''Tarzan and the Mermaids'' is a 1948

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 ...

based on the

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 ...

character created by

Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author, best known for his prolific output in the adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Best-known for creating the characters Tarzan and John Carter, he ...

. Directed by

Robert Florey Robert Florey (14 September 1900 – 16 May 1979) was a French-American director, screenwriter, film journalist and actor. Born as Robert Fuchs in Paris, he became an orphan at an early age and was then raised in Switzerland. In 1920 he worked a ...

, it was the last of twelve Tarzan films to star

Johnny Weissmuller Johnny Weissmuller (born Johann Peter Weißmüller; June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an American Olympic swimmer, water polo player and actor. He was known for having one of the best competitive swimming records of the 20th century. H ...

in the title role. It was also the first Tarzan film since 1939 not to feature the character Boy, adopted son of Tarzan and Jane. (Boy was described in the film as being away at school, and the character never returned to the series.)

Plot

The setting is a coastal African village where swimming and diving are central to the culture, hence the term "the Mermaids." Tarzan and Jane ( Brenda Joyce) help a native girl (

Linda Christian Linda Christian (born Blanca Rosa Henrietta Stella Welter Vorhauer; November 13, 1923 – July 22, 2011) was a Mexican film actress, who appeared in Mexican and Hollywood films. Her career reached its peak in the 1940s and 1950s. She played Mara ...

) who has fled the village to avoid a forced marriage to a supposed local god.

George Zucco George Zucco (11 January 1886 – 27 May 1960) was a British character actor who appeared in plays and 96 films, mostly American-made, during a career spanning over two decades, from the 1920s to 1951. In his films, he often played a suave ...

portrays Palanth, the corrupt high priest attempting to force the girl into marriage, and

Fernando Wagner Fernando Wagner (November 7, 1905 in Göttingen, Germany – October 20, 1973 in Cuernavaca, Mexico) was a German-born Mexican actor and film director. He had prominent roles in '' La Perla'' and ''The Wild Bunch''. His interment was in Mexico ...

plays a con man impersonating the god Balu.

Cast

as Tarzan * Brenda Joyce as

Jane Jane may refer to: * Jane (given name), a feminine given name * Jane (surname), related to the given name Film and television * ''Jane'' (1915 film), a silent comedy film directed by Frank Lloyd * ''Jane'' (2016 film), a South Korean drama fil ...

as Palanth, the High Priest *

Andrea Palma Andrea Palma (b. Trapani, 1644 or 1664 – d. 1730) was an 18th-century Italian architect, working in the Baroque style. He is credited with being one of the most notable architects of the Sicilian Baroque movement. His works include the Cat ...

as Luana, Mara's Mother *

as Varga, Pearl Trader *

Edward Ashley Edward Montague Hussey Cooper (August 12, 1906 – May 5, 2000) was an Australian born actor, later active in Britain and the United States. Known by his professional name of Edward Ashley (to avoid confusion with a fellow actor Edward Cooper) ...

as Commissioner * John Laurenz as Benji *

Gustavo Rojo Gustavo Rojo Pinto (5 September 1923 – 22 April 2017) was a Uruguayan-Mexican actor. Life and career Gustavo Rojo was born on 5 September 1923 on a German ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. His mother was the prominent Spanish auth ...

as Tiko, Mara's Fiancé * Matthew Boulton as British Inspector-General *

as Mara

Production

The film was shot in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

by RKO during its collaboration with

Churubusco Studios Estudios Churubusco is one of the oldest and largest movie studios in Mexico. It is located in the Churubusco neighborhood of Mexico City. History It was inaugurated in 1945 after a 1943 agreement between RKO and Emilio Azcárraga Vidaurreta (of ...

Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , also , nah, Acapolco), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has bee ...

Teotihuacan Teotihuacan (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Teotihuacán'') (; ) is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in a sub-valley of the Valley of Mexico, which is located in the State of Mexico, northeast of modern-day Mexico City. Teotihuacan is ...

and

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

. It was the first official ''Tarzan'' film to be filmed outside the United States since

Herman Brix Bruce Bennett (born Harold Herman Brix, also credited Herman Brix; May 19, 1906February 24, 2007) was an American film and television actor who prior to his screen career was a highly successful college athlete in football and in both intercol ...

's ''

The New Adventures of Tarzan ''The New Adventures of Tarzan'' is a 1935 American film serial in 12 chapters starring Herman Brix. The serial presents a more authentic version of the character than most other film adaptations, with Tarzan as the cultured and well-educated gent ...

''. Writing in

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

, Richard Harlan Smith reported that " ts were destroyed by storms, Sol Lesser suffered a heart attack that necessitated his departure from the location, and Weissmuller experienced a case of sunburn which required him to wear make-up for the first time in his career." The film is noted for its cinematography by

Gabriel Figueroa Gabriel Figueroa Mateos (April 24, 1907 – April 27, 1997) was a Mexican cinematographer who is regarded as one of the greatest cinematographers of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. He has worked in over 200 films, which cover a broad range o ...

, exotic Mexican scenery and coastal locales, a

Dimitri Tiomkin Dimitri Zinovievich Tiomkin (, ; May 10, 1894 – November 11, 1979) was a Russian-born American film composer and conductor. Classically trained in St. Petersburg, Russia before the Bolshevik Revolution, he moved to Berlin and then New York City ...

score and much group singing.

Deaths

Two members of the film crew were killed during production. One Mexican crew member was crushed by a motorboat whilst Angel Garcia, a stunt diver who doubled for Tarzan's high dive, was killed after he survived the dive but was swept by the surf into the rocks below the cliff.

Reception

Author and film critic Hal Erickson described the film in

AllMovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was founded by popular-cult ...

as a "diverting Tarzan adventure" despite "jungle settings

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

don't look particularly African." Critic Graeme Clark wrote that Weissmuller "seemingly spen half the movie freestyling through the waves, diving off cliffs and venturing to the sea bed where he could get up to such business as battling a giant octopus for no other reason than the plot needed a spot of peril" and "if you could put up with singer John Laurenz as a Boy substitute (many cannot) then the skill of veteran director Robert Florey kept it rattling along."

References

External links

* * *
''Tarzan and the Mermaids'' history
at ERBzine.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Tarzan And The Mermaids 1948 films 1940s fantasy films American fantasy films American sequel films 1940s English-language films Films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin Films directed by Robert Florey Films shot in Mexico Tarzan films Films produced by Sol Lesser American black-and-white films RKO Pictures films 1940s American films