Tarzan

[C. Lee]

Some of us got into an offtopic conversation about Tarzan in another forum. I figured that with the general interest shown there...we needed a Tarzan discussion thread.

Tarzan has been one of my favorite characters for 40+ years. I watched the movies, and then later started reading the books. For anyone who has only seen the movie or TV shows about the character and haven't read the novels....let me tell you, there is a big difference.

Tarzan was first published in 1912 and is set in that time period. Most of the shows made of his character are set in the time period of when the actual movie or TV show is made. There have only been a few made during the actual novel time periods.

When most people think of Tarzan, I think they see Johnny Weismuller and his monosylabic peformance and childlike demeanor. In the novels the first WESTERN language he learns to speak is French, followed by English and then several others. Before he learned to speak these, he had taught himself how to read English (but not speak it, since there was no one around him who spoke it and could teach him the proper sounds) by studying the books of his parents he found in thier cabin in the Congo.

All in all...an interesting character who had lots of adventures in novels, comics, movies, and TV. So, lets hear some discussion on him.

 

[SoulManX]

Did you like the Disney verison?

I love the Greystroke 80's version my self

 

[SHADOWBAT69]

I grew up watching the Johnny Weismuller reruns. My Dad always enjoyed them and he actually gave me a couple of books to read so that I could see the different interpretation of the character. He liked doing this, I remember when he gave me the Bambi novel. Boy, was I shocked when I started reading that one. Anyway, back on topic, I would like to see some epic period movie done for Tarzan.

 

[Ratcrawler]

I think my reputation as a gigantic Tarzan Nerd precedes me. If not...

...^Me on Halloween.

Anyway, yeah. I'm really looking forward to the upcoming animated Tarzan film and if Warner Bros get off their ass to make the live action one, they need to drop Stephen Sommers who still doesn't know if he wants to make GI Joe 2 & Odd Thomas first.

 

[afan]

The off topic discussion C.Lee references, interrupted a Captain America thread, and encompassed a comparison of Tarzan's prowess to popular super-heroes. It was somewhat apparent that some, tho familiar with the name, were woefully misinformed re. exactly what Tarzan is capable of.................hence.......

From "Tarzan of the Apes"....

In many ways did he differ from them, and they often marveled at his superior cunning, but in strength and size he was deficient; for at ten the great anthropoids were fully grown, some of them towering over six feet in height, while little Tarzan was still but a half-grown boy.
Yet such a boy!
From early childhood he had used his hands to swing from branch to branch after the manner of his giant mother, and as he grew older he spent hour upon hour daily speeding through the tree tops with his brothers and sisters.
He could spring twenty feet across space at the dizzy heights of the forest top, and grasp with unerring precision, and without apparent jar, a limb waving wildly in the path of an approaching tornado.
He could drop twenty feet at a stretch from limb to limb in rapid descent to the ground, or he could gain the utmost pinnacle of the loftiest tropical giant with the ease and swiftness of a squirrel. Though but ten years old he was fully as strong as the average man of thirty, and far more agile than the most practiced athlete ever becomes. And day by day his strength was increasing.

 

[C. Lee]

Did you like the Disney verison?

I love the Greystroke 80's version my self

I loved the Disney animated movie (haven't had a chance to see the series from it, so can't comment on that)...it was extremely fun, loved the songs, and it was in some ways more accurate to the original novel than most Tarzan movies.

I grew up watching the Johnny Weismuller reruns. My Dad always enjoyed them and he actually gave me a couple of books to read so that I could see the different interpretation of the character. He liked doing this, I remember when he gave me the Bambi novel. Boy, was I shocked when I started reading that one. Anyway, back on topic, I would like to see some epic period movie done for Tarzan.

Yeah, I grew up watching Weismuller's films and love them. They weren't faithful to the books, but are damn fun to watch. WB has releases all of them in 2 six movie sets with some documentaries.

I think my reputation as a gigantic Tarzan Nerd precedes me.

I didn't know you were a Tarzan fan, but glad to hear it....I looked decent in a loincloth 30 years ago....now I'm just scary.

 

[C. Lee]

The off topic discussion C.Lee references, interrupted a Captain America thread, and encompassed a comparison of Tarzan's prowess to popular super-heroes. It was somewhat apparent that some, tho familiar with the name, were woefully misinformed re. exactly what Tarzan is capable of.................hence.......

From "Tarzan of the Apes"....

I could tell from our discussions over there you were a Tarzan fan. I just recently got copies of TARZAN:THE EPIC ADVENTURES starring Joe Lara. Did you ever get a chance to see that?

 

[SoulManX]

Anyone remember the WB's Tarzan molded after Smallville...

 

[Dark Raven]

We haven't had a live action theatrical Tarzan movie for ages. Who would be good actors to portray him and Jane?

Anyone remember that Filmation Tarzan cartoon which did apparently have elements of the ERB novels.

 

[C. Lee]

Anyone remember the WB's Tarzan molded after Smallville...

When it was on...my cable system didn't carry the WB. I've seen pics and read some things on it, but never saw any episodes. Did you see any, and if so, what was your feelings on it. I'm a collector of things....and I know I will have to get a copy of it at some time or another...just wondering whether to put it on the some day or ASAP list.

 

[SoulManX]

We haven't had a live action theatrical Tarzan movie for ages. Who would be good actors to portray him and Jane?

Anyone remember that Filmation Tarzan cartoon which did apparently have elements of the ERB novels.

I do it was awesome...speak of which I miss Filmation so much

 

[SoulManX]

When it was on...my cable system didn't carry the WB. I've seen pics and read some things on it, but never saw any episodes. Did you see any, and if so, what was your feelings on it. I'm a collector of things....and I know I will have to get a copy of it at some time or another...just wondering whether to put it on the some day or ASAP list.

Some may disagree with me but I actually liked it and watched with brother every Sunday night. I mean it was scaled down for the Smallville generation but I really wanted it to be sucessful but never got the ratings.

 

[C. Lee]

We haven't had a live action theatrical Tarzan movie for ages. Who would be good actors to portray him and Jane?

Anyone remember that Filmation Tarzan cartoon which did apparently have elements of the ERB novels.

The last live action movie I can think of is TARZAN AND THE LOST CITY (1998) starring Casper Van Dien. I know that sometimes cheap knockoffs are made by some countries...but I can't remember hearing of any for a long time.

The Filmation Tarzan you ask about...was that the one made in the late 60's early 70's or the one where I think he was working with Flash Gordon and Mandrake in the 80's?

 

[C. Lee]

Some may disagree with me but I actually liked it and watched with brother every Sunday night. I mean it was scaled down for the Smallville generation but I really wanted it to be sucessful but never got the ratings.

That's good to know. I'm not one that absolutely has to have his heros always perfectly accurate to the source material. I can take "whatif" stories without having a fit. So I've always been interested in it....just haven't got the opportunity to see it yet.

I want to see a pretty accurate adaptation of the books, but like seeing the other versions too.

 

[Wolfwood]

Do you guys think it would be possible for a Tarzan movie to be successful in today's day and age?

 

[afan]

I could tell from our discussions over there you were a Tarzan fan. I just recently got copies of TARZAN:THE EPIC ADVENTURES starring Joe Lara. Did you ever get a chance to see that?

Yup during it's original run . Haven't seen it since that initial run tho so my recollection is a bit fuzzy. It was OK. Fairly close to ERB's vision, included some of the exotic fanciful lands of ERB, nice in that it was if i recall correctly a Tarzan period peice, and no chimp!(
BTW amazingly Cheeta is still alive!) Lara also did "Tarzan in Manhattan" more based on the MGM Weismuller Tarzan tho. There are some snippets of both on YouTube.

 

[afan]

Do you guys think it would be possible for a Tarzan movie to be successful in today's day and age?

Absolutely!

 

[Kevin Roegele]

I love the character of Tarzan.

I tried to read the original novel, Tarzan of the Apes. Sadly it's so racist that I could not get past the first thirty pages.

 

[C. Lee]

Yup during it's original run in the late '90s. Haven't seen it since that initial run tho so my recollection is a bit fuzzy. It was OK. Fairly close to ERB's vision, included some of the exotic fanciful lands of ERB, nice in that it was if i recall correctly a Tarzan period peice, and no chimp!(
BTW amazingly Cheeta is still alive!) Lara also did "Tarzan in Manhattan" more based on the MGM Weismuller Tarzan tho. There are some snippets of both on YouTube.

It didn't play around here. I originally read some articles in STARLOG mag about the show. I sometimes buy or trade things off of the net, and recently got the series on DVD. It's just transfers from where someone taped it off of TV years ago (condition fair to good) but its all I've seen of it for sale. I've only been able to see the first pilot movie so far. I give it high grades for being a period piece and for incorporating the worlds created by ERB. It's production values, some acting, writing and such get a lower grade...but it's ERB by damn, and I'm looking forward to watching the rest of the series.

The TARZAN IN MANHATTAN is another one I haven't been able to find a decent copy of yet.

 

[Ajendo]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSNz7nAPIdo

This is what I grew up watching.

 

[david icke]

I watched all the Johnny Weismuller films on tv when I was a kid, they used to show them all the time during the summer holidays, loved them, haven't seen them since though.
I also was very into the Filmation Tarzan cartoon, I don't recall him teaming up with Mandrake or Flash Gordon though, it was just straight jungle adventure i recall.
Greystoke was quite ahead of it's time though I think, it's basically Batman Begins for Tarzan, I have it on dvd and it's still as awesome as when it was released. I still remember watching that at the pics and me and my pal getting a good laugh out of him peeing on that monkey's head.
Great film, felt genuinely scary and dangerous, as the jungle environment should.

 

[afan]

I could swear that the Filmation series rotoscoped Weissmuller in action for much of it's Tarzan movement. Can anybody confirm my suspicion?

 

[C. Lee]

I love the character of Tarzan.

I tried to read the original novel, Tarzan of the Apes. Sadly it's so racist that I could not get past the first thirty pages.

When did you try and read it....I mean how old were you and how long ago was it?

I just went and got my paperback copy and reread the first 30 pages. The majority of white people spoken about were murderous treacherous brutes. Is that what you were talking about?

The novel was wrote in 1912 and it starts off in 1888. Tarzan's father (John Clayton) is being sent to a British West Coast of Africa Colony to investigate the mistreatment of natives by an unnammed European power.

The white captain of the ship he and his wife are using to travel to the destination is a savage man who beats his multiracial crew. He and his officers beat and degrade the crew. John intervenes at one point when the Captain is going to shoot and kill one of the crew and saves him. The crew mutiny and kill a bunch of people...John and his wife are put ashore.

Once ashore John and his wife fight the elements, savage animals, and the great apes that eventualy kill him and take the baby Tarzan to raise.

 

[C. Lee]

I watched all the Johnny Weismuller films on tv when I was a kid, they used to show them all the time during the summer holidays, loved them, haven't seen them since though.
I also was very into the Filmation Tarzan cartoon, I don't recall him teaming up with Mandrake or Flash Gordon though, it was just straight jungle adventure i recall.
Greystoke was quite ahead of it's time though I think, it's basically Batman Begins for Tarzan, I have it on dvd and it's still as awesome as when it was released. I still remember watching that at the pics and me and my pal getting a good laugh out of him peeing on that monkey's head.
Great film, felt genuinely scary and dangerous, as the jungle environment should.

I had the animated thing mixed up with DEFENDERS OF THE UNIVERSE...that had Mandrake, Flash Gordon, and the Phantom.

 

[david icke]

I had the animated thing mixed up with DEFENDERS OF THE UNIVERSE...that had Mandrake, Flash Gordon, and the Phantom.

Yeah, 'Defenders of the Earth.....Defenders!', I used to watch that as well, I thought you might have been thinking of that but forgot to mention it.