David Innes
Encyclopedia
David Innes is a fictional character
created by Edgar Rice Burroughs
as the main protagonist of his Pellucidar
novels.
, as a mining heir who finances the experimental "iron mole," an excavating vehicle designed by his elderly inventor friend Abner Perry. In a test run, they discover the vehicle cannot be turned, and it burrows 500 miles into the Earth's crust, emerging into the unknown interior world
of Pellucidar. In Burroughs' concept, the Earth is a hollow shell with Pellucidar as the internal surface of that shell. It is inhabited by prehistoric creatures of all geological eras, and dominated by the Mahars, a species of flying reptile both intelligent and civilized, but which enslaves and preys on the local stone-age humans. Innes and Perry are enslaved by the Mahars' ape-like Sagoth servants and eventually lead a revolt of humankind. To further the struggle Innes travels in the iron mole back to the surface world at the end of the first novel to procure outer world technology.
Innes returns to the inner world in the second novel, Pellucidar
. With the aid of the resources he brings the human revolt succeeds. In the course of the two books Innes wins the love of the cave-woman Dian the Beautiful, defeating rival suitors Jubal the Ugly One and Hooja the Sly One. Finally Innes and Perry succeed in building a confederacy of human tribes into an "Empire of Pellucidar" that wipes out the Mahar cities and establishes a new human civilization in their place.
Years after his initial adventures, as the surface world measures time, Innes confronts a new threat, the Korsars, a nation of pirates descended from corsairs of the outer world, who had entered Pellucidar generations before through a natural polar opening connecting the outer and inner worlds. The tale is the subject of the third novel, Tanar of Pellucidar
, told by his native friend Tanar and relayed to the surface by Perry via radio. The adventure ends with Innes a captive of the Korsars. He is a secondary character in this novel, and a minor one in the two that follow. In response to Perry's plea, an outer world expedition is launched to rescue Innes, in which Burrough's jungle hero Tarzan
plays a major role. The rescue effort is the subject of the fourth novel, Tarzan at the Earth's Core
. It enters Pellucidar in an airship via the polar opening, and eventually succeeds in rescuing Innes. The fifth novel, Back to the Stone Age
, details the adventures of a lost expedition member, ultimately located by the liberated Innes.
, returns Innes to the central role, relating his adventures during his return from his search mission to Sari, the capital of his empire. Savage Pellucidar
, the final book in the series, presents a new sequence of adventures for Innes, Perry, and Dian, in which a hitherto unknown native Bronze Age civilization is discovered.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs
Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.-Biography:...
as the main protagonist of his Pellucidar
Pellucidar
Pellucidar is a fictional Hollow Earth milieu invented by Tarzan creator Edgar Rice Burroughs for a series of action adventure stories. In a notable crossover event between Burroughs' series, there is a Tarzan story in which the Ape Man travels into Pellucidar.The stories initially involve the...
novels.
The early novels
David Innes is introduced in the first Pellucidar novel, At the Earth's CoreAt the Earth's Core (novel)
At the Earth's Core is a 1914 science fiction novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the first in his series about the fictional "hollow earth" land of Pellucidar. It first appeared as a four-part serial in All-Story Weekly from April 4–25, 1914. It was first published in book form in hardcover by A. C...
, as a mining heir who finances the experimental "iron mole," an excavating vehicle designed by his elderly inventor friend Abner Perry. In a test run, they discover the vehicle cannot be turned, and it burrows 500 miles into the Earth's crust, emerging into the unknown interior world
Hollow Earth
The Hollow Earth hypothesis proposes that the planet Earth is either entirely hollow or otherwise contains a substantial interior space. The hypothesis has been shown to be wrong by observational evidence, as well as by the modern understanding of planet formation; the scientific community has...
of Pellucidar. In Burroughs' concept, the Earth is a hollow shell with Pellucidar as the internal surface of that shell. It is inhabited by prehistoric creatures of all geological eras, and dominated by the Mahars, a species of flying reptile both intelligent and civilized, but which enslaves and preys on the local stone-age humans. Innes and Perry are enslaved by the Mahars' ape-like Sagoth servants and eventually lead a revolt of humankind. To further the struggle Innes travels in the iron mole back to the surface world at the end of the first novel to procure outer world technology.
Innes returns to the inner world in the second novel, Pellucidar
Pellucidar (novel)
Pellucidar is a 1915 science fiction novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the second in his series about the fictional "hollow earth" land of Pellucidar. It first appeared as a four-part serial in All-Story Weekly from May 8–29, 1915. It was first published in book form in hardcover by A. C. McClurg in...
. With the aid of the resources he brings the human revolt succeeds. In the course of the two books Innes wins the love of the cave-woman Dian the Beautiful, defeating rival suitors Jubal the Ugly One and Hooja the Sly One. Finally Innes and Perry succeed in building a confederacy of human tribes into an "Empire of Pellucidar" that wipes out the Mahar cities and establishes a new human civilization in their place.
The middle novels
The books after the first two show Innes' new empire as a relatively small entity in a world by and large still primitive and savage, and even his own subjects as little affected or changed by the trappings of civilization. Innes himself appears a somewhat hapless figure, brave and resourceful, yet ultimately dependent on the superior survival skills of his friends.Years after his initial adventures, as the surface world measures time, Innes confronts a new threat, the Korsars, a nation of pirates descended from corsairs of the outer world, who had entered Pellucidar generations before through a natural polar opening connecting the outer and inner worlds. The tale is the subject of the third novel, Tanar of Pellucidar
Tanar of Pellucidar
Tanar of Pellucidar is a novel written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the third in his series set in the interior world of Pellucidar. It first appeared as a six-part serial in The Blue Book Magazine from March-August 1929...
, told by his native friend Tanar and relayed to the surface by Perry via radio. The adventure ends with Innes a captive of the Korsars. He is a secondary character in this novel, and a minor one in the two that follow. In response to Perry's plea, an outer world expedition is launched to rescue Innes, in which Burrough's jungle hero Tarzan
Tarzan
Tarzan is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungles by the Mangani "great apes"; he later experiences civilization only to largely reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer...
plays a major role. The rescue effort is the subject of the fourth novel, Tarzan at the Earth's Core
Tarzan at the Earth's Core
Tarzan at the Earth's Core is a novel written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, simultaneously the thirteenth in his series of books about the title character Tarzan and the fourth in his series set in the interior world of Pellucidar.-Plot summary:...
. It enters Pellucidar in an airship via the polar opening, and eventually succeeds in rescuing Innes. The fifth novel, Back to the Stone Age
Back to the Stone Age
Back to the Stone Age is a novel written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the fifth in his series set in the interior world of Pellucidar. It first appeared as a six-part serial in Argosy Weekly from January 9 to February 13, 1937 under the title "Seven Worlds to Conquer." It was first published in book...
, details the adventures of a lost expedition member, ultimately located by the liberated Innes.
The late novels
The Sixth novel, Land of TerrorLand of Terror
Land of Terror is a 1944 science fiction novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the sixth in his series about the fictional "hollow earth" land of Pellucidar. It is the penultimate novel in the series and the last to be published during Burrough's lifetime...
, returns Innes to the central role, relating his adventures during his return from his search mission to Sari, the capital of his empire. Savage Pellucidar
Savage Pellucidar
Savage Pellucidar is a 1962 science fiction story collection by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the seventh and final book in his series about the fictional "hollow earth" land of Pellucidar. It was published twelve years after Burroughs's death....
, the final book in the series, presents a new sequence of adventures for Innes, Perry, and Dian, in which a hitherto unknown native Bronze Age civilization is discovered.
In other media
- David Innes first appeared on screen in At the Earth's CoreAt the Earth's Core (film)At the Earth's Core is a 1976 science fiction film produced by Britain's Amicus Productions. It was directed by Kevin Connor and starred Peter Cushing, Caroline Munro, Philippa Herring and Doug McClure. It was filmed in Technicolor...
(1976), an adaptation of the first Pellucidar novel. He was portrayed by actor Doug McClureDoug McClureDouglas Osborne "Doug" McClure was an American actor whose career in film and television extended from the 1950s to the 1990s...
. - David Innes has also appeared in a comic stripComic stripA comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
and comic bookComic bookA comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series based on the novels, as well as the Tarzan comic strip.