Tarzan the Terrible

1921 novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Tarzan the Terrible

Dust-jacket illustration of first edition.

Author| Edgar Rice Burroughs
Illustrator| J. Allen St. John
Country| United States
Language| English
Series| Tarzan series
Genre| Adventure
Publisher| A. C. McClurg

Publication date

| 1921
Media type| Print (hardback)
Pages| 408
Preceded by| Tarzan the Untamed
Followed by| Tarzan and the Golden Lion
Text| Tarzan the Terrible online

Tarzan the Terrible is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the eighth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. It was first published as a serial in the pulp magazine Argosy All-Story Weekly in the issues for February 12, 19, and 26 and March 5, 12, 19, and 26, 1921; the first book edition was published in June 1921 by A. C. McClurg. Its setting, Pal-ul-don, is one of the more thoroughly realized "lost civilizations" in Burroughs' Tarzan stories. The novel contains a map of the place as well as a glossary of its inhabitants' language.

## Plot[edit]

Map of Pal-ul-don from the first edition.

Two months have passed since the conclusion of the previous novel Tarzan the Untamed in which Tarzan spent many months wandering about Africa wreaking vengeance upon those who he believed brutally murdered Jane. At the end of that novel, Tarzan learns that her death was a ruse and that she had not been killed at all.

In attempting to track Jane, Tarzan has come to a hidden valley called Pal-ul-don filled with dinosaurs, notably the savage Gryfs which are Triceratops that are omnivorous and stand 20 feet tall at the shoulder, have claws on their front legs, and Stegosaurus-like plates on its back. The lost valley is also home to two different adversarial races of tailed human-looking creatures: the hairless and white-skinned, city-dwelling Ho-don and the hairy and black-skinned, hill-dwelling Waz-don. Tarzan befriends a Ho-don warrior and the Waz-don chief actuating some uncustomary relations. In this new world, Tarzan becomes a captive where he impresses his captors with his accomplishments and skills that they name him "Tarzan-Jad-Guru" (Tarzan the Terrible).

Jane is also being held captive in Pal-ul-don, having been brought there by her German captor. She becomes a centerpiece in a religious power struggle, until she escapes. Her German captor becomes dependent on her due to his own lack of jungle survival skills.

With the aid of his native allies, Tarzan continues to pursue his beloved, going through an extended series of fights and escapes to do so. In the end, success seems beyond even his ability to achieve until in the final chapter he and Jane are saved by their son Korak, who has been searching for Tarzan just as Tarzan has been searching for Jane.

## Adaptations[edit]

The book has been adapted into comic form by Gold Key Comics in Tarzan #166-167 (July–September 1968), with a script by Gaylord DuBois and art by Russ Manning.

Pa-lu-don appears in the Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle episode "Tarzan and the Beast in the Iron Mask".

## References[edit]

* Bleiler, Everett (1948). The Checklist of Fantastic Literature. Chicago: Shasta Publishers. pp. 68.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tarzan the Terrible.

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Tarzan the Terrible

* Tarzan the Terrible at Standard Ebooks
*   * Tarzan the Terrible at Project Gutenberg
* Tarzan the Terrible public domain audiobook at LibriVox
* ERBzine.com Illustrated Bibliography entry for Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan the Terrible
* Edgar Rice Burroughs Summary Project page for Tarzan the Terrible
* Geography of Pal-ul-Don
* Pal-ul-don in ERBzine by Rick Johnson

Preceded by

Tarzan the Untamed

|  Tarzan series
Tarzan the Terrible | Succeeded by

Tarzan and the Golden Lion

|
|

* v
* t
* e

Edgar Rice Burroughs (works)

Tarzan novels|

* Tarzan of the Apes (1912)
* The Return of Tarzan (1913)
* The Beasts of Tarzan (1914)
* The Son of Tarzan (1915)
* Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar (1916)
* Tarzan the Terrible (1921)
* Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1922/23)
* Tarzan and the Ant Men (1924)
* Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle (1927/28)
* Tarzan and the Lost Empire (1928/29)
* Tarzan at the Earth's Core (1929/30)
* Tarzan the Invincible (1930/31)
* Tarzan Triumphant (1931/32)
* Tarzan and the City of Gold (1932)
* Tarzan and the Lion Man (1933/34)
* Tarzan and the Leopard Men (1932/33)
* Tarzan's Quest (1935/36)
* Tarzan and the Forbidden City (1938)
* Tarzan and the Foreign Legion (1947)
* Tarzan and the Madman (1964)
* Tarzan: The Lost Adventure (1995)

Tarzan collections|

* Jungle Tales of Tarzan (1919)
* Tarzan the Untamed (1920)
* Tarzan the Magnificent (1939)
* Tarzan and the Tarzan Twins (1963)
* Tarzan and the Castaways (1965)

Tarzan
short stories|

* Tarzan's First Love (1916)
* The Capture of Tarzan (1916)
* The Fight for the Balu (1916)
* The God of Tarzan (1916)
* Tarzan and the Black Boy (1917)
* The Witch-Doctor Seeks Vengeance (1917)
* The End of Bukawai (1917)
* The Lion (1917)
* The Nightmare (1917)
* The Battle for Teeka (1917)
* A Jungle Joke (1917)
* Tarzan Rescues the Moon (1917)
* Tarzan the Untamed (1919)
* Tarzan and the Valley of Luna (1920)
* The Tarzan Twins (1927)
* Tarzan and the Tarzan Twins with Jad-Bal-Ja the Golden Lion (1936)
* Tarzan and the Magic Men (1936)
* Tarzan and the Elephant Men (1937/38)
* Tarzan and the Champion (1940)
* Tarzan and the Jungle Murders (1940)
* Tarzan and the Castaways (1941)

Other jungle
adventures|

* The Man-Eater (1915)
* The Cave Girl (1925)
* The Eternal Lover (1925)
* Jungle Girl (1932)
* The Lad and the Lion (1938)

Martian series|

* A Princess of Mars (1917)
* The Gods of Mars (1918)
* The Warlord of Mars (1919)
* Thuvia, Maid of Mars (1920)
* The Chessmen of Mars (1922)
* The Master Mind of Mars (1928)
* A Fighting Man of Mars (1931)
* Swords of Mars (1936)
* Synthetic Men of Mars (1940)
* Llana of Gathol (1948)
* John Carter of Mars (1964)

Pellucidar series|

* At the Earth's Core (1914)
* Pellucidar (1915)
* Tanar of Pellucidar (1929)
* Tarzan at the Earth's Core (1929)
* Back to the Stone Age (1937)
* Land of Terror (1944)
* Savage Pellucidar (1963)

Venus series|

* Pirates of Venus (1934)
* Lost on Venus (1935)
* Carson of Venus (1939)
* Escape on Venus (1946)
* The Wizard of Venus (1964)

Caspak series|

* The Land That Time Forgot (1918)
* The People That Time Forgot (1918)
* Out of Time's Abyss (1918)

Other
speculative fiction|

* Beyond Thirty (1915)
* The Moon Maid (1926)
* The Monster Men (1929)
* "The Resurrection of Jimber-Jaw" (1937)
* Beyond the Farthest Star (1941)
* Tales of Three Planets (1964)

Westerns|

* The Bandit of Hell's Bend (1926)
* The War Chief (1927)
* Apache Devil (1933)
* The Deputy Sheriff of Comanche County (1940)

Historical novels|

* The Outlaw of Torn (1914/1927)
* I Am a Barbarian (1967)

Ruritanian romances|

* The Rider (1918)
* The Mad King (1926)

Contemporary
novels|

* The Mucker (1914/16)
* The Girl from Farris's (1916)
* The Oakdale Affair (1918)
* The Efficiency Expert (1921)
* The Girl from Hollywood (1923)
* Pirate Blood (1970)
* Marcia of the Doorstep (1999)

Other works|

* The Oakdale Affair and The Rider (1937)
* Beyond Thirty and The Man-Eater (1957)
* Minidoka: 937th Earl of One Mile Series M (1998)
* You Lucky Girl! (1999)
* Forgotten Tales of Love and Murder (2001)
* Brother Men (2005)

Related|

* Florence Gilbert (second wife)
* John Coleman Burroughs (son)
* Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.
* Tarzana, Los Angeles
* Tarzan, Texas

* v
* t
* e

Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Literature

| Edgar Rice Burroughs'
official canon|

* Tarzan of the Apes (1912)
* The Return of Tarzan (1913)
* The Beasts of Tarzan (1914)
* The Son of Tarzan (1915)
* Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar (1916)
* Jungle Tales of Tarzan (1919)
* Tarzan the Untamed (1920)
* Tarzan the Terrible (1921)
* Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1922/23)
* Tarzan and the Ant Men (1924)
* Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle (1927/28)
* Tarzan and the Lost Empire (1928/29)
* Tarzan at the Earth's Core (1929/30)
* Tarzan the Invincible (1930/31)
* Tarzan Triumphant (1931/32)
* Tarzan and the City of Gold (1932)
* Tarzan and the Lion Man (1933/34)
* Tarzan and the Leopard Men (1932/33)
* Tarzan's Quest (1935/36)
* Tarzan and the Forbidden City (1938)
* Tarzan the Magnificent (1939)
* Tarzan and the Foreign Legion (1947)
* Tarzan and the Madman (1964)
* Tarzan and the Castaways (1965)

|

Related works|

* The Eternal Lover (1925)
* The Mad King (1926)
* Tarzan and the Tarzan Twins (1963)
* Tarzan: The Lost Adventure (1995)

Licensed works|

* Tarzan and the Valley of Gold (1966)
* Hadon of Ancient Opar (1974)
* Bunduki (1975)
* Flight to Opar (1976)
* Tarzan: The Epic Adventures (1996)
* The Dark Heart of Time (1999)
* The Adventures of Tarzan (1921/2006)
* Tarzan: The Greystoke Legacy (2011)
* Tarzan: Return to Pal-ul-don (2015)
* Tarzan on the Precipice (2016)
* King Kong vs. Tarzan (2016)
* Tarzan Trilogy (2016)
* Tarzan: The Greystoke Legacy Under Siege (2017)

Films

| Silent films|

* Tarzan of the Apes (1918)
* The Romance of Tarzan (1918)
* The Revenge of Tarzan (1920)
* The Son of Tarzan (1920)
* The Adventures of Tarzan (1921)
* Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1927)
* Tarzan the Mighty (1928)
* Tarzan the Tiger (1929)

|

1930s theatrical films|

* Tarzan the Fearless (1933)
* The New Adventures of Tarzan (1935)
* Tarzan's Revenge (1938)

MGM/RKO film series|

| Johnny Weissmuller|

* Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)
* Tarzan and His Mate (1934)
* Tarzan Escapes (1936)
* Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939)
* Tarzan's Secret Treasure (1941)
* Tarzan's New York Adventure (1942)
* Tarzan Triumphs (1943)
* Tarzan's Desert Mystery (1943)
* Tarzan and the Amazons (1945)
* Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (1946)
* Tarzan and the Huntress (1947)
* Tarzan and the Mermaids (1948)

|

Lex Barker|

* Tarzan's Magic Fountain (1949)
* Tarzan and the Slave Girl (1950)
* Tarzan's Peril (1951)
* Tarzan's Savage Fury (1952)
* Tarzan and the She-Devil (1953)

Gordon Scott|

* Tarzan's Hidden Jungle (1955)
* Tarzan and the Lost Safari (1957)
* Tarzan and the Trappers (1958)
* Tarzan's Fight for Life (1958)
* Tarzan's Greatest Adventure (1959)
* Tarzan the Magnificent (1960)

Jock Mahoney|

* Tarzan Goes to India (1962)
* Tarzan's Three Challenges (1963)

Mike Henry|

* Tarzan and the Valley of Gold (1966)
* Tarzan and the Great River (1967)
* Tarzan and the Jungle Boy (1968)

Remakes|

* Tarzan, the Ape Man (1959)
* Tarzan, the Ape Man (1981)

Warner Bros. films|

* Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan (1984)
* Tarzan and the Lost City (1998)
* The Legend of Tarzan (2016)

Television films|

* Tarzan's Jungle Rebellion (1967)
* Tarzan's Deadly Silence (1970)
* Tarzan in Manhattan (1989)

Disney animated films|

* Tarzan (1999)
* Tarzan & Jane (2002)
* Tarzan II (2005)

Other animated films|

* Tarzan of the Apes (1999)
* Tarzan (2013)

Related documentaries|

* Investigating Tarzan (1997)

Non-English language|

* Vanaraja Karzan (1938)
* Tarzan and the Brown Prince (1972)
* Adventures of Tarzan (1985)
* Tarzan Ki Beti (2002)

Television

| Series|

* Tarzan (1966–1968)
* Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle (1976–1980)
* Tarzán (1991–1994)
* Tarzan: The Epic Adventures (1996–1997)
* The Legend of Tarzan (2001–2003)
* Tarzan (2003)
* Tarzan and Jane (2017–2018)

|

Adventure hours|

* The Batman/Tarzan Adventure Hour
* The Tarzan/Lone Ranger Adventure Hour
* Tarzan and the Super 7

Characters

| People|

* Tarzan
* Jane Porter
* Harry Holt
* Korak
* La
* Meriem
* Muviro
* Waziri
* William Cecil Clayton

|

Animals|

* Cheeta
* Jad-bal-ja
* Kala
* Kerchak
* Mangani
* Nkima
* Sabor
* Tantor
* Tublat

Disney version misc.

| Adaptations|

* Musical
* Tarzan Rocks!
* Tarzan's Treehouse

|

Video games|

* Disney's Tarzan Activity Center
* Kingdom Hearts

Music and radio

| Disney|

* Soundtrack
* "You'll Be in My Heart"
* "Strangers Like Me"
* "Son of Man"
* "Two Worlds"

|

Radio|

* Tarzan (radio program)

Other|

* "Gitarzan" (1969)
* "Jungle Boogie" (1973)
* "Tarzan Boy" (1985)
* "Tarzan & Jane" (1998)

Miscellaneous

| Speech|

* Kreegah bundolo
* Tarzan yell

|

Games|

* Jungle Lord
* Tarzan: Lord of the Jungle
* Disney's Tarzan
* Tarzan: Untamed
* Disney's Tarzan: Return to the Jungle

Comics|

* Tarzanesque
* Tarzan vs. Predator: At the Earth's Core
* Batman/Tarzan: Claws of the Cat-woman
* Superman/Tarzan: Sons of the Jungle
* Tarzan on the Planet of the Apes
* Tarzan: The Complete Russ Manning Newspaper Strips

General|

* Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.
* Tarzan Alive: A Definitive Biography of Lord Greystoke
* "Brothers of the Spear"
* Opar
* Pellucidar
* Starzan: Shouting Star of the Jungle
* Tarzan and Jane (musical)
* Tarzana, Los Angeles
* Zone (play)

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