The First and Only Weekly Online Fanzine Devoted to the Life and Works of Edgar Rice Burroughs
Issue 0585
Presents
An ERB C.H.A.S.E.R. Online Encyclopedia Feature
and another in the
ERBzine of the Silver Screen Series


THE NEW ADVENTURES OF TARZAN
and
TARZAN AND THE GREEN GODDESS
Part II



Scenes from New Adventures of Tarzan

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CAST AND BILLING
Dearholt, Stout and Cohen
Present
HERMAN BRIX
In
The NEW ADVENTURES OF TARZAN
An Adaptation By
Chas. F. Royal and Edwin H. Blum
Based on the Novels
By
EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS
AN ASHTON DEARHOLT EXPEDITION PICTURE
Directed by
EDWARD KULL and W. F. McGAUGH
Screen Play by .......................................... Chas. F. Royal
Photography .............................................. (Edward Kull, A.S.C.
             (Ernest F. Smith
Art Direction ............................................. Charles Clague
Recording .................................................. Earl N. Crain
Editing ....................................................... Edward Schroeder

Sound Recording System
Lyle E. Willey and Associates

CAST
TARZAN .................................................. HERMAN BRIX
Ula Vale .................................................... Ula Holt
Major Martling .......................................... Frank Baker
Alice Martling ........................................... Dale Walsh
Gordon Hamilton ....................................... Harry Ernest
Raglan ........................................................ Don Castello
George ........................................................ Lewis Sargent
Bouchart ..................................................... Merrill McCormick
Nkima ......................................................... "Jiggs"
 

BRAVES GUATEMALAN JUNGLES FOR NEW "TARZAN" MOVIE
ASHTON DEARHOLT EXPEDITION FIRST TO
PENETRATE THESE WILDS WITH SOUND TRUCK

The efforts of motion picture producers to bring realism to the screen, and to record for the benefit of the public the natural wonders of the world, reach a climax in the Aston Dearholt "Tarzan" Expedition into Guatemala.

True, Dearholt is not the first, by any means, to explore with the camera! Others have braved the far north, the dark interior of Africa, the enervating climate of the South Seas but, generally speaking, these men have ventured chiefly in the interests of travelogues and for that reason with comparatively light equipment. It has remained for Dearholt -- actuated by a desire to use Guatemala as a background for a fiction story -- to transport what was literally a fully equipped studio to Central America, and to drag, by means of motor trucks, tons of freight through parts of the jungle and over high mountain passes hitherto deemed inaccessible -- in some instances -- even to men afoot or on muleback.

From the moment the liner Seattle, carrying the Dearholt Expedition of 29 persons and tons of freight, steamed within sight of the Guatemalan Coast, one stormy night last December, trouble began. Landing was the first problem, for San Jose, the port at which the Seattle stopped, has no harbor, and both passengers and baggage had to be lowered into boats by means of a crane, 3 miles from shore in a rolling sea. The crane, designed to accommodate freight of the ordinary type, was strained to its limit with a four ton sound truck on its hook and Dearholt literally held his breath while it dangled in mid-air and finally settled with a jolt on the barge sent out to receive it. For no one knew, better than he, that upon this big clumsy device depended the success of his entire trip.

Sound truck difficulties followed consistently on the first location trip the company took from the coast to Chichicastenango which is set on a plateau some 8,000 feet above the sea level. Some idea of the travelling difficulties encountered on this trek may be gathered from the fact that although the distance was only 100 miles, it took the "Tarzan" company 18 hours to cover it in high-powered automobiles. The sound truck and other trucks heavily loaded with storage batteries to feed it, alternately crawled and skidded on the steep ascent and finally ad to be towed and pushed from behind before they could make the grade.

So much for the climb up to Chichicastenango -- coming down was another and more thrilling story. The grade was so steep that Eddie Kull and Earnie Smyth, cameramen who were piloting the sound truck could scarcely keep it on the road even when it was geared in first with all brakes set. In one spot -- particularly precipitous -- the truck plunged ahead with such speed that Kull and Smythe had to hang on in sheer desperation to keep from being pitched head-long into the road.

The first serious trouble came when, after nightfall, sharp rocks punctured one of the sound truck's tires. The blowout occurred on a narrow road, tilted and at an angle of about thirty degrees, while on the left was a sheer drop of 3,000 feet. Even with brakes set tight and front wheels turned, it was plain that the truck could not be kept in place long enough for  repairs unless it was propped. Half an hour more time was lost while the boys groped about in the darkness, with the aid of pocket flashlights, in search of big boulders.

A tropical storm was the climax. It came about 2 o'clock, while the expeditionists were still at a height of 3,000 feet. Thunder reverberated through the mountains, while lightning flashed and rain fell in torrents. As though this was  not enough, the natural electrical phenomena reacted, in some way, upon the wiring of the cars, and lights -- not only of the sound truck, but every car in the entourage, went dark. The result was that the last 12 miles of the return trip from Lake Atitlan was an experience that the "Tarzan" people will never forget.

It was at Tical, however, that the company actually went native. Miles from civilization, the walls of its ancient ruins are overgrown with vegetation, Tical is the abiding place of bats, howling monkeys and even jaguars, and while its environs may be a joy to archaeologists, it furnished a severe test to the courage and endurance of Dearholt's company. Due to the elaborate precautions that had been taken to protect the troupe on this dangerous location, and to the efficiency of the Indian porters, there was only one mishap; one of the soundmen was bitten by a poisonous snake and had to be taken by automobile to the nearest doctor, some 50 miles away.

Too, annoyances abounded at Tical. There were insects, for instance -- ticks of several varieties, and sand flies. The latter were so tiny they worked their way through the finest mosquito netting, and inflicted red splotchy bites that itched prodigiously. Then there were odd animal cries at night that sounded like human beings in distress, and the chattering of monkeys and paroqueets by day -- all vastly disquieting to ears attuned to the honking of motors and the shrill shrieks of ambulance and police cars.

However, the colorful beauty, historic interest and variety of the locations included in the "Tarzan" itinerary made all the trouble of reaching them well worth while, for the action of Edgar Rice Burroughs' story calls for striking contrasts in backgrounds. It is a far cry from the crumbling walls of the Ruins of Tical, relic of the early Mayan civilization, and Antigua, capital during the Spanish regime  in the 16th century, to Guatemala City, "little Paris" of Central America which, with its luxurious villas, taxis and up-to-date night clubs, rivals in gaiety some fashionable continental resort -- but Ashton Dearholt has incorporated all three of these backgrounds into Tarzan and the Lost Goddess.

Guatemala City and numbers of towns and villages covered by the expeditionists, being equipped with hotels, presented no problems to Dearholt in housing his company -- in fact, many of the inns in the smaller communities were not only picturesque, but offered excellent accommodations. IN Antigua, for instance, which now has a native population of about 2,000, there was no suitable place to live, and the troupe spent a lonely New Years there, quartered in adobe huts, with no means of celebrating the holiday except to tramp through ruins of old Spanish cathedrals and to listen to the broadcast of the Hollywood Rose Bowl football game over the radio.

Every town, however, was not an Antigua, by any means, and the trip proved hazardous, thrilling, yet fascinating in many ways. Guatemala City, for instance, offered every thing in the way of amusements from bull-fights to opera, and the village of San Christobal proved a close second for entertainment with its lively fiesta, which lasted three days, featured Devil Dancers, and supplied as much fun as a county fair in this country -- and a great deal more novelty. Picturesque inns, interesting historic sites, colorfully attired natives and the luxuriant natural beauties of the country also contributed to the pleasure of the visitors as well as did the profusion of flowers and brilliantly colored birds and butterflies.

But even in their moments of relaxation Dearholt and his company never forgot the purpose of their trip: they asked no quarter -- and gave none -- when it came to a question of getting realism for The New Adventures of Tarzan.