''The Revenge of Tarzan'' (1920) is a silent adventure film, originally advertised as ''The Return of Tarzan'', and the third Tarzan film produced. The film was produced by the Great Western Film Producing Company, a subsidiary of the Numa Pictures Corporation. The film was sold to

Goldwyn Pictures Goldwyn Pictures Corporation was an American motion picture production company that operated from 1916 to 1924 when it was merged with two other production companies to form the major studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was founded on November 19, 1 ...

for distribution. The film was written by Robert Saxmar, based on the 1915 novel ''

The Return of Tarzan ''The Return of Tarzan'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the second in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. It was first published in the pulp magazine '' New Story Magazine'' in the issues for ...

'' by Edgar Rice Burroughs, and directed by

Harry Revier Harry Jack Revier (16 March 1890 – 13 August 1957) was an independent American director, producer and first generation exploitation film maker best known for his sound films '' The Lost City'' (1935), '' Lash of the Penitentes'' (1936), an ...

and George M. Merrick. It was released on May 30, 1920.

Plot

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 Jane are traveling to Paris to help his old friend Countess de Coude, who is being threatened by her brother, Nikolas Rokoff. Rokoff has Tarzan tossed overboard. He survives, comes ashore in North Africa, and goes to Paris to search for Jane. In Paris, Tarzan reunites with his old friend Paul D'Arnot, who informs him that Jane was taken to Africa. Tarzan returns just in time to save Jane from a lion attack, and soon defeats Rokoff and his henchmen.

Cast

Gene Pollar Gene Pollar (September 16, 1892 - October 20, 1971) was the screen name of New York City firefighter Joseph Pohler, who in his very brief movie career played Tarzan. Background At age 28, the 6'2", 215-pound Joseph Charles Pohler became the ...

as Tarzan * Karla Schramm as Jane *

Estelle Taylor Ida Estelle Taylor (May 20, 1894 – April 15, 1958) was an American actress, singer, model, and animal rights activist. With "dark-brown, almost black hair and brown eyes," she was regarded as one of the most beautiful silent film stars of the ...

as Countess de Coude, Tarzan's ally * Armand Cortes as Nikolas Rokoff, a villain *Franklin B. Coates as Paul D'Arnot, Tarzan's old friend *George Romain as Count de Coude * Walter Miller as Henchman to Rokoff *Louis Stern as Polawitch *Betty Turner as Marie

Production notes

The production filmed on location in New York, Florida, and Balboa, California. Karla Schramm returned to portray Jane in ''

The Son of Tarzan ''The Son of Tarzan'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the fourth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. It was written between January 21 and May 11, 1915, and first published in the magazine ' ...

'' (opposite P. Dempsey Tabler as Tarzan), also released in 1920. She and Brenda Joyce are the only two actresses who have portrayed Jane opposite two different Tarzans.

, a former firefighter, made no other films, and returned to his old job after the film was completed. Outside the United States, the film is known by its working title, ''The Return of Tarzan''. The title was changed for its American release in July 1920. A previously known print was destroyed in the

1965 MGM vault fire On August 10, 1965, a fire erupted in Vault 7, a storage facility, at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio (MGM) backlot (now Sony Pictures Studios) in Culver City, California. It was caused by an electrical short explosively igniting stored nitrate f ...

. While usually reported as a lost film, a complete print exists under the title ''The Return of Tarzan'' in the BFI/National Film And Television Archive in London, England. Preservation status of the print is unknown.

References

Bibliography

*Essoe, Gabe. ''Tarzan of the Movies'' (Citadel Press, 1968)

External links