Tarzan No. 214: Museum Object and Cultural History
Tarzan No. 214: date made: 1972-11. Associated Name: Burroughs, Edgar Rice. maker: National Periodical Publications, Inc..
The object in the museum catalogue
Comic book featuring the pulp action hero “Tarzan”. DC’s Tarzan series ran from 1972-1977. It began with issue no. 207, following the sequencing of the Title’s former publisher, Gold Key Comics, whose version ran from 1948-1972.
“Tarzan” is a fictional character created by American author Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950). Burrough’s introduced his vine-swinging jungle hero in the story Tarzan of the Apes first published in the magazine The All-Story in 1912. The story was later reprinted as a standalone novel in 1914.
An Englishman from a noble family, Tarzan’s family dies while on an African Expedition. As an infant he us taken in and raised by Apes in Africa, learning to communicate with animals and developing exceptions strength and dexterity. Although he later discovers his human origins, Tarzan decides to remain in the jungle, developing a romantic relationship with marooned Englishwoman Jane Porter.
One of the 20th centuries first action-adventure heroes, Tarzan became a global phenomenon, inspiring the prolific Burroughs, also known for works such as his John Carter of Mars series, to pen 23 sequels featuring his “ape-man.” Inspiring scores of other pulp adventure heroes, Tarzan has become of the world’s most recognized literary characters. He remains a vital part of our shared popular culture, featured in novelizations, comic books, television, and feature films.
Reflecting many outdated cultural beliefs, the story of Tarzan expressed many elitist and racist notions accepted at the time of Burrough’s writing.
Materials, dates and provenance
- date made: 1972-11
- Associated Name: Burroughs, Edgar Rice
- maker: National Periodical Publications, Inc.
- Object Name: comic book
- Physical Description: paper (overall material)
- Physical Description: ink (overall material)
- Measurements: overall: 10 1/4 in x 6 15/16 in; 26.035 cm x 17.62125 cm
- place made: United States: New York, New York City
- Associated Place: United States: Virginia
- Subject: Comics
- ID Number: 2018.3010.081
- nonaccession number: 2018.3010
- catalog number: 2018.3010.081
- Data Source: National Museum of American History
Sources and reuse
Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of American History through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed.
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