Frank Merrill (actor)
Encyclopedia
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...
on film.
Merrill had doubled for the screen's first Tarzan, Elmo Lincoln
Elmo Lincoln
Elmo Lincoln was an American film actor.Born Otto Elmo Linkenhelt, the barrel-chested actor is best known in his silent movie role as the first Tarzan in 1918's Tarzan of the Apes as an adult --...
, in the 1921 movie serial The Adventures of Tarzan
The Adventures of Tarzan
The Adventures of Tarzan is a 15 chapter movie serial which features the third and final appearance of Elmo Lincoln as Tarzan. The serial was produced by Louis Weiss, written by Robert F. Hill and Lillian Valentine , and directed by Robert F...
, and was cast in the role himself in the 1928 movie serial Tarzan the Mighty
Tarzan the Mighty
Tarzan the Mighty is a 1928 action film serial directed by Jack Nelson and Ray Taylor. It was nominally based on the collection Jungle Tales of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs. The film is now considered to be lost.-Cast:* Frank Merrill as Tarzan...
. A year later, he starred in the movie serial Tarzan the Tiger
Tarzan the Tiger
Tarzan the Tiger is a Universal movie serial based on the novel Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar by Edgar Rice Burroughs. It stars Frank Merrill as Tarzan, Natalie Kingston as Jane, and Al Ferguson. It was written by Ian McClosky Heath and directed by Henry MacRae.It was considered lost at one time...
, which, though shot as a silent feature, was partially dubbed into sound. Merrill was thus the first actor to voice Tarzan's "victory cry
Tarzan yell
The Tarzan yell is the distinctive, ululating yell of the character Tarzan, as portrayed by actor Johnny Weissmuller in the films based on the character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, starting with Tarzan the Ape Man...
" on film.
As a gymnast, Merrill had the finest physique of any of the silent actors who played Tarzan. With the coming of sound films, it was decided that Merrill's voice was unsuitable for the "talkies," and he was not asked back in the role.
This suited Merrill fine, as he had so enjoyed meeting youngsters via his tenure as Tarzan that he devoted the rest of his life to working with children in the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
city administration, the Los Angeles Parks Commission, as a recreation director and as a volunteer gymnastics instructor with the YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
.