Although it touts the adolescent antics of a typical Tarzan outing, "Tarzan Escapes" director Jerry Thorpe's "Tarzan's New York Adventure" amounts to more than another vine mess, with chimpanzee Cheetah stealing every scene in sight. Indeed, "Tarzan's New York Adventure" qualifies as an amusing but exciting fish-out-of-water fable with the Lord of the Apes winging his way in "an iron bird" with Jane to the Big Apple to rescue Boy from the clutches of a villainous circus promoter. The sixth installment in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer franchise, with Olympic Gold Medal swimmer Johnny Weissmuller as the eponymous character with pretty Maureen O'Sullivan at his back (in her final "Tarzan" opus), is exhilarating stuff. Clearly a notch above prior "Tarzan" fare, "Tarzan's New York Adventure" confronts the Ape Man with interesting challenges, such as his spectacular plunge off the Brooklyn Bridge. While it ranks as little more than a nimble black & white, B-picture lensed on the studio backlot, with some convincing rear-screen projection, this "Tarzan" tale stacks up one surprise after another in rapid succession, with Thorpe paring everything down to a trim 73 minutes. Scenarists Miles Connolly of "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," Gordon Kahn of "A Yank on the Burma Road," and William R. Lipman of "Little Miss Marker" supplement this Edgar Rice Burroughs' inspired epic with an insightful commentary that compares the simple-minded morality of the African jungle, where Tarzan and his family reside in modest comfort, with the corruption of contemporary American society. In a sense, "Tarzan's New York Adventure" emerges as a sort of science fiction saga with its ethnologic exploration of the rural world of remote African with urban world of New York City. Of course, untamed Africa bristled with many dangerous four-legged beasts, but these animal predators cannot rival the predatory humans of New York City. Meantime, it is hilarious to watch Tarzan decked out in a double-breasted suit and tie. Several decades would elapse before Tarzan would don such civilized apparel again in director Robert Day's "Tarzan and the Valley of Gold" (1966) toplining former Pittsburgh Steelers player Mike Henry.
After the title credits roll, a preamble appears: "Beyond the last outpost of civilization a mighty escarpment towers toward the skies in Africa--uncharted on maps--a strange world--a place of mystery." This isolated locale thrives with elephants, lions, ostriches, birds, antelope, and water buffalo. Director Jerry Thorpe tilts his cameras at a bubble on the surface of a river and dissolves to a scenic underwater long shot of Tarzan, Jane, and Boy swimming in the tranquil depths of the river. When they emerge from the water, they spot Cheetah perches on the back of a baby elephant. Cheetah has a fit because he hears something odd. Tarzan hears it, too. A twin-engine, propeller-driven aircraft flies overhead and lands in a clearing. Tarzan swings through the trees and approaches the three whites and their black hands. Big-game hunter Buck Rand (Charles Bickford of "Riders of Death Valley")tries to load his high-powered rifle as Tarzan gets closer. Tarzan spots him as he is about to shoulder the rifle and hurls his knife so that it strikes the rifle and knocks it out of Rand's hands. Tarzan lands among the Rand, pilot Jimmy Shields (Paul Kelly of "Parachute Battalion") and animal trainer Manchester Montford (Chill Wills of "Billy the Kid") and smashes Rand's rifle. After Tarzan vanishes into the jungle, Rand and company start trapping lions. The next day, Montford nearly dies when he accidentally steps into one of their own traps and a lion attack him. Boy (Johnny Sheffield) saves Montford's life by distracting the lion. The back-projection of a lion threatening Boy looks pretty good. Anyway, no sooner has Boy gotten Montford out of trouble than a hostile warrior tribe, the Jaconi, attack and Tarzan swings to the rescue. A tribesman cuts the vine that Tarzan and Jane use and they plunge to the jungle floor and lay unconscious. The Jaconi set a fire and Boy runs to help Tarzan. A wall of flames prevents him from helping them. After watching Boy make the small elephants obey him, Rand takes him back to America. Initially, like his benefactors, Boy believes Tarzan and Jane are kaput. Consequently, the set-up is well-done.
Cheetah awakens the unconscious Tarzan and Jane and they begin their odyssey to New York City to find Boy. Our heroes take a bag of gold nuggets from a nearby river and use them to fund their trip to America. Jane explains to Tarzan that they are entering a world wholly different from his world and that he must trust her to do what is best for them. Tarzan, Jane and Cheetah catch a ride in a clipper to New York City after Jane has paid a Chinese tailor to make them some clothing, especially for Tarzan who is far too big for anything that they have on hand. When they arrive in the Big Apple, our heroes search for Jimmie Shields. They go to Shields' motel but he isn't back from Boston, so they check into a suite. Tarzan steps into a shower and drenches himself, belting out his jungle call because the cool water feels so refreshing. Meanwhile, Cheetah raids Jane's luggage and plays with her cosmetics. Cheetah drinks a bottle of face lotion, followed by hand lotion, and finally takes a nip of alcohol. Cheetah goes berserk before Tarzan and Jane calm her down and head off to Club Moonbeam where Jimmie Shields' girlfriend works as a singer. Eventually, they track Boy down to a circus and everything winds up in court. Tarzan and Jane hire a lawyer to gain custody of Boy from the circus people. "Tarzan's New York Adventure" concludes with an action-packed finale. The villains capture Tarzan and lock him up in a cage, but he summons the circus elephants. The elephants help him escape and he rescues Boy.
After the title credits roll, a preamble appears: "Beyond the last outpost of civilization a mighty escarpment towers toward the skies in Africa--uncharted on maps--a strange world--a place of mystery." This isolated locale thrives with elephants, lions, ostriches, birds, antelope, and water buffalo. Director Jerry Thorpe tilts his cameras at a bubble on the surface of a river and dissolves to a scenic underwater long shot of Tarzan, Jane, and Boy swimming in the tranquil depths of the river. When they emerge from the water, they spot Cheetah perches on the back of a baby elephant. Cheetah has a fit because he hears something odd. Tarzan hears it, too. A twin-engine, propeller-driven aircraft flies overhead and lands in a clearing. Tarzan swings through the trees and approaches the three whites and their black hands. Big-game hunter Buck Rand (Charles Bickford of "Riders of Death Valley")tries to load his high-powered rifle as Tarzan gets closer. Tarzan spots him as he is about to shoulder the rifle and hurls his knife so that it strikes the rifle and knocks it out of Rand's hands. Tarzan lands among the Rand, pilot Jimmy Shields (Paul Kelly of "Parachute Battalion") and animal trainer Manchester Montford (Chill Wills of "Billy the Kid") and smashes Rand's rifle. After Tarzan vanishes into the jungle, Rand and company start trapping lions. The next day, Montford nearly dies when he accidentally steps into one of their own traps and a lion attack him. Boy (Johnny Sheffield) saves Montford's life by distracting the lion. The back-projection of a lion threatening Boy looks pretty good. Anyway, no sooner has Boy gotten Montford out of trouble than a hostile warrior tribe, the Jaconi, attack and Tarzan swings to the rescue. A tribesman cuts the vine that Tarzan and Jane use and they plunge to the jungle floor and lay unconscious. The Jaconi set a fire and Boy runs to help Tarzan. A wall of flames prevents him from helping them. After watching Boy make the small elephants obey him, Rand takes him back to America. Initially, like his benefactors, Boy believes Tarzan and Jane are kaput. Consequently, the set-up is well-done.
Cheetah awakens the unconscious Tarzan and Jane and they begin their odyssey to New York City to find Boy. Our heroes take a bag of gold nuggets from a nearby river and use them to fund their trip to America. Jane explains to Tarzan that they are entering a world wholly different from his world and that he must trust her to do what is best for them. Tarzan, Jane and Cheetah catch a ride in a clipper to New York City after Jane has paid a Chinese tailor to make them some clothing, especially for Tarzan who is far too big for anything that they have on hand. When they arrive in the Big Apple, our heroes search for Jimmie Shields. They go to Shields' motel but he isn't back from Boston, so they check into a suite. Tarzan steps into a shower and drenches himself, belting out his jungle call because the cool water feels so refreshing. Meanwhile, Cheetah raids Jane's luggage and plays with her cosmetics. Cheetah drinks a bottle of face lotion, followed by hand lotion, and finally takes a nip of alcohol. Cheetah goes berserk before Tarzan and Jane calm her down and head off to Club Moonbeam where Jimmie Shields' girlfriend works as a singer. Eventually, they track Boy down to a circus and everything winds up in court. Tarzan and Jane hire a lawyer to gain custody of Boy from the circus people. "Tarzan's New York Adventure" concludes with an action-packed finale. The villains capture Tarzan and lock him up in a cage, but he summons the circus elephants. The elephants help him escape and he rescues Boy.