Tarzan and the Mermaids (1948)

Director:

Robert Florey

Writers:

Edgar Rice Burroughs (characters)
Carroll Young (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

15 May 1948 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Romance

Tagline:

Tarzan at His Best !

Plot:

Boy is away at school in England. The high priest is trying to force a young girl to marry an evil pearl trader posing as the god Balu...

Plot Keywords:

Tarzan | Mermaid | Cult | Africa | Wedding

Cast

Johnny Weissmuller	...	Tarzan
Brenda Joyce	...	Jane
George Zucco	...	Palanth, the High Priest
Andrea Palma	...	Luana, Mara's Mother
Fernando Wagner	...	Varga, Pearl Trader
Edward Ashley	...	Commissioner
John Laurenz	...	Benji
Gustavo Rojo	...	Tiko, Mara's Fiancé
Matthew Boulton	...	British Inspector-General
Linda Christian	...	Mara

Directed by
Robert Florey

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Edgar Rice Burroughs		characters
Albert DePina		uncredited
Carroll Young		screenplay
Carroll Young		story

Produced by
Sol Lesser	....	producer
Joseph Noriega	....	associate producer (as Joe Noriega)
Julian Lesser	....	assistant producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Dimitri Tiomkin

Cinematography by
Jack Draper

Art Direction by
McClure Capps

Costume Design by
Norma Koch		(as Norma)

Production Management
Antonio Guerrero Tello	....	associate production manager
Ray Heinz	....	production manager
John Mari	....	associate production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Bert Briskin	....	assistant director
Jaime Contreras	....	associate assistant director
Moisés Delgado	....	associate assistant director (as Moises Delgado)

Art Department
Gunther Gerszo	....	associate art director

Sound Department
James L. Fields	....	sound supervisor (as James Fields)
Rafael Ruiz Esparza	....	associate sound mixer

Stunts
Ángel García	....	stunt double: Johnny Weissmuller (uncredited)
Paul Stader	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Gabriel Figueroa	....	associate photographer
Raúl Martínez Solares	....	associate photographer

Editorial Department
John Sheets	....	associate editor
Merrill G. White	....	supervising editor (as Merrill White)

Music Department
Dimitri Tiomkin	....	musical director

Other crew
Miguel M. Delgado	....	associate director

Production Companies

• Sol Lesser Productions

Distributors

• RKO Radio Pictures (1948) (USA) (theatrical)
• Banner Productions (1960) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• RKO Radio Pictures (1951) (West Germany) (theatrical)

Also Known As:

Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan and the Mermaids (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

68 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #12894)

Filming Locations:

Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico

Company:

Sol Lesser Productions

Trivia:

Johnny Weissmuller's stunt double Ángel García was killed while performing the famous cliff dive into the ocean at Acapulco, Mexico.

Goofs:

Continuity: Tarzan wears shoes in this movie, and the shoes have the ability to appear and disappear between shots. When he goes after Mara and her kidnappers, he has on what appear to be sandals. During the times he is in the cave, the shoes appear and disappear. Later on, when Tarzan is attacked by an octopus, he has no shoes on, and after he kills it, the shoes are back on his feet.

Movie Connections:

Follows Tarzan's Desert Mystery (1943)

Soundtrack:

I'm Taking a Letter to My Friend, Tarzan

Bad Tarzan

The last Tarzan film starring Johnny Weissmuller (looking surprisingly aged a year after "Tarzan and the Huntress") is bad, in spite of all the trivia one can add to make it look better. It is obvious that RKO tried to make a great farewell for Weissmuller, shooting in beautiful scenery in México, with a top star of that country (Andrea Palma) and multiple award-winning cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa, and bringing in prestigious composer Dimitri Tiomkin to do the score. Although it may have cost less for filming abroad, it looks more expensive than any other RKO film in the series, taking advantage of Acapulco beaches and real pyramids as Aquatania, and with impressive décors for all the scenes related to the temple of god Balu (especially the exterior, built on steep rocks.) Kurt Neumann should have stayed as director, instead of Robert Florey, who gives it a very slow pace. Neumann had done a fine work with "Tarzan and the Amazons", "Tarzan and the Leopard Woman" and "Tarzan and the Huntress", and finished his career directing the classic "The Fly" the year before his death; while Florey became a television director, after a career of few remarkable films. If Weissmuller looks tired, the chimp playing Cheeta is not as good as the others, but the worst character is Benji, an obnoxious mailman who sings horrendous songs (that have a Caribbean air, in a location supposed to be Africa and shot in México!) Boring and decidedly of dubious taste, it was a sad farewell to Weissmuller's Tarzan.