Pop, to two decimal places
His white whale was Tarzan (1966), the Ron Ely series.
Why was this version different?
However, viewing the series on the Internet Archive also forces a confrontation with the colonial and racial attitudes inherent in the genre. The "natives" are often portrayed with the reductive stereotypes typical of 1960s Hollywood. While the Archive does not edit or censor these elements, its role as a preservationist institution allows viewers to engage with these problematic aspects historically rather than ignoring them. It serves as a lesson in the evolution of cultural representation in media.
Ron Ely’s Tarzan was Lord Greystoke, an educated man who grew tired of civilization and returned to his African home.
Filmed on location in Brazil and Mexico, the production featured lush, authentic jungle backgrounds that set it apart from studio-bound backdrops of earlier eras. tarzan 1966 internet archive
: This is widely considered the first "modern" take on Tarzan, bridging the gap between the pulp roots and the more psychological interpretations seen in later decades.
The thrilling premiere that sets the tone for the series, introducing Ron Ely's articulate Tarzan and his chimpanzee companion, Cheetah.
His breath hitched. It wasn't a man in a gorilla suit. The musculature was too defined, the eyes too intelligent. It looked like... a silverback mountain gorilla. But the show was filmed on the backlot of a studio in California. They used actors in suits for the apes. They didn't bring in real silverbacks.
Released on July 1, 1966, Tarzan and the Valley of Gold was the 26th film in the official Tarzan series. This was a high-stakes era for the franchise, and the film was an ambitious attempt to bring the king of the jungle into the "Swinging Sixties". His white whale was Tarzan (1966), the Ron Ely series
The answer is simple: Ron Ely’s Tarzan has been out of official print circulation for over a decade. The music rights for Nelson Riddle’s score have complicated re-releases. Second-hand DVD sets (released briefly by Warner Bros. in 2004) cost upwards of $200 on eBay.
The story, titled Tarzan and the Electric Leopard , opens not in the jungle but in a crumbling modernist library in 1966 London. An archivist (played with weary resolve by Diana Rigg) is decoding a series of radio signals that seem to pulse with animal rhythm. The signals lead her to the Congo, where she finds Tarzan—no longer the clean-shaven lord of the movies, but a weathered, silent figure played by a then-unknown actor whose name was erased from the tape’s header. He moves like a thought: half shadow, half muscle. He doesn’t speak English, only the dialects of great apes and the creak of trees.
: Airing 57 episodes over two seasons, the show competed with popular action series like The Wild Wild West and The Green Hornet . Preservation on the Internet Archive
The Internet Archive operates under a unique framework dedicated to digital preservation. Many uploads of the 1966 series fall under community-driven archiving. These files preserve old television airings—complete with vintage commercials and network bumpers—that would otherwise be permanently lost to time. Why Fans Turn to the Archive The "natives" are often portrayed with the reductive
Have you found a better quality upload of Tarzan 1966 on the Archive than the one listed here? Share the link in the comments below to help fellow explorers.
On the results page, use the left-hand sidebar to filter your results. Click on or "Moving Images" to eliminate books, audio tracks, or community forum posts, taking you directly to the video files. Step 3: Check the Metadata and Reviews
. This adaptation is notable for moving away from the "me Tarzan, you Jane" trope, instead depicting Tarzan as a sophisticated, well-educated Lord Greystoke who willfully chose to return to the jungle. Accessing the 1966 Series on Internet Archive Internet Archive