''Tarzan and the Great River'' is a 1967

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...

starring Mike Henry in his second of three film appearances as

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

. The film was produced by

Sy Weintraub Sy Weintraub (May 28, 1923 – April 4, 2000) was an American film and television producer best known for his series of Tarzan films and television episodes between 1959 and 1968. Weintraub broke with the Johnny Weissmuller formula of portraying ...

and Steve Shagan, written by Bob Barbash (from a story by Barbash and Lewis Reed), and directed by Robert Day. It was released on September 1, 1967.

Plot

Tarzan is called to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

by an old friend, The Professor (

Paulo Gracindo Pelópidas Guimarães Brandão Gracindo (16 June 1911 – 4 September 1995), known as Paulo Gracindo, was a Brazilian actor. Partial filmography * ''João Ninguém'' (1936) * ''Tererê Não Resolve'' (1938) * ''Está Tudo Aí'' (1939) - ...

) to help stop the Jaguar Cult, led by Barcuma (

Rafer Johnson Rafer Lewis Johnson (August 18, 1934 – December 2, 2020) was an American decathlete and film actor. He was the 1960 Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon, having won silver in 1956. He had previously won a gold in the 1955 Pan American Games. ...

), from destroying native villages and enslaving the survivors in his search for diamonds. Tarzan is assisted by Captain Sam Bishop (

Jan Murray Jan Murray (born Murray Janofsky; October 4, 1916 – July 2, 2006) was an American stand-up comedian, actor, and game-show host who originally made his name on the Borscht Belt and later was known for his frequent television appearances over se ...

), a riverboat pilot, and Bishop's young ward, Pepe (Manuel Padilla Jr.), as well as Baron (a

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...

) and

Cheeta Cheeta (sometimes billed as Cheetah, Cheta, and Chita) is a chimpanzee character that appeared in numerous Hollywood Tarzan films of the 1930s–1960s, as well as the 1966–1968 television series, as the ape sidekick of the title character, Ta ...

chimpanzee The chimpanzee (''Pan troglodytes''), also known as simply the chimp, is a species of great ape native to the forest and savannah of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed subspecies. When its close relative th ...

). On their way they encounter Dr. Ann Philips (

Diana Millay Diana Claire Millay (June 7, 1934 – January 8, 2021) was an American actress. She primarily worked in television, guest starring in nearly 100 prime time shows, and played continuing roles on two daytime soap operas, ''Dark Shadows'' and ''Th ...

), who has witnessed the destruction of a village, and wants to continue fighting a plague by giving much-needed

inoculation Inoculation is the act of implanting a pathogen or other microorganism. It may refer to methods of artificially inducing immunity against various infectious diseases, or it may be used to describe the spreading of disease, as in "self-inoculati ...

s to natives who live along the

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

Selected cast

* Mike Henry as Tarzan, the British Lord of Greystoke *

as Captain Sam Bishop, an American crusty riverboat pilot, ally to Tarzan * Manuel Padilla, Jr. as Pepe, Sam Bishop's youthful native ward *

as Barcuma, Afro-Brazilian leader of the Jaguar Cult *

as Dr. Ann Philips, American physician attempting to inoculate Brazilian natives *

as The Professor, Tarzan's Brazilian old friend *

Eliezer Gomes Eliezer Gomes (1920–1979) was a Brazilian actor. Born in Santo Antônio de Pádua or Conceição de Macabu, he debuted on Roberto Farias' 1962 film '' O Assalto ao Trem Pagador''. In 1975, he won the Gramado Film Festival Best Actor Award for ...

as Barcuma's Afro-Brazilian lieutenant (uncredited) * Carlos Eduardo Dolabella as Agonizing tribesman in canoe (uncredited) *

Luz del Fuego Luz del Fuego (née, Dora Vivacqua; early stage name, Luz Divina; February 21, 1917 – July 19, 1967) was a Brazilian feminist, ballerina, naturist, and striptease artist who performed with live snakes. Comfortable with nudity, she wrapped pytho ...

as Tribeswoman (uncredited)

Production notes

The movie was filmed entirely on location in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil (

Rio de Janeiro Zoo Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

Parque Lage Parque Enrique Lage is a public park in the city of Rio de Janeiro, located in the Jardim Botânico neighborhood at the foot of the Corcovado, on top of which Christ the Redeemer is located. The land was formerly the residence of industrialis ...

and

Tijuca Forest The Tijuca National Park () is an urban national park in the mountains of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The park is part of the Atlantic Forest Biosphere Preserve, and is administered by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservat ...

). Dinky, the chimp portraying Cheeta, bit Mike Henry on the jaw during filming, requiring twenty stitches. The chimpanzee was

destroyed Destroyed may refer to: * ''Destroyed'' (Sloppy Seconds album), a 1989 album by Sloppy Seconds * ''Destroyed'' (Moby album), a 2011 album by Moby See also * Destruction (disambiguation) Destruction may refer to: Concepts * Destruktion, a ...

, and Henry later sued the producers for this accident and other unsafe working conditions on all three of his Tarzan films. The parties settled out of court.Essoe, Gabe. ''Tarzan of The Movies'', New York: Citadel Press,1968.

References

External links

* * *
ERBzine Silver Screen: ''Tarzan and the Great River''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tarzan And The Great River 1967 films 1960s fantasy adventure films American fantasy adventure films American sequel films Films directed by Robert Day Films set in Brazil Films shot in Rio de Janeiro (city) Tarzan films Films produced by Sy Weintraub 1960s English-language films 1960s American films