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to follow her back to civilization where he can reclaim his noble birthright. Burroughs
immediately followed this story with two more novels, Th e Return of Tarzan (1915) and
Th e Beasts of Tarzan (1915); ultimately there would be dozens of Tarzan novels, many
of which were serialized in the pulp magazines.
Unlike many of the fi lm and television interpretations of the ape-man, Burroughs’s
hero was an articulate gentleman who is stronger and more courageous than other men
because he has not been softened by the comforts of civilization. Th e famed line of
movie dialogue “Me Tarzan, you Jane” never appeared in a Burroughs story. Tarzan
was always presented as intelligent, loyal, and ethical; he rarely displayed any charac-
ter fl aws. His jungle upbringing gave him superior strength and unparalleled athletic
ability. Th e stories are fi lled with many descriptions of his great speed, agility, refl exes,
balance, as well as his swimming, leaping, and climbing skills. Burroughs also showed
Tarzan as having enhanced senses of hearing and smell. Furthermore, he is capable of
communicating with nearly every animal species in the jungle.
Tarzan came to comics in January 1929 when Tarzan of the Apes was adapted into a
newspaper strip illustrated by Hal Foster. A Sunday page came in 1931. Foster’s artwork
revolutionized the comics page with his masterful use of cinematic techniques like angle
shots and depth of fi eld. His African scenery was stunning and Tarzan himself appeared
to practically leap from the newspaper page. Foster left the strip in 1937 and went on
to create Prince Valiant. Artist Burne Hogarth subsequently took over the feature for
several years. Many other artists and writers worked on the comic strip during the next
several decades. One of the most notable is Russ Manning, who took over the strip in
1968 after having drawn Tarzan’s comic book adventures for years. Celebrated comic
book writer and artist Mike Grell handled the Tarzan strip for several years in the 1980s.
Tarzan still appears in a few newspapers, but the strip merely reprints older material.
Tarzan has had an extensive comic book career. Th e hero has appeared in comics
published by a variety of publishers, such as Western Publishing, Charlton Comics, DC
Comics, Marvel Comics, and Dark Horse Comics. Most of the Burroughs novels have
been adapted over the years. Tarzan was featured in text stories in Dell’s Crackerjack
Comics from 1939 to 1942. In 1947, Tarzan was seen in two issues of Dell’s Four Color
Comics. A regular Tarzan series was launched the following year. Artist Jesse Marsh
remained on the book for the next 18 years, while Gaylord DuBois wrote the stories
for 25 years. DC Comics took over Tarzan in 1972. Legendary artist Joe Kubert drew
many of the best stories during this period. He also wrote and edited the Tarzan of the
Apes book for several years. From 1964 to 1972 Gold Key Comics published Korak:
Son of Tarzan. DC Comics continued the series until 1976 where it ran under the title
Tarzan Family. In 1977, the ape-man moved to Marvel Comics and starred in Tarzan,
Lord of the Jungle. Dark Horse Comics published several Tarzan books beginning in
- Dark Horse and DC Comics joined forces to have the jungle hero team-up with
two of the most popular superheroes. Batman/Tarzan: Claws of the Cat-Woman (1999)
is set in the 1930s, while Superman/Tarzan: Sons of the Jungle (2002) is set in an alter-
nate reality where Lord Greystoke grows up in England, while the infant Superman is
