No sooner had Johnny Weismuller hung up his Tarzan loincloth, than Lex Barker swung into action as the jungle legend in Tarzan's Magic Fountain. A little more male pin-up model than Weismuller, Barker makes for a fine vine swinger, and is joined by equally photogenic Brenda Joyce, continuing in her role of Jane (having starred alongside Weismuller in his last few Tarzan outings).
When Tarzan learns that missing aviatrix Gloria James (Evelyn Ankers) could free an innocent man, Douglas Jessup (Alan Napier), from jail, he brings her back to civilisation from the hidden city where she has spent the last twenty years, kept young by the waters of a magical fountain. The woman's youthful looks pique the interest of trader Mr. Trask (Albert Dekker) and pilot Mr. Dodd (Charles Drake) who want to learn the woman's secret so that they can sell it to make their fortune.
When Gloria returns to Africa with Jessup, now her husband, so that Tarzan can take them to the hidden city, Trask and Dodd see their opportunity. Of course, Tarzan would never betray the secret of the city, but the unscrupulous pair force Jane to guide them instead, which puts her in great danger.
Tarzan's Magic Fountain is a passable family adventure, albeit a little light on the action and a little heavy on the antics of cheeky chimp Cheeta. Tarzan gets in a few fights, but fails to wrassle any big cats or crocodiles, while Cheeta is given almost as much screentime as her human co-stars, whether it be discovering a skeleton in the wreckage of a plane, pacing thoughfully behind Tarzan, blowing bubbles with bubblegum, and killing several men by causing a landslide (that rascally ape!).
Cheeta also features in the final scene, gulping down some of the magic water and turning into a capuchin monkey. How does that work?
When Tarzan learns that missing aviatrix Gloria James (Evelyn Ankers) could free an innocent man, Douglas Jessup (Alan Napier), from jail, he brings her back to civilisation from the hidden city where she has spent the last twenty years, kept young by the waters of a magical fountain. The woman's youthful looks pique the interest of trader Mr. Trask (Albert Dekker) and pilot Mr. Dodd (Charles Drake) who want to learn the woman's secret so that they can sell it to make their fortune.
When Gloria returns to Africa with Jessup, now her husband, so that Tarzan can take them to the hidden city, Trask and Dodd see their opportunity. Of course, Tarzan would never betray the secret of the city, but the unscrupulous pair force Jane to guide them instead, which puts her in great danger.
Tarzan's Magic Fountain is a passable family adventure, albeit a little light on the action and a little heavy on the antics of cheeky chimp Cheeta. Tarzan gets in a few fights, but fails to wrassle any big cats or crocodiles, while Cheeta is given almost as much screentime as her human co-stars, whether it be discovering a skeleton in the wreckage of a plane, pacing thoughfully behind Tarzan, blowing bubbles with bubblegum, and killing several men by causing a landslide (that rascally ape!).
Cheeta also features in the final scene, gulping down some of the magic water and turning into a capuchin monkey. How does that work?