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Presents
Volume 5667

TARZAN OF THE COMICS
A 58,000-Word Review of
The Original Tarzan Comics Series
By Michael Tierney
with cover art and every page of the Dell/Gold Key series
added by Bill Hillman from the ERBzine archive
(click on the covers to read the comics)
Pt. 7: DELL ISSUES Nos. 116 - 126 Plus Dell Annuals 37 & 51 ~ 1960/1961
Tarzan #116
Jan.-Feb.. 1960
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- The Horns of Battle" ~ 15 pp.

116 Chief Maroungo ignores warnings that if his Impis attack Tarzan’s Territory, they will be scattered like dust before the whirlwind. When Maroungo’s Makulu army charges, they find thorns underfoot and angry rhinos in their face. From behind them, Tarzan charges a buffalo herd.

1 pp.
“The Pepper Bird”
Writer: Uncredited
 While waiting for an invitation into the Kru village, Timai tells the boys the story of the Pepper Bird. According to legend, the reason the noisy Pepper Bird is the first creature to wake each morning is to free children from the embrace of Old Father Night, and return them to the light of Mr. Sun and Father Day.

8 pp.
“Tarzan -- Stolen Rifle”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 This is the story of an elephant gun, as it changes hands over and over.
 Boy and Dombie recover the gun from Bambori hunter, who will killed by the rhino he hunted. After killing two leopards, the boys lose the gun to a Bakemba elephant hunter.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- The Omen”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 A volcano erupting in the valley of Aba-zulu brings tidings of bad omens. Dan-el hastens his return.
 When strangers cannot convince Queen Tavane to agree to ruinous trade terms, they threaten her with guns. Dan-el arrives just in time.
 This back-up feature gets its first subtitle.

Tarzan #117
March-Apr. 1960
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan Challenges the Ape King" ~ 15 pp.

117 Yet another ape named Korak the Killer challenges Tarzan’s kingship of the apes.
 Defeating Korak during a dum-dum, Tarzan banishes the usurper ape, who is then killed by a Waziri warrior whose crops Korak raided.

1 pp.
“Mabu Meets the Krus”
Writer: Uncredited
 Mabu thinks it disrespectful that the Krus did not come out to greet them, and senses danger in the grotesque images carved on the poles holding up the roof of the palaver house.

8 pp.
“Tarzan -- Trouble on the Trail”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Boy and Dombie encounter a woman and child, lost and hungry on the trail.
 To rescue them, the boys face danger from treacherous natives and an attacking lion. Just in time, Tarzan arrives with the woman’s husband.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- The Enemies’ Fate”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 The strangers who threatened Queen Tavane shoot their way to freedom.
 Dan-el and his men pursue the killers to the mountain pass, where the volcano erupts once more and covers both the pass and the strangers with lava.
 It seems that everywhere you go in Africa is volcanically active ... if Dubois is writing it.

Tarzan #118
May-June 1960
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan" ~ 15 pp.

118 Tarzan and the Waziri help end a civil war.
 Just as Muviro complains that his young Waziri warriors are hungry for a fight, Chief Umangi’s plea for help to fight his brother Mengo arrives.

1 pp.
“Evil Strikes”
Writer: Uncredited
 Sensing that someone was stealing his cuckoo clock, Mabu is stabbed by a mysterious assailant.

8 pp.
“Tarzan -- The Buffalo Cart”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Boy, Dombie and Nama the Hottentot take turns saving each other.
 Tarzan gets involved in the final rescue, riding a herd of elephants to chase Lebombo warriors away from Nama’s trading cart.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- The Fallen City”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Natongo and Zulena return home to discover Tungelu abandoned -- ransacked by the Tuaregs. Discovering survivors, Natongo decides to relocate his people to safety in Aba-zulu.

Tarzan #119
July-Aug., 1960
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan and the Proud Princess" ~ 15 pp.

119 Princess Kendra of the Hidden People is kidnapped by Batuti warriors.
 Trapped inside a burial tomb, Tarzan and Kendra try hiding in a pair of ‘mummy-cases.’ But the Batuti steal the cases for the gold casings.

1 pp.
“Hamasai’s Wisdom”
Writer: Uncredited
 The Kru witch doctor chants as a fever wracks the injured Mabu. Hamasai defies the witch doctor, and successfully applies his own jungle medicines..

8 pp.
“Tarzan -- They Fly Through the Air”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Boy and Dombie are preparing to pull a prank on the Waziri village, when they’re kidnapped by Batuko raiders.
 This story is a retread of an earlier DuBois Two Against the Jungle, where the boys used painted balloons as heads to frighten their captors. Once again, when the heads fly off, the natives turn heals and run.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Preparing the Tungelu survivors for exile, when Zulena shows Natongo a forgotten chamber filled with relics, he seizes on a plan. Catching the Tuaregs, he and others blow old war horns. Convinced that they’re surrounded by regiments of warriors, the Tuaregs flee -- without their captives.

Tarzan, King of the Jungle -- Dell Giant #37
Fall 1960
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- Giants of Kroo Maun" ~ 24 pp.

2719 Tarzan returns to Pal-ul-don, seeking a rheumatism cure from the herb doctors of Kroo Maun. The Hairy Giants attack repeatedly, but Tarzan is always too ingenious for them.
 The editing throughout the series has been poor ... with constant name and spelling changes. This presents another major continuity gaff, as the once white mountain men of Kroo Maun are now tribal natives.

8 pp.
“Jane’s Mighty Magic”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Uncredited
Inks: Uncredited
 Jane leads a rebellion when Chief Makalo demands half of all profit from the native market. She proves that “The power of Good is stronger than Evil,” by saving the life of the Chief’s choking son, whom the witch doctor declared dead.

16 pp.
“Queen La the Mysterious“
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Kidnapped from Opar by the deathless Mengos, Queen La is made their Moon Goddess. Tarzan slays the white Crocodile-God, whose blood gave the Mengos eternal youth, making yet another animal species go extinct.

8 pp.
“Zebra Boy”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Uncredited
Inks: Uncredited
 Dombie is kidnapped by Wabangi cattle rustlers.
 Painting himself with zebra camouflage, Boy rescues Dombie ... with a little help from Tarzan.

8 pp.
“N’Kima King of the Monkeys“
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Uncredited
Inks: Uncredited
 Finding a gold bracelet, N’Kima declares himself King of the Jungle. The normally skittish monkey gains courage from the gold bracelet ... until he loses it.

8 pp.
“Dragon Ship”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Tarzan returns to the snowcapped Gourambi mountains with Raoul D’Arnot, to search for his missing father.
 No snowmen this time. Only Vikings on skis!
 Yarl Horlf and his viking ship help rescue Colonel Paul D’Arnot from attacking natives.

Tarzan #120
Sept.-Oct.. 1960
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- The Battle of the Bushmen" ~ 15 pp.

120 Tarzan helps a psychic bushman discover a hidden home for his embattled people. While Tarzan battles the strongest Bantu warrior one-on-one until dusk falls, the Nye-Nye bushman steal the Bantu canoes and sail to their new home.

1 pp.
“The Sasswood Ordeal”
Writer: Uncredited
 The Kru Zutu who’s been accused of robbing and injuring Mabu, is given a trial by the Sasswood Ordeal. When Zutu is not made ill by the juice from the Sasswood bard, he is found guilty and banished. But because he returns Mabu’s cuckoo clock, he is also granted a small pot of fire.

8 pp.
“Tarzan’s and the Hunter’s Trophy”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 When pygmies hunt a rogue elephant that has also been raiding Waziri shambas, Boy’s well placed arrow saves a pygmy from being trampled.
 After pygmy hunters bring elephant tusks as trophy’s to the tree house, Boy has some explaining to do.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- Dan-el and Natongo Meet Again”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Natongo and the Tungelu survivors are trapped inside a hollow hill by warriors of Queen Ilolo.
 Exploring for a place to build an outpost, Dan-el and a handful of soldiers join Natongo in the hill’s defense, while Tavane races to bring the Aba-zulu army.

Tarzan #121
Nov.-Dec., 1960
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- Nightmare in the Jungle ~ 15 pp.

121Summary:
Tarzan must slay a Garth T-Rex from lost Pal-ul-don that is terrorizing his Territory.

Review:
Raoul D’Arnot learns his lesson when no one believes his eyewitness account. After the Garth kills an oil prospecting crew, his official report blames their tractor for overturning. Could this be the baby garth that escaped from Professor MacWhirtle in issue #24? It’s had time to grow, while Boy hasn’t grown an inch. Last ten cent issue.

1 pp.
“No Regrets”
Writer: Uncredited
 For the first time, Mabu is glad to leave as they depart the Kru village. Hamasai explains why the Kru seem so unhappy, even when they smile, telling of their many misfortunes.

8 pp.
“Tarzan -- The Horns of Plenty”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Plenty, a white rhino, has been captured by trappers.
 Boy jumps into the truck holding Plenty, and helps the rhino make a daring escape from a moving vehicle.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Tavane, the spirited young Queen of Aba-zulu, defeats outlaws trying to capture her as she rides for help. She then leads an army charge to save Dan-el and Natongo, who are trapped inside a hollow hill. The invaders pick up their furious Queen Ilolo and run away.

Tarzan #122
Feb. 1961
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan and the Prince of Athne" ~ 15 pp.

122 Another of Tarzan’s tree houses is destroyed by invading elephant men from Athne. When Tarzan steals the Athnean elephants away, arrogant Prince Gato learns that in close fighting his crossbows are no match for Waziri spears. No price on cover.

1 pp.
“The Zambabwe Ruin”
Writer: Uncredited
 Hamasai shows Mabu and Kaino the Zambabwe ruins, from a time when the land was called Havilah. Mabu finds it strange that the Havilah people worshipped only one god, and marvels at the size of the temples they built for Him.

8 pp.
Tarzan -- Gift For the Cliff Dwellers”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 The starving Kasana cliff dwellers are surrounded by Banga cannibals.
 Boy and Dombie build a canoe to give to the Kasanas, along with Tarzan’s seine fishing net. The adventure is getting these gifts past the flesh-hungry Bangas, who pursue the boys to the Kasana’s doorstep.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear - Natongo’s New Homeland”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 After Dan-el officially welcomes the Tungelu people to Aba-zulu, he and Natongo slip away to look for adventure.
 The Brothers discover a bench land with a great wooded shelf and mountain walls at its back, with a secret back door into Aba-zulu. It is a perfect place for the Tungelu people to live... and guard.

SPECIAL NOTE:
 No price on the cover.

Tarzan #123
April 1961
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- The Tyrant of Munyoro" ~ 11 pp.

123 The exiled tyrant Kabarouga is returning to meet his gathering warriors.
 Only Tarzan can track and capture the shrewd Kabarouga, who is well-schooled in the jungle arts.

7 pp.
“Tarzan -- The Lion’s Hut”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 When Boy trails the missing Dombie to Kisumu’s Kraal, the Witch Doctor Kururi plans to kill him.
 Kururi is about to attack while Boy sleeps in the Lion’s Hut -- dedicated to the spirit of the Kraal’s late chief, legended to now inhabit a lion -- when Tarzan, Jad-bal-ja, and a strange lion intervene with the witch doctor’s plans.

4 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- New Country and Friends”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Exploring the land beyond the recently discovered mountain tunnel, Dan-el and Natongo are attacked by gorillas. After killing one, the Brothers make friends with Chunga, Chief of the Achinga people, a small, weak tribe.

1 pp.
“The Old, Old Man”
Writer: Uncredited
 An old man appears and tells Mabu about the people of Havilah, and their God Yahwe. When Hamasai shouts at Mabu to return to the camp fires, the old man disappears. Only Mabu saw him.

8  pp
“Tarzan -- The Terror of Pal-ul-don”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Tarzan grows more giant lions to help defend Cathne, the City of Gold, from prehistoric warthogs.
 It’s finally revealed that Goliath, the original giant lion, has died ... and that Tarzan’s growth formula causes rapid aging and short life.

SPECIAL NOTE:
 The cover price increases to Fifteen cents.

Tarzan #124
June 1961
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan and the Savage Horde" ~ 15 pp.

124 The Ja-lur army crashes through A-lur’s city gates ... at the same time a Terrib horde attacks both sides.
 More continuity confusion: The once cat-eared Ho-dons are now presented more like Roman descendants. And Ja-don the Third is now ruler of Ja-lur. But ... Ja-don was originally the King of A-lur! Now Ta-den the Second is King of A-lur. So ... while the children of supporting characters continue to grow to manhood -- Boy remains a boy.

1 pp.
“Elephants and Hippos”
Writer: Uncredited
 Still walking along the (unending) jungle trail, Timai the hunter explains the actions of elephants and hippos. Giving up on trying to convince his father that he really talked to an invisible man last issue, Mabu wonders if men get their wisdom from watching animals.

7 pp.
“Tarzan -- The Caravan’s Secret”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 An earthquake drains the Wakinda’s lake, and sucks Boy and Dombie’s canoe down into a giant cavern. There they discover the skeletal remains on an old steamer from an 1800s expedition, which a previous earthquake had sucked into the cavern.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- Disaster!”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 A tax collector visits the Achinga village, and conscripts the Brothers to serve in King Ugamguela’s army. During the chaos of a cloudburst’s flood, Dan-el and Natongo escape, only to discover the tunnel back to Aba-zulu sealed by an avalanche.

Tarzan #125
August 1961
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- Jungle Revolt" ~ 14 pp.

125 Kisambu, the evil witchman, has been inciting the young men of Chief Buto’s kraal to rebellion. Tarzan catches him in his own web of lies.

1 pp.
“The Great Heat”
Writer: Uncredited
 The boys faint as the group crosses a plain beneath a blazing sun and Hamasai delays the journey home, detouring the group to shade and water.

8 pp.
“Tarzan -- Ambassador to Imanga”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Traveling to Chief Imanga’s royal Dunbar as Paramount Chief, Tarzan is captured by the Bakongos.
 Hoping to start a war, the Bakongas claim that Muviro sent an ape in Tarzan’s place. Boy escapes to reveal the Bakongas’ treachery and lead Tarzan’s rescue.

5 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Dan-el and Natongo discover the lost city of The Ancient Ones.
 Wearing the helmets of The Ancient Ones, the Brothers save the young Chieftainess Selana from King Ugamguela’s warriors. Taking her to safety inside the city, she’s shocked to discover ancient masks with her exact features.

Tarzan, King of the Jungle -- Dell Giant #51
Fall 1961
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- The Tree of Ages" ~ 16 pp.

2720 In the middle of the Lake No One Names, stands the ancient Tree of Ages.
 To save a scientist from being sacrificed, Tarzan burns down the man-eating tree.

8 pp.
”Boy -- The Axe of Mumbo”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 A tribe of poachers force Chief Buto to undergo the Ordeals of Mumbo.
 Nearly as strong as Tarzan, Chief Buto easy passes the trials and claims the Axe of Mumbo ... now known as the Axe of Buto.

6 pp.
“Dassie”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Uncredited
Inks: Uncredited
 Dassie, an eight-pound mother Hyrax, looses her cubs to a striped weasel, and then adopts a pair of orphaned Cheetah cubs.

“Jane -- The Sultan’s Ruby"
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Uncredited
Inks: Uncredited
 A Sultan’s giant ruby, given to Jane to wear at a conference of tribes, is stolen.
 Standish, an ostrich with a larcenous streak, steals the ruby from Jane not just once ... but twice!
 Eight years later this plot will become a key element in the jungle movie, The Southern Star, featuring George Segal, Ursula Andress, and Orsen Welles.

12 pp.
“Tarzan -- The Courage of Pan-at-lee”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 Pan-at-lee, the Wazdon wife of Om-at, brings Tarzan troubling news from Pal-ul-don. After Ta-den fell ill, the Priests of A-lur seized Om-at, to ransom for all the grain of the Wazdon.

12 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- Treachery in Aba-zulu”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Muvubu, ex-keeper of the Royal Seal of Aba-zulu, helps invaders seize Tavane and Zulena.
 The Brothers use the same secret tunnels as Muvubu and turn the tables on the witchman. The last Tarzan annual is the first with a Brothers tale, complete and self-contained.

12 pp.
Tarzan -- The Lost Astronaut”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Uncredited
Inks: Uncredited
 A space capsule lands near Lutor in the Great Swamp of Pal-ul-don.
 The lady astronaut (nope, it’s not Jerry Cobb, the first female to train at NASA, who would later become a bush pilot) futilely tries to leave on her own, while Tarzan is busy trapping Garths breeding in the Valley of Monsters.

Tarzan #126
October 1961
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- Apes in Exile" ~ 14 pp.

126 To save a family of chimpanzees, Tarzan fights their Arab captors. This fast moving tale bounces from the jungle to high seas storms, to island combat and then back across the waters to a burning sea of desert sands.

1 pp.
“The Fire”
Writer: Uncredited
 A night fire sweeps the plains. The hunting party takes shelter on a mountain and watches the drama of life and death below.

9 pp.
“Tarzan -- Sheetah Seeks Revenge”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 After Boy mischievously ties a cow bell on Jad-bal-ja, the Golden Lion, Tarzan takes his bow and arrows away.
 This is another morality tale about courtesy. When Sheetah the leopard hunts Boy, he has no weapons. Fortunately, Jad-bal-ja saves him, and drives away some murderous Leopard Men, as well.

6 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- Besieged”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Russ Manning
Inks: Russ Manning
 Dan-el and Natongo help Queen Salana, now wearing the golden mask in her likeness, return to her besieged city.
 Back in the palace gardens of Aba-zulu, the stylishly adorned Queens Tavane and Zulena dispatch a strong force to locate their missing husbands.

 

Tarzan #127
December 1961
Cover: Uncredited Painting ~Writer: Uncredited ~ Pencils and Ink: Jesse Marsh
"Tarzan -- The Sportsman" ~ 16 pp.

127 After a treacherous hunter shoots his son, Chief Katana wants vengeance.
 Lying that he was there to cull crocodiles that were killing villagers, the hunter was really after a rare Hunter’s Hartebeest  trophy.

1 pp.
“A New Threat”
Writer: Uncredited
 After last issue’s fire, the hunting party is forced to take an unknown trail. Ahead wait the savages known as The Ignorant Ones, brandishing stone axes.

8 pp.
Tarzan -- The Father of Apes”
Writer: Uncredited
Pencils: Jesse Marsh
Inks: Jesse Marsh
 The jungle drums tell that the Bageena are about to sacrifice a white man to the Father of Apes. Boy and Dombie disguise themselves as monkeys and fly Tarzan’s giant eagles to the rescue.

5 pp.
“Brothers of the Spear -- The Sortie”
Writer: Gaylord DuBois
Pencils: Uncredited
Inks: Uncredited
 As they fight their way into Selana’s besieged city, General Mothibi takes a spear intended for the Chieftainess. The Brothers notice a spark passing between Mothibi and Selana. Then, on the ridge above the valley, the banners of all the ten cities of Aba-zulu appear.
 Without regular artist Manning, even the title work looks inferior. Fortunately this is just for one issue.


ERBzine 5660
INTRODUCTION
CONTENTS

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