TARZAN AND THE CASTAWAYS - 1965
Written
Jan 1939 to Dec 1941
ERB's working title
New Tarzan Series, 1939 - (1) Murder in the Jungle
(2) Tarzan and the Champion
(3) Tarzan and the Castaways
First published
(1) Thrilling Adventures magazine, Jun 1940
(2) Blue Book magazine, Apr 1940
(3) Argosy magazine, Aug to Sep 1941
Magazine titles
(1) Tarzan and the Jungle Murders
(2) Tarzan and the Champion
(3) The Quest of Tarzan
First hardcover edition
Canaveral Press, 1965
Book illustrator
Frank Frazetta
Filmed
No, but the villain of Tarzan and the Champion appeared in the
One-Punch Mallargan episode of Disney's The Legend of Tarzan
BACKGROUND
In January 1940 ERB wrote to both Donald Kennicott at Blue Book and Jack Byrne at Argosy to gauge their reactions to his new idea about turning Tarzan into a jungle super-sleuth.  He was proposing to write four 15,000 to 20,000 word Tarzan "detective" stories in an attempt to provide a fresh twist to the ape man's exhausted adventures.  Both editors showed interest in a revitalised Tarzan but offered low fees.  Nevertheless, Ed proceeded with the project, dubbing it the New Tarzan Series.  He quickly wrote the 16,000 word Murder in the Jungle but the story was low on both mystery and action.  Numerous rejections resulted, but in June 1940 it eventually appeared in Thrilling Adventures magazine, who paid a low $300.  Ed realised that the super-sleuth idea wasn't working and he abandoned the theme in his next story, Tarzan and the Champion, about a cruel prize fighter cum big game hunter.  After more rejections and a lot of dickering with Kennicott at Blue Book it sold for only $250.  Ed abandoned his "four stories" plan, and a year later completed the series with the 37,000 word Tarzan and the Castaways, in which all of the standard Burroughs plot elements are crowded into one story.  Argosy paid $450 for the novelette, which was serialised in three parts in August and September, 1941.  The first hardcover edition containing these three disconnected stories, with excellent Frank Frazetta art, was published posthumously by Canaveral Press in 1965. (Porges)
PLOT
Stranded on an uncharted Pacific island, Tarzan was forced to take command of an ill-sorted party - English aristocrats, a Dutch officer, a woman of doubtful reputation - to insure their safety from a band of mutineers led by a madman.  A lost colony of Mayans, avid for potential victims for their barbarous human sacrifices, only add to the danger.  But the Lord of the Jungle had unexpected allies... Cast away with his band was a shipment of African animals unknown to the island, striking terror in the hearts of the Mayans and mutineers alike - but old friends and familiar antagonists to the man brought up amongst them... Tarzan of the Apes. (1980 Ballantine paperback)
SOURCES
• Edgar Rice Burroughs: The Man Who Created Tarzan by Irwin Porges, 1975, Brigham Young University Press
COVERS
• Boris Vallejo cover from the 1980 Ballantine Books paperback edition is from my personal collection
• Ralph Belarski cover from the June 1940 issue of Thrilling Adventures magazine was pilfered from an eBay auction item
• Frank Frazetta cover from the dustjacket of the 1965 Canaveral Press hardcover edition was pilfered from an eBay auction item
• Robert Abbett cover from the 1965 Ballantine paperback edition is from my personal collection
LYNX
• The full text of this novel is available on-line from Project Guttenburg's Tarzan and the Castaways page
• Read a summary of this novel at Tangor's Tarzan and the Castaways Summarized page
• Colourful paperback covers are at Nick Knowles' Tarzan and the Castaways page
CAPTURE
• Bag yourself a copy of this novel at Amazon.com's Tarzan and the Castaways page or try eBay
Tarzan© is the property of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., Tarzana CA.
This independent, non-profit, fan-based analysis of the Tarzan material is copyright © 2002-2007 Paul Wickham
This page updated July 2006