Number 2014: Tarzan and Boy take a road trip

As a character in the Dell Comics version of Tarzan, Boy was a holdover from the Tarzan movies. Tarzan and Jane’s offspring, according to Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Son of Tarzan (1917) was Jack Clayton (also known as Korak the Killer). Quoting Wikipedia:

“In the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan films, Korak was replaced by an adopted son called Boy (played by Johnny Sheffield). Tarzan and Jane never married in these films (they do in the books), and the substitution was made to avoid censorship. In the Dell comic books of the fifties, which combine material from the books and the films, Tarzan's son was also called Boy. When the Tarzan comics returned to a more faithful portrayal of Burroughs' characters in the early 1960s, Boy disappeared and Tarzan's son was called Korak, who went on to be featured in his own comic book.”

In “Tarzan Fulfills a Promise” from Tarzan’s Jungle Annual #1 (1952), Boy takes off with Tarzan for the City of Gold, Cathne. I notice they don’t tell Jane they are leaving, or where they are going. The poor woman must have been frantic!

Script by Gaylord Dubois, art by Jesse Marsh.

Posted in: Pappy Comics