Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle
Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle (short version)
Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle is an American animated series made by Filmation for CBS Saturday mornings. It ran from 1976 to 1979 and produced 36 episodes across four seasons.
The show tells Tarzan’s origin in simple terms: he was raised in the jungle by Kala, a kind she-ape, after being found as a baby. He grew up brave, smart, and fluent, and he protects the jungle and its animals. Tarzan’s world is full of beauty and danger, including lost cities and good and evil characters. He speaks in a thoughtful way and treats the animals with respect, using Mangani names for many creatures.
Tarzan’s sidekick is N’kima the monkey. In this series, Cheeta the chimpanzee isn’t used; Tarzan’s animal friends are named in Mangani, the jungle language from the books.
The animation is rotoscoped, inspired by Burne Hogarth’s artwork, which gives Tarzan a look close to the original novels. The show stays faithful to Edgar Rice Burroughs’s stories and includes many of the “lost cities” from the books.
Episode format and airings:
- Season 1: 16 half-hour episodes.
- Season 2: 6 new episodes, aired as The Batman/Tarzan Adventure Hour.
- Season 3: 6 new episodes, aired with Tarzan and the Super 7.
- Season 4: 8 new episodes, aired as part of Tarzan and the Super 7.
Later reruns grouped Tarzan with other shows under different blocks.
Rights and availability:
- The series is owned by the Edgar Rice Burroughs company, not Universal.
- Warner Home Video released one episode on a compilation DVD.
- The first season was released on DVD in 2016 for the 40th anniversary.
Overall, Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle offers kid-friendly jungle adventures that stay true to the spirit of the original books.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 06:53 (CET).