In the early '60s Johnny Weissmuller's Tarzan films were popular on TV. I had a passable Tarzan yell when I was a kid, and could scream it out in the hallway of my junior high school. A few years later I started smoking and after a time my Tarzan yell turned into a Tarzan cough. I quit smoking 35 years ago, but the damage had been done. Instead of calling the bull apes to my rescue with the yell, my croaking call now attracts frogs.
So much for personal memoir...this story, yet another lost city tale from the team of Gaylord Dubois (writer) and Jesse Marsh (artist) is from Dell's Tarzan #14 (1950). They may have used this lost world/city theme a lot, but it's still a very entertaining story. It even has a poignant ending. (Sniff.) I like apes and gorillas, and despite Tarzan's initial problem with him, I thought Urchak was a fine fellow.
I might also mention it's Tarzan's centennial year. The big swinger has been around 100 years, and still looking good .
Pappy: Marsh always sends me into a delirium of pleasure. His layouts and panel configurations are as close to perfect as man can come. Each page built to last. What a sequential storyteller!
ReplyDeleteActually, I'm relieved. When you said it had a (sniff) poignant ending, I thought you meant the ape was going to die!
ReplyDeleteMykal, yes! I agree! Even if the stories took on a sameness with the similar lost city theme I have always been entertained because of Marsh's handling of the material. He kept it fresh.
ReplyDeleteKirk, you know...and I've mentioned it several times...I have a thing for comic book apes and gorillas. I felt bad that Tarzan had to leave the poor critter behind. I assume Urchak was depressed for quite a while after.