Tarzan and the Valley of Gold - Fritz Leiber (1966)

It has been many years since the appearance of a truly original novel based on the world-famous character TARZAN—first created by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Now at last a magnificent tale of adventure, with the racing, thrilling action for which Burroughs was famous, has been created by Hugo Award winner Fritz Leiber, an adventure that is true to the real character of Tarzan, Lord Greystoke—who combined the wild savagery of his jungle background with the proud heritage of hundreds of years of civilization, who could hunt with the cunning patience of an animal and strike with the decisiveness of a man born to command. From the bullring of Mexico to the jungles of Brazil to the haunts of an ancient Incan city—here is a tale to set the heart drumming, the imagination soaring—a superb perpetuation of the legendary figure first conceived in the mind of one of the world's greatest storytellers—Edgar Rice Burroughs.

(from Ballantine Books)

First Published: Ballantine Books 1966.
A very forgettable film of the same title was realeased in 1966, starring Mike Henry as Tarzan.

We opted to take iberties with the original, rather unimaginative, form of the book by adding head chapter illustrations taken from the film stills and processed graphically, as well as three drawings, by Dan Hooper, on the title page, Petar Meseldzija for the frontispiece and John Buschema in the back pages.

24) Tarzan and the Castaways (1965)

The last Tarzan book fully authored by Edgar Rice Burroughs, comprising three different stories.

Story #1: Tarzan and the Castaways
Stranded on an uncharted Pacific island, Tarzan was forced to take command of an ill-sorted party—English aristocrats, a Dutch officer, a woman of doubtful reputation—to insure their safety from a band of mutineers led by a madman. A lost colony of Mayans, avid for potential victims for their barbarous human sacrifices, only added to the danger. But the Lord of the Jungle had unexpected allies...Cast away with his band was a shipment of African animals unknown to the island, striking terror in the hearts of Mayans and mutineers alike—but old friends and familiar antagonists to the man brought up among them...Tarzan of the Apes. (from Ballantine Books summary)

Story #2: Tarzan and the Champion
The heavyweight champion of the boxing world, a stupid mug (who was actually Joe Louis at time time) goes to Africa, shoots up a herd of zebra and elephants with a machine gun, gets punched-out by Tarzan, then captured with Tarzan by cannibals, and is finally rescued when Tarzan kills a lion in the middle of the village. The whole story is presented as a kind of “tongue-in-cheek” joke that really never comes off as being all that funny. One serious moment in this little piece of fluff is Tarzan’s lecture about suffering animals. The story is about as simple as my one sentence summary, but it is pure Burroughs from first to last. Rather than a short story, one might think of this piece as a vignette about Tarzan’s place in American life at the end of the 1930’s. As such, it is a rich period piece--like a 15-minute radio play. (from ERB Summary Project).

Story #3: Tarzan and the Jungle Murderers
As Tarzan walks along a forest trail, a note in Dango, the hyena's, voice causes him to investigate. He finds a crashed Italian airplane surrounded by hyenas. Tarzan quickly disperses the beasts and finds the pilot dead in the cockpit, killed by a bullet through the throat. Footprints around the plane reveal that passengers have left the scene. Further investigations show that the pilot was shot from above, so Tarzan concludes that he was shot by someone in another plane. Tarzan smells a glove and gets another clue. Footprints tell of two men who left two days ago. Tarzan follows the two men and finds a second plane wreck, this one shot down by a machine gun. A used parachute tell him that the pilot in plane #2 has survived. He is an Englishman, Lieutenant Cecil Giles-Burton. Tarzan decides to follow him. (from ERBzine)

Written in three installments::
Tarzan and the Champion, July 1939; Murder in the Jungle (Tarzan and the Jungle Murders), January 1939; The Quest of Tarzan (Tarzan and the Castaways), begun in November 1940.

The three stories appeared in pulp magazines as follows: 

Blue Book Magazine: April 1940, Tarzan and the Champion; L. R. Gustavson cover: numerous tinted and b/w interiors.
Thrilling Adventures: June 1940, Tarzan and the Jungle Murders; Rudolph Belarski: cover, C. A. Murphy: 12 b/w interiors.
Argosy Weekly: 1941: August 23, 30; September 6, The Quest of Tarzan; Virgil Finlay: first installment cover and one interior per issue.

First book edition: Canaveral Press: 1965 with bibliographic note by Richard Lupoff ; Frank Frazetta: DJ and six interiors.

We followed this 1965 first edition.

Press button to download the book in epub format.

23) Tarzan and the Madman (1965)

The drums boomed forth the incredible message from tribe to tribe—Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle, had become an enemy to all, stealing and enslaving their women...even the daughter of an English millionaire, who offered a princely reward for her recapture and Tarzan's death. Certainly her captor told Sandra Pickerall that he was Tarzan...but he also told her he was God... Tarzan followed their trail with one thought in mind—to pursue and destroy utterly the man who had stolen his name and made it infamous in the jungle world he loved.

from Ballantine Books

-------------------------------------------

Written January - February, 1940.
First Book Edition: Canaveral Press: June 9, 1964; 236 pages. Reed Crandall: cover and eight b/w interiors.
Written in 1940 but not published until 1965, this late entry in the Tarzan series never appeared in magazine form and Burroughs apparently shelved it for good. (The later "TARZAN AND THE FOREIGN LEGION" also had no success in finding a magazine sale and eventually was published by Burroughs himself, three years after it was written.) As for TARZAN AND THE MADMAN, it was eventually brought out of limbo into hardcover in 1964 by Canaveral Press and then issued as a paperback the following year.
We followed this 1965 first edition.

Press button to download the book in epub format.

22) Tarzan and the Foreign Legion (1947)

When the American bomber crashed in the jungles of enemy-held Sumatra, the survivors faced the perils of a completely unknown world . . . and the RAF colonel who had flown with them as observer seemed to compound their danger by going mad—stripping to a loincloth and throwing away his weapons except for his knife. But for Colonel John Clayton, Lord Greystoke, the hazards of wild beasts and a remorseless enemy were a familiar and joyously accepted challenge — a chance to return to his true identity of Tarzan of the Apes. Gathering a motley crew of allies of many nations, Tarzan worked a terrible vengeance on the occupying Japanese, led an epic trek to the coast — to a final ocean rendezvous with enemies human and inhuman.

Written in 1944 but not published until 1947 (and with no magazine serialization), this was the last Tarzan book by Edgar Rice Burroughs, penned only a few years before his death. It`s also one of the very best in the entire series.

Stationed as a war correspondent in Hawaii, Burroughs broke with tradition in many ways with this book. Where the preceding dozen novels had become increasingly repetitious and predictable, here there are real surprises. The writing style is crisp, wry, with sharper pacing and neater characterizaton than had been seen in years. With this last book, Burroughs seemed to take a fresh look at his most famous creation and see him from a different angle.

------------------------------------------

First Book Edition: ERB, Inc. Tarzana: August 22, 1947; 314 pages ~ Print Run: 25,700 copies. John Coleman Burroughs: cover and five interiors.
We followed this 1947 first edition.

Press button to download the book in epub format.

21) Tarzan the Magnificent (1939)

The half-dead American raved of an unknown city...of women warriors, ruled by a malignant wizard...of a great diamond, the Gonfal, with strange hypnotic powers . . . of a long-lost English nobleman...of the savage queen who had betrayed her duty and helped him to escape. Tarzan put little faith in Stanley Wood's story — until he saw the power of the Gonfal draw the American in spite of himself back into the clutches of the Amazons of the Kaji. Then it was that the ape-man became once more the implacable hunter — for, though he cared nothing for diamonds or lost civilizations, no one might be allowed to harm a man the Lord of the Jungle had taken under his protection.

from Ballantine Books

----------------------------------

ERB commenced writing September 1935.
Originally published in two parts: "Tarzan and the Magic Men" (1936) ~ begun in September 1935 and "Tarzan and the Elephant Men" (1937) ~ Begun December 1936.
First Published by "Argosy Weekly": 1936: September 19, 26, October 3. "Tarzan and the Magic Men" ~ longer than the published novel. Hubert Rogers: instalment one cover Unknown artist: one interior per issue.
"Blue Book of Fiction and Adventure": 1937: November, December ~ 1938: January. "Tarzan
and the Elephant Men". Herbert Morton Stoops (Jeremy Cannon): first instalment cover and many interiors.
First Book Edition: "ERB, Inc. Tarzana": September 25, 1939 ~ 318 pages ~ Print Run: 3,500 copies. Art: John Coleman Burroughs: cover and five interior b/w plates.
We followed this 1939 first edition.

Press button to download the book in epub format.

20) Tarzan and the Forbidden City (1938)

A young man named Brian Gregory has disappeared in Africa, looking for the fabled Father of Diamonds; his father and sister want to go rescue him, and they can only enlist Tarzan's help because they know Captain Paul D'Arnot. By chance, Tarzan and Brian are lookalike, thus making some vile scoundrels to think Tarzan is Brian. They are also heading out after the big old diamond.
The Forbidden city is again in a secret valley, with two cities Ashair and Thobos in war, because of the Father of Diamonds. Tarzan has to fight many times against different foes, once even a man-size unicorn seahorse!

from www.edgarriceburroughs.com

--------------------------------

Written between October 10 and November 18, 1937.
First Published by "Argosy Weekly": 1938: March 19, 26; April: 2, 9, 16, 23 under the title: "The Red Star of Tarzan". Rudolph Belarski: first installment cover ~ Samuel Cahan: one interior per issue.
First Book Edition: "ERB, Inc. Tarzana": September 15, 1938 ~ 315 pages ~ Print Run: 3,500 copies. Art: John Coleman Burroughs: cover, colour frontispiece and four interiors.

We followed this 1938 first edition.

Press button to download the book in epub format.

19) Tarzan's Quest (1936)

Tarzan of the Apes had heard only rumors of the Kavuru—a race of strange white savages. But when they stole the daughter of Muviro, chief of the Waziri, the Lord of the Jungle set out in search of their legend-shrouded village on a mission of rescue — or, if need be, of revenge. He could not know that his trail ran close to that of a strange group of survivors of a crashed plane — including his beloved mate, Jane — who struggled for survival against the terrors of Africa and an even worse danger within their own party. But the stranded Europeans and the ape-man were destined for a rendezvous of blood and fire — in the dreaded temple of the Kavuru.

from Ballantine Books

------------------------------------------------

Written May 1934 - January 1935 ~ working title Tarzan and Jane.
First Published by "Blue Book Magazine": 1935: October, November, December ~ 1936: January, February, March. Herbert Morton Stoops: first installment cover. Frank Hoban: many interiors.
First Book Edition: "ERB, Inc. Tarzana": September 1, 1936 ~ 318 pages. Print Run: 5,000 copies. J. Allen St. John: wrap-around cover and five b/w interior plates.
We followed this 1936 first edition.

Press button to download the book in epub format.