Tarzan (1932-1948) MGM / RKO (ITV & BBC)

A Tarzan poster from 1934

1. Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)
2. Tarzan and His Mate (1934)
3. Tarzan Escapes (1936)
4. Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939)
5. Tarzan's Secret Treasure (1941)
6. Tarzan's New York Adventure (1942)
7. Tarzan Triumphs (1943)
8. Tarzan’s Desert Mystery (1943)
9. Tarzan and the Amazons (1945)
10. Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (1946)
11. Tarzan and the Huntress (1947)
12. Tarzan and the Mermaids (1948)

All of us forty somethings, will fondly remember those summer holiday breaks from school, at a time when no fucker actually went on holiday - No, we just sat around the house watching early morning TV. What did we love to watch the most?......Simples! - It was TARZAN!
But lets clear up any confusion here, it wasn't just any Tarzan, oh no! We were very particular, we said NO! to Ron Ely's 1960's Tarzan, with irritating sidekick 'Jai', and we voted with our feet when Lex Barker's Tarzan made and appearance. There was only ONE Tarzan for us, and that was Johnny (Aaaaaaaaaaaaah-ahhhhh-aaaaah-aaaahhhh!) Weissmuller! He was the ONLY Tarzan we would accept....I repeat, the ONLY! (and you can't kid the kids! - unless you are Jonathan King, Gary Glitter or Jimmy Savile!)
Weissmuller was an Olympic swimmer of German origin, who first took on the mantle of our favourite loin cloth wearing, vine swinging, elephant calling, crocodile fighting hero back in 1932, in Tarzan, The Ape Man. This film was a smash when it was released and launched an MGM (later RKO) franchise, which would feature the swimming star in a total of 12 films. Part of the charm of these films was the inclusion Tarzan's loyal (and lovely!) jungle partner, Jane (beautifully played by Maureen O'Sullivan in the first 6 films). This addition made the series appeal not only to my younger sister (who loved the jungle tree house) but also to my dad (no doubt admiring Jane's semi-naked swimming antics!). Cheeta, Tarzan's face-pulling chimp, was also a fantastic character who brought extra magic to the eccentric domesticity of the films. By the third film, Tarzan Finds A Son, 'Boy' entered the equation after his parents perish in a jungle plane crash. Tarzan and Jane adopt Boy, and his participation in the series usually involved Tarzan helping the over-curious minor out of various sticky situations.
When I first started watching the films back in the mid 70's, all 12 would be shown on a Monday to Friday schedule over 3 weeks (followed by the dire, Lex Barker films), but by the early 1980's only the final 9 were screened. 1982 was the start of the Tarzan backlash, the first 3 films were deemed too violent and too sexual for kids during this summer holiday. (It should be mentioned that most of the Tarzan books were written as sexual titillation, for teenage boys by Edgar Rice Burroughs). But this wasn't the end of it, there were now voices questioning what Tarzan represented. Suggesting the Weissmuller portrayal of Tarzan - King of The Jungle, is white supremacist. The depiction of black characters in the films were also seen as derogatory and offensive (Blacks were usually portrayed negatively, from cannibalistic bloodthirsty natives, to cowardly porters working for white hunters). This criticism is unfair, as film makers during this time only catered for the target audience, and the audiences were white! They are not deliberately offensive and by the time RKO took over the franchise in 1943, the black characters were replaced by Sub-Saharan white tribes! But even these later, less offensive Tarzan films were dropped by both ITV and the BBC by 1985. It was the end of an era. I was in the world of the working by this time, but I was painfully aware that familiar things were changing. The mid 80's were a time of contrasts, there was some good stuff  happening and some bad, but the loss of the Tarzan films from the summer holiday playlist was a tragic sign of the times!

Cheeta, Boy, Jane & Tarzan

The films have to be broken into 2 distinct groups, the MGM films and the RKO films. The MGM films were made with a higher budget for an older audience, and most follow a storyline which involves Jane's friends visiting, and later getting captured by savage tribes while looking for 'The Elephants Graveyard' or trying to kidnap Tarzan or Boy. The films then end with Tarzan gathering his elephant friends to stampede the hostile native village, evict the humiliated white hunters and return the status quo.
The RKO films were made with a lower budget and are aimed more at a younger audience, there are no more black natives and the adventures are set in more exotic locations. These films don't feature Jane (this absence is usually explained by her 'raising funds for the war effort' - America having now entered the war!)
Tarzan is much fatter in the later RKO films and this led to his being replaced by Lex Barker, after Tarzan & The Mermaids in 1948.
All the Tarzan films are a joy to watch, they contain all the essential ingredients needed to keep children of all ages entertained. They have great plots, comedy, tension, lots of action and appeal to all ages and genders. The 12 films cover a number of crazy adventures, including Tarzan's Crocodile Dundee type trip to New York, to rescue Boy, battling the Nazi's, in Tarzan Triumphs, defeating sacrificial sects in Tarzan and The Leopard Woman and fighting a giant spider in Tarzan's Desert Adventure. The early films are gripping and fast paced, whilst the later films are great examples of escapist fantasy. I love the Tarzan films, and although you can buy the entire collection in a lavish DVD / Blu-ray box set, I feel sad that kids today don't have that unity which we experienced in the 70's and 80's, courtesy of having only 3 TV channels.