''Tarzan and the Trappers'' is a 1958 action
adventure film featuring
Edgar Rice Burroughs' famous jungle hero
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 ...
and starring
Gordon Scott
Gordon Scott (born Gordon Merrill Werschkul; August 3, 1926 – April 30, 2007) was an American film and television actor known for his portrayal of the fictional character Tarzan in five films (and one compilation of three made-as-a ...
,
Eve Brent
Jean Ann Ewers (September 11, 1929 – August 27, 2011), known professionally as Eve Brent and Jean Lewis, was an American actress known for her role as Jane in '' Tarzan's Fight for Life''.
Biography Early years
Born as Jean Ann Ewers in Hou ...
, Rickie Sorensen and Lesley Bradley. It was filmed as three pilot episodes for a television series which were edited into a feature film when the project was abandoned, and so was released in black and white rather than color, like other contemporary Tarzan films. The film did finally appear on television, but only in 1966. It was shot in
Chatsworth, California
Chatsworth is a suburban neighborhood in the City of Los Angeles, California, in the San Fernando Valley.
The area was home to Native Americans, some of whom left caves containing rock art. Chatsworth was explored and colonized by the Spanish b ...
.
Plot
The idyllic jungle life of Tarzan (Gordon Scott),
Jane (Eve Brent) and Tartu (Rickie Sorensen) is interrupted by a drum message telling them of predatory hunters loose in the jungle. Tarzan disrupts the animal-collecting expedition of the hunters, Schroeder (Lesley Bradley) and Rene (Maurice Marsac); he frees a baby elephant whose mother they have killed and then leads the elephant herd against them when they make hostages of Tartu 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, Tarza ...
the chimp.
Afterwards he warns off two other hunters, Sikes (
Saul Gorse) and Lapin (
William Keene
William Joseph Keene (August 4, 1915 – May 23, 1992) was an American radio and television actor who appeared on several popular television shows more than one separate occasion as a different character.
Career
He appeared in shows more tha ...
), seeking to plunder the lost city of Zarbo. He is attacked by their men, but escapes and shadows their party. Aware of Tarzan's continued presence, the hunters capture his native friend Tyana (
Sherman Crothers), and trap the ape man when he tries to free him. Tyana's tribe rescues the two. Finally, the hunters reach Zarbo, but find it empty of both people and treasure. In a final conflict, Tarzan overcomes the villains, who are then turned over to the authorities by the natives.
Cast
*
Gordon Scott
Gordon Scott (born Gordon Merrill Werschkul; August 3, 1926 – April 30, 2007) was an American film and television actor known for his portrayal of the fictional character Tarzan in five films (and one compilation of three made-as-a ...
as Tarzan
*
Eve Brent
Jean Ann Ewers (September 11, 1929 – August 27, 2011), known professionally as Eve Brent and Jean Lewis, was an American actress known for her role as Jane in '' Tarzan's Fight for Life''.
Biography Early years
Born as Jean Ann Ewers in Hou ...
as Jane
*
Rickie Sorensen as Tartu
* Lesley Bradley as Schroeder
* Maurice Marsac as Rene
*
Bruce Lester
Bruce Lester (6 June 1912 – 13 June 2008) was a South African-born English film actor with over 60 screen appearances to his credit between 1934 and his retirement from acting in 1958. Lester's career divided into two distinct periods. Betwe ...
as Commissioner Brandini
* Naaman Brown as Tribesman
* Paul Thompson as Tribesman
* Carl Christian as Tribesman
*
Sol Gorss as Sikes (as Saul Gorse)
*
William Keene
William Joseph Keene (August 4, 1915 – May 23, 1992) was an American radio and television actor who appeared on several popular television shows more than one separate occasion as a different character.
Career
He appeared in shows more tha ...
as Lapin
*
Sherman Crothers as Tyana (as Sherman Crothers)
*
Madame Sul-Te-Wan
Madame Sul-Te-Wan (born Nellie Crawford; March 7, 1873 – February 1, 1959) was the first black actress to sign a film contract and be a featured performer.Lowe, Denise. ''An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in Early American Films'', Hawo ...
as Witch Woman
*
Paul Stader
Paul Stader (February 13, 1911 – April 10, 1991) was an American actor, assistant director and stuntman.
Life and career
Stader was born in Neosho, Missouri. He attended at the University of Kansas, where he played football and practiced sw ...
as Sikes' Henchman
* Don Blackman as Tribesman
External links
*
*
''Tarzan and the Trappers'' entry on "Down Memory Lane with Tarzan (Gordon Scott)"''Tarzan and the Trappers'' entry on At-A-Glance Film Reviews
1958 films
1950s action adventure films
1950s fantasy adventure films
American action adventure films
American fantasy adventure films
American sequel films
Films directed by H. Bruce Humberstone
Films shot in California
Tarzan films
Television films as pilots
Television pilots not picked up as a series
Films produced by Sol Lesser
1950s English-language films
1950s American films
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