LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Johnny Weissmuller: Ape Man
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Future Tarzan actor Johnny Weissmuller sets the world record for the 150-yard freestyle swim. Already a gold medallist from the 1924 Olympics, Weissmuller competed again in 1928, taking five gold medals in all. In 1931, MGM cast Weissmuller to play the title role in Tarzan the Ape Man (1932). He continued playing Tarzan in films through the late 1940s. The film series moved to television in 1966. Though Weissmuller didn't star in the TV shows, he did contribute the famous Tarzan yell that was used on the program.
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Jungle lord Johnny Weissmuller returns in a hair-raising adventure, the second installment in the MGM series. The Ape Man and his British gal, Jane, see their exotic lifestyle threatened by the arrival of Jane's ex-beau and his ivory-hunting pal. This restored version features Maureen O'Sullivan's long-unseen topless swimming scene. With Neil Hamilton, Paul Cavanagh. 91 min.
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The foremost freestyle swimmer in the world during the 1920s, Weissmuller set world records in many distances, including breaking the world record for the 100-yard freestyle event five times between 1922 and 1927. At the 1924 Olympics in Paris, he won gold medals in the 100-meter and 400-meter freestyle events and the 4 × 200-meter freestyle relay. At the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam, Netherlands, he repeated his victory in the 100-meter freestyle and was again a member of the winning 4 × 200-meter relay team. In 1932 Weissmuller embarked on a motion-picture career and soon became identified with the role of Tarzan, the jungle hero originally created by American adventure writer Edgar Rice Burroughs.
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At first, Weissmuller wasn't interested in the movie part, and in fact he had signed an exclusive contract with BVD, a manufacturer of swimsuits and underwear, as a spokesman for their products. BVD refused to release him from the contract and let him act for MGM. MGM, undaunted, sent over a team of lawyers to try and convince the executives at BVD to come to an agreement. Eventually, the two sides made a deal. If BVD would let Weissmuller act for MGM, MGM would allow BVD to photograph all the big MGM stars in swim suits. This list included stars such as Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford, and Jean Harlow.
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Every old-timer in swimming has a favorite Johnny Weissmuller story. To them all, he was the world's greatest swimmer, yet ironically the producer who signed him to play Tarzan didn't know Johnny could swim. "Many think I turned pro to go into the movies," Johnny says, "but this is not true. I was working for a bathing suit company for $500 a week for five years, which was not bad money then (or now). I was in Los Angeles and they asked me if I would like to screen test for Tarzan. I told them 'no thanks' but they said I could go to the MGM lot and meet Greta Garbo and have lunch with Clark Gable. Any kid would want to do that so I said 'okay'. I had to climb a tree and then run past the camera carrying a girl. There were 150 actors trying for the part, so after lunch, I took off for Oregon on my next stop for the swim suit outfit. Somebody called me on the phone and said 'Johnny, you got it.' 'Got what?' 'You're Tarzan.' 'What happened to those other 150 guys?' 'They picked you.'"
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Despite his athletic records, Weissmuller is best known for his motion-picture role as Tarzan of the Apes, a character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Weissmuller starred in 12 Tarzan films between 1932 and 1948, beginning with Tarzan the Ape Man (1932). He later created the role of Jungle Jim, a guide, for both television and motion pictures. His autobiography, Water, World, and Weissmuller, appeared in 1967.
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