Tarzan's Desert Mystery (1943)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Wilhelm Thiele

Writers:

Edgar Rice Burroughs (characters)
Edward T. Lowe Jr. (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

15 April 1944 (Sweden)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | War

Tagline:

Tarzan Defies Enemy Agents . . . in a hot-bed of Intrigue and Danger !

Plot:

A letter from Jane, who is nursing British troops, asks Tarzan's help in obtaining a malaria serum extractable from jungle plants...

Plot Keywords:

Tarzan | Desert | Letter | Horse | Nazi

Cast

Johnny Weissmuller	...	Tarzan
Nancy Kelly	...	Connie Bryce
Johnny Sheffield	...	Boy
Otto Kruger	...	Paul Hendrix
Joe Sawyer	...	Karl Straeder
Lloyd Corrigan	...	Sheik Abdul El Khim
Robert Lowery	...	Prince Selim
Frank Puglia	...	Magistrate
Philip Van Zandt	...	Kushmet
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bobby Barber	...	Turban Vendor (uncredited)
John Berkes	...	Charlie (uncredited)
Dice	...	Jaynar (uncredited)
Frank Faylen	...	Achmed (uncredited)
George J. Lewis	...	Ali Baba Hassan (uncredited)
Nestor Paiva	...	Prison Guard (uncredited)

Directed by
Wilhelm Thiele		(as William Thiele)

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Edgar Rice Burroughs		characters
Edward T. Lowe Jr.		writer (as Edward T. Lowe)
Carroll Young		story

Produced by
Sol Lesser	....	executive producer
Kurt Neumann	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Paul Sawtell

Cinematography by
Russell Harlan		(as Russ Harlan)
Harry J. Wild		(as Harry Wild)

Film Editing by
Ray H. Lockert		(as Ray Lockert)

Art Direction by
Ralph Berger
Hans Peters

Set Decoration by
Victor A. Gangelin		(as Victor Gangelin)
Stanley Murphy

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Derwin Abrahams	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Bailey Fesler	....	sound technician
Jean L. Speak	....	sound technician

Stunts
Ben Johnson	....	stunt double (uncredited)
Paul Stader	....	stunts (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Elmer Ellsworth	....	wardrobe

Music Department
C. Bakaleinikoff	....	musical director

Other crew
Ralph McCutcheon	....	horse trainer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Sol Lesser Productions (as Principal Artists Productions)

Distributors

• RKO Radio Pictures (1943) (USA) (theatrical)
• RKO Radio Films A/S (1947) (Norway) (theatrical)
• RKO Radio Pictures (1949) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• RKO Radio Pictures (1959) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Banner Productions (1960) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)

Also Known As:

Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan's Desert Mystery (USA) (complete title)
Tarzan Against the Sahara (USA) (working title)
Tarzan and the Sheik (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

70 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

West Germany:6 (nf) | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:Btl | Norway:7 (1970)

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company:

Sol Lesser Productions

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Tarzan and Boy walk across the hot, sandy desert on their way to get the medicine from the jungle, they both walk across it in their bare feet. Sand often gets extremely hot out in the desert, and both of them should be suffering from burns on the bottoms of their feet, but they do not.

Movie Connections:

Edited from Tarzan Triumphs (1943)

Tarzan in the Lost Jungle

Tarzan this time has to deal with scheming foreign nazis who are plotting against a local Sheik to takeover his land. They manage to have Tarzan put in jail and try to get his lady friend (as in only a friend) hanged. Finally Tarzan ends up in a mysterious jungle with some rather familiar slurpasaurs as well as giant venus flytraps and a giant spider. This Tarzan mixes in lost world elements which really don't work as well as the earlier Tarzan adventure. Also one really misses the lack of Jane's presence on screen. Sometimes enjoyable, sometimes not so much so.