Official Edgar Rice Burroughs Tribute and Weekly Webzine Since 1996 ~ Over 15,000 Webpages in Archive Volume 2189 Presents

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BILL HILLMAN

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Family and friends of Danton.
My name is Bill Hillman.
I've worked closely with Danton for many years to promote and preserve the Burroughs Family legacy.
I flew from Canada to be with you to remember and to celebrate the life of this remarkable man.

Danton’s world was full of wonder – he found such joy in living . . . and giving.
His excitement, enthusiasm . . . his kindness . . .
And his dream touched so many people. . .
. . . look around you.

The times I spent with Dan have given me a sense of how multi-faceted this man was.
I'd like to share some memories of events that showed these many sides of Danton Burroughs:

He was a BUSINESS MAN
Through the decades he ran Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., he took it to new heights.
His business sense was very much in evidence at the Broadway premiere of Tarzan the Musical in 2006.
While in New York he did a multitude of interviews with media and professional people
– and always his charm and great knowledge of his grandfather’s works came through.
During the huge after-show party at the Marriott ballroom
his table was constantly surrounded by show biz stars from Broadway, Hollywood and the music world,
including Phil Collins, who wrote the score for the Tarzan musical.

LITTLE BOY’S WONDER
I remember the night he led us --- Linda, Dejah, Bill Morse, Sue-On and me
on a quest for ice cream down Broadway. (Llana Jane was tied up back home with final exams)
Danton treated us all to huge, multi-scoop cones and then we hurried out into the Broadway jungle.
Everywhere we looked there was Tarzan:
tall banners on skyscrapers reaching into the sky, neon lights,
and huge video screens in Times Square showing Tarzan swinging into action.
Every time Tarzan appeared on the screens crowds of people would give the Tarzan victory cry.
Dan, wide-eyed, looked at us and said, "If my grandfather could only see this!"

THE COLLECTOR
Danton collected a few things in his lifetime.
He was invited to give a talk at the Burroughs Bibliophile convention at the University of Louisville.
He spent considerable time going through archives and
brought a suitcase full of rare memorabilia, slides, and videos:
Uncle Hully’s WWII colour footage, Ed’s home movies from Tarzana Ranch in the ‘20s,
ERB's artwork. . . and a sneak preview at the upcoming new Tarzan TV show.

At the last minute, he had a bad reaction to his Parkinson's medication and
he didn't feel up to giving a long commentary to a few hundred people in the Ekstrom auditorium.
He turned this job over to me. . .
. . . and sometime during the talk, the sly devil sneaked away
to look for treasures in a nearby swap meets and antique sales.
Needless to say, he returned to Tarzana with much more luggage than he had left with.

THE COMMUNICATOR
Danton never mastered the cold, complexities of computer communication.
Instead he preferred to talk via telephone
or meet face to face with clients and friends in the fantastic inner sanctum of the ERB, Inc. offices  . . .
Of course while in the office such conferences were constantly interrupted
as he fielded a marathon of telephone calls from all over the world.
When the meetings dragged on he would move the proceedings over to his favourite restaurant:
. . . [wait for  it] Charlie G's.

LOVER OF HOME AND FAMILY
Dan was very proud of his family, the Burroughs legacy, and his home --
-- he loved to surround himself with family members and mementoes and beautiful, wonderful things.
He was constantly on the search for new treasures to truck back to the Hodge Podge room.
Like many of us, his choices for choosing some of these collectibles were also fueled by a desire to
return to and hold on to the magical dreams of  youth.

MUSIC LOVER
Over the years Danton amassed one of the world's largest collections of Juke boxes. . .
stocked with rare and wonderful Blues, R&B and DooWop records.

One of my last memories of Dan is him sitting under the Tarzana summer stars
-- sitting on his driveway wall and tapping time
while his close friend and compadre John Westervelt and I swapped guitar licks
…. And we sang the blues.

THE DREAMER
Finally . . . above all, Dan was a dreamer.
I think all of us who have been touched
by the imagination of  Edgar Rice Burroughs share this dream.
And he kept the dream alive.
Our imaginations have carried us to distant worlds and exotic lands
where we lived fantastic adventures.

Close your eyes . . .  . . .
. . . and I’m sure you can see
Danton under the hurtling moons of Barsoom
Fighting shoulder to shoulder with John Carter and Tars Tarkas . . .
and maybe even his illustrious grandfather
facing overwhelming odds . . .
And shouting in unison

I STILL LIVE! . . .
[Hand over heart] . . . and he does . . .

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Intro Contents	Memories 1. Hillman	Memories 2. Friends	Memories 3. Yeates	Memories 4. Griffin	Memories 5. School Chums
Photos 1 Ages	Photos 2 Treasures	Photos 3 Conventions	Photos 4 Broadway	Photos 5 Tarzana	Memories 6. Bibliophiles
Memories 7. Phil Burger	Celebration of Life 1. Memorial Card	Celebration of Life 2. Friend's Eulogy	Celebration of Life 3. Hillman Eulogy Notes	Celebration of Life 4. Mertes ~ Photos I	Celebration of Life 5. Photos II
Remembered Photos III	Remembered Photos IV	Remembered Family Archive	Remembered Hillman Eulogy	Remembered Early Years	Remembered Later Years

Press Stories

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Tarzan@westman.wave.ca

BILL HILLMAN
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