" At first, I thought he was a savage, but I found out he wasn't, that's all."

When you think of a jungle adventurer, clad in a loincloth and swinging from vine to vine, there is only one word that comes to mind – Tarzan. The literary creation of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan has not only ruled the jungles seemingly forever, but also found his way into just about every genre except music, including books, radio, television and comics. And, when movies were still without sound, Tarzan was already proving his dominance in this arena as well.

Not too long after appearing in book form, Tarzan got his first acting job in 1918, appearing in the silent film, Tarzan, Lord of the Apes. Edgar Lincoln holds the distinction of being the first actor to play the hero on the big screen in a tale that introduced the big guy’s humble beginnings from being an orphaned infant in the jungles of Africa, raised by wild apes and eventually ascending to the lofty throne of Lord of the Jungle, defending his primate pals from the dangerous deeds of man. Film audiences also got their first glimpse of Jane Porter, Tarzan’s first lady.

A new actor took over the role in 1932, former Olympian Johnny Weisssmuller, who, with his swimmer’s physique, provided a much more muscularly defined hero. The film, Tarzan the Ape Man told the tale of James Parker, an explorer on an expedition deep into the jungle to find a legendary elephant burial site, which would logically be filled to the brim with an enormous supply of expensive ivory. His daughter Jane joins him on the quest, as does a young assistant named Harry, who has the not-so-mutual hots for Jane. Jane prefers her men to be a little more rugged, so when the manly jungle lord and his apely assistants kidnap her, she complains very little.

An energetic young actress named Maureen O’Sullivan played the role of Jane, and her chemistry with Weissmuller was quickly noticed. As a result, the two would star together in five more adventures, Tarzan and His Mate (1934), Tarzan Escapes (1936), Tarzan Finds a Son (1939), Tarzan's Secret Treasure (1941) and Tarzan in New York (1942.) (The last film served as more than a little inspiration, years later, for Paul Hogan and his Crocodile Dundee character.)

In 1943, RKO acquired the rights to Tarzan from MGM. Weismuller made the switch but Maureen did not. She was replaced with Frances Gifford, as Tarzan’s new love interest in 1943’s Tarzan Triumphs, playing the jungle princess, Zandra. A reflection of the times, this time Tarzan was battling Nazis who had invaded a nearby town. Hey, there can only be so many poachers to subdue.

Nazis returned to the jungle in the 1943 film, Tarzan’s Desert Mystery, along with a smattering of prehistoric creatures and some conniving Arabs, Next up was Tarzan and the Amazons in 1945, followed by Tarzan and the Leopard Woman the next year, and Tarzan and the Huntress and Tarzan and the Mermaids, both released in 1947. Hollywood was churning out Tarzan films as fast as they could make them, pairing the Jungle Lord with a whole collection of beautiful co-stars. This would mark the end of Johnny’s more than a decade long stint in a loincloth.

Even with Weismuller’s departure, the folks at RKO trudged forward with their onslaught of jungle adventure, casting Lex Barker in the role for the next five films, including Tarzan’s Magic Fountain in 1949, Tarzan’s Peril in 1953 (the first ever Tarzan film to be shot on the continent of Africa) and Tarzan and the She Devil in 1953.

In 1956, a new Tarzan took to the vines, when Gordon Scott took over the yelling duties for another 6 films, beginning with Tarzan's Hidden Jungle (1955) and concluding with Tarzan the Magnificent in 1960.

With the arrival of the 60s, Tarzan was still going strong, having grown more articulate over the years, and successfully progressing from grunting to actual dialog. A number of actors traded Tarzan duties over the next few years, including stuntman, Jock Mahoney, Mike Henry and future game show host, Ron Ely. Ely would be the last Tarzan to appear on the big screen until over two decades later, when Christopher Lambert returned Tarzan to his literary roots in Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes. Released in 1984, this high-budget adventure saw Tarzan return to his aristocratic European beginnings.

Another live-action offering, the last to date, was released in 1998. Heralded as a “new Tarzan for a new generation,” Tarzan and the Lost City did little business at the box-office. But Tarzan wasn’t quite ready to throw in his Lordly towel, just biding his time before his Disney-produced animated feature-length debut in 1999s Tarzan. And although most of the kids in the theaters had never seen any of the afformentioned films, they did the exact same thing every generation in the past century has done, embrace this timeless hero with open arms.