great American photographer John Coleman Burroughs. He was a founder of the Tarzana Museum and supporter of The Museum of the San Fernando Valley.

Danton was a member of Chi Chi Chi Fraternity at Los Angeles Pierce College and was a lifelong friend of many members of the Beta Chapter of the Phi Delta Psi Fraternity.

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DANTON BURROUGHS HAS DIED 
Maple Leaf Brotherhood ~ May 1, 2008
One of the San Fernando Valley's greatest friends of history, Danton Burroughs has died. Dan died sometime after 10 last evening. He had struggled with Parkinson's Disease for sometime, but his death may have been related to a significant fire among his historical treasures on April 30th. Danton was the grandson of the beloved author Edgar Rice Burroughs, creator of Tarzan. 

Danton died at his home in Tarzana, a San Fernando Valley suburb named by his grandfather. Danton was the son of the great American photographer John Coleman Burroughs. He was a founder of the Tarzana Museum and supporter of The Museum of the San Fernando Valley.

Danton was a member of Chi Chi Chi Fraternity at Los Angeles Pierce College and was a lifelong friend of many members of the Beta Chapter of the Phi Delta Psi Fraternity. Among the last persons to speak with him is Br. Jerry Berns who had a long conversation with Dan about 8 o'clock last evening. He commented to Jerry Fecht, the morning after the fire, that he cherished his college friends, who were the greatest of his treasures. 
At Dan's request, Jerry Fecht went to his home the morning after the fire to photograph damage. The photographs are a tragic record of how fragile our friendships and our history can be. 

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DANTON BURROUGHS MEMORIAL TRIBUTE SITE
www.ERBzine.com/dantonburroughs/
www.DantonBurroughs.com

ICH TARZAN, DU JANE!: FINALISTS
Tarzan and Jane are chosen for the German production of Tarzan the Musical
Tarzan in Europe News Friday, May 2, was the last live television show of "Ich Tarzan, Du Jane!" from Stuttgart, Germany. The special guest was Phil Collins. There were six finalists, three Tarzans and three Janes and, in the opinion of Collins and the three-man jury, all were fine talents.  It was up to the viewers at home to vote for the ones they thought should be Tarzan and Jane. In the final selection, the winners were Anton Zetterholm, of Swedish extraction, with a great voice and a very athletic and acrobatic physique. Jane is Elisabeth Hübert from Germany and she's a very pretty blonde with a fantastic voice

All the lyrics of the musical have been translated into German. Both finalists can sing fluently in either English or German. The Tarzan Musical premiere is slated for October 18, 2008, in Hamburg. Eventually the show will move to Berlin.

The TV show may be accessed at www.sat1.at/comedy_show/tarzan

 Submitted by Walter Taucer ~ Austria

 

Pixar's "John Carter" Team Visits Tarzana
Pre-production for the Disney/Pixar "John Carter of Mars" film is gathering steam

Tarzana, CA: October 2, 2007
The Pixar creative team spent Tuesday morning exploring the massive Edgar Rice Burroughs archives in the ERB, Inc. offices on Ventura Blvd.  Pixar's Jim Morris (vp), Andrew Stanton (director), Mark Andrews (script) discussed the "John Carter of Mars" film project with Burroughs representatives, Danton Burroughs, Sandra Galfas and Jim Sullos. 

All six members at the meeting expressed a deep commitment to the project, acknowledging that they had been inspired by Burroughs' creations from a very early age. This is evidenced in the excitement held for the John Carter property and the plans for a film trilogy faithful to the Burroughs books. Projected release date is sometime before 2012.

Danton Burroughs presented the creative team with a wealth of resources, including art samples and books by ERB scholars such as Irwin Porges and John F. Roy. They noted that their major resource to date had been the thousands of official ERB, Inc. Webpages and Webzines.

~ Bill Hillman

Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. vigorously enforces and defends its rights in the Tarzan character and stories.  In 2003, for example, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the trial court's decision in ERB's favor that two Tarzan books published in 1972 and 1976 illustrated by artist Burne Hogarth are works for hire owned by ERB, notwithstanding erroneous registrations stating that Hogarth was the author of the works. 

The district court initially sanctioned ERB's adversaries and their counsel, though the court later vacated the sanctions on the condition that ERB be reimbursed for certain of its attorneys' fees that had been the subject of the sanctions motion.