Greystoked | 1940s Recap

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Noel and I are joined by my son David to review the decade in which Tarzan fully became king not only of the jungle, but also all of pop culture. We re-discuss the move of the film series from MGM to RKO under Sol Lesser's leadership while also covering the many comics and film imitators like Nyoka the Jungle Girl and Jo-Jo the Congo King.

Opening music from Terry and the Pirates by Lee Zahler 

Closing music from Bomba the Jungle Boy by Edward J Kay

Greystoked | Tarzan's Magic Fountain (1949)

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Noel and I watch the last Tarzan movie of the 1940s, in which Johnny Weissmuller has been replaced as the ape man by Lex Barker. We discuss Barker's alarming post-Tarzan behavior and how knowing that affects viewing his work, including Tarzan's Magic Fountain. And we also bid farewell to Brenda Joyce in her last appearance as Jane.

In the episode, we also mention a publicity photo in which Sol Lesser took a picture of his new Tarzan with the original movie Tarzan, Elmo Lincoln, who had a tiny role in Magic Fountain. Here's the photo that Noel found.

Greystoked | Tarzan and the Mermaids (1948)

Noel and I are back to wrap up the Johnny Weissmuller era the same way we began it, with guest Ron Marz, who'd just returned from South Africa with stories of an actual safari . It's mermaids in Mexico and memoirs about mammals in this very special episode.

Greystoked | Tarzan and the Huntress (1947)

Noel and I are joined by Tim from the CinemaSpection podcast to discuss Johnny Sheffield's last film as Boy. In many ways, Tarzan and the Huntress is a return to form for the series; we explore whether or not that's a good thing.

Greystoked | Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (1946)

Noel and I welcome my good friend Carlin Trammel (Nerd Lunch, Dragonfly Ripple, Pod James Pod) for a jam-packed episode about leopard cults, home invasions, '50s sitcoms, colonialism, and Acquanetta.

Greystoked | Tarzan and the Amazons (1945)

Noel and I are joined by returning guest Melissa Kaercher to discuss teenage Boy, the return of Jane, and a hidden civilization of warrior women in Sol Lesser and Johnny Weissmuller's third collaboration for RKO.

Greystoked | Tarzan's Desert Mystery (1943)

Noel and I are joined by Paxton Holley (Nerd Lunch, Cult Film Club, Hellbent for Letterbox, I Read Movies) to talk about Tarzan and Boy's spy adventure in the Sahara. It's an atypical Tarzan film and Pax - who's relatively fresh to the series - has lots of questions.

Greystoked | Tarzan Triumphs (1943)

As Sol Lesser and RKO take over the Tarzan series from MGM, Noel and I welcome back guest Christopher Mills who helped review Lesser's first Tarzan film, Tarzan the Fearless, on Episode 8 of the podcast. In this new episode, we discuss whether the post-MGM series is in good hands, but also talk about the absence of Jane and of course Tarzan vs. Nazis.

Greystoked | Tarzan's New York Adventure (1942)

Noel and I are joined by my pal writer Martin Powell (Dark Horse Comics' Jungle Tales of Tarzan, Edgar Rice Burroughs Comic Strips) to discuss the final chapter in MGM's Tarzan series. There's a lot to talk about, including Noel's spotting Elmo Lincoln (the first screen Tarzan) in the cast.

Greystoked | Tarzan's Secret Treasure (1941)

Noel and I are joined again by Evie (I Hate/Love Remakes) to discuss the penultimate MGM Tarzan film, guest-starring Reginald Owen, Barry Fitzgerald, and Tom Conway's sinister mustache.

Greystoked | 1930s Recap

On the latest Greystoked, Noel, David, and I review the decade that changed Tarzan forever in the public eye. We discuss not just the wild success of MGM and Johnny Weissmuller's interpretation, but the Burroughs novels from the decade as well as imitators from Bomba to Ka-Zar.

Greystoked | Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939)

Noel and I are joined by guest Alan Middleton (Relatively Geeky Podcast Network, Dorkness to Light) to discuss the fourth MGM/Johnny Weissmuller film and the introduction of a major character to the series.

Greystoked | Tarzan's Revenge (1938)

On the latest episode of Greystoked, Noel and I are joined again by my son David to discuss Sol Lesser's second Tarzan movie, the much maligned Tarzan's Revenge. It has a reputation as one of the worst Tarzan movies, so among other things we talk about whether it deserves that notoriety.

Greystoked | The New Adventures of Tarzan (1935)

Noel and I are joined by guest Melissa Kaercher (A Reel Education, The Sound and the Foley) to discuss Edgar Rice Burroughs' sole attempt at financing a Tarzan serial himself (with co-producer/actor Ashton Dearholt). We talk about the extremely troubled production, from its poor planning and even poorer sound to its Mayan space queens and wife-swapping producers. Was anything good able to come of the mess? Tune in and find out!

Greystoked | Tarzan and His Mate (1934)

Noel and I are joined by my pal and fellow Nerd Lunch Star Wars panelist Kay (Fan Girl Blog, Hyperspace Theories) to talk about MGM's second Tarzan film. Inspired by King Kong and a pivotal film in the history of the Hays Code, Tarzan and His Mate offers a lot to discuss and we dig in good.

Greystoked | Tarzan the Fearless (1933)

This was an especially fun episode since Noel and I are joined by our mutual friend, writer Christopher Mills (Femme Noir, Gravedigger, Perils on Planet X, and the excellent blog Space: 1970). We also got to talk about a fun movie: the 12-chapter serial, Tarzan the Fearless, starring Buster Crabbe (Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon) and Julie Bishop (The Black Cat). It's also the first Tarzan film by legendary Tarzan producer Sol Lesser. Notice that I didn't say it was a good movie, but it was still fun to watch and even more fun to talk about.

Greystoked | Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)

In the latest episode of Greystoked, Noel and I welcome special guest, comics writer Ron Marz (Batman/Tarzan: Claws of the Catwoman, Korak the Killer) to talk about the first in the MGM/Weissmuller series: the iconic Tarzan the Ape Man.

Opening music from "Voo Doo Dance" by George Richelavie (arranged by Paul Marquardt and Fritz Stahlberg)

Closing music from "Tarzan and Rain," a mashup by The Reborn Identity

Greystoked and Down the Rabbit Hole

On the most recent Greystoked, Noel and I review the stories that influenced and were influenced by Tarzan up through 1929. Starting with Gilgamesh and ending with Tarzan the Tiger, we talk about Tarzan books, comics, and theater as well as connections to H Rider Haggard, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Mickey Mouse.

Opening music from "Wild Cat" by Eddie Lang and Joe Venuti

Closing music from "Diga Diga Doo" by Duke Ellington





That's not the only podcast I was on this week, though. I also got to sit in on Nerd Lunch Presents Down the Rabbit Hole, an always entertaining exploration of various wikis. On this episode, I sat in for Pax and the guest was Dr. Andrea Letamendi from the Arkham Sessions podcast. In honor of the coming Wonder Woman movie, we dug into the DC Comics Database to see if we could get from Mr Mxyzptlk to both Arkham Asylum and Primal Force's Leyman.

Greystoked | Tarzan the Tiger (1929)

A new episode of Greystoked came out this week in which Noel and I wrap up the 1920s with David again as our guest. This time we talked about director Henry McRae's 15-chapter serial Tarzan the Tiger, starring Frank Merrill as Tarzan, Natalie Kingston as Jane, and Kithnou as Queen La of Opar. There's treasure, amnesia, and (thanks to this being a transitional film into the sound era) our first listen at a Tarzan yell.