Scope and arrangement
The recordings in this collection consist of open reel audio tape recordings and cassettes, primarily of television or radio broadcasts of Tarzan-themed programs. Many of the recordings were taken from re-broadcasts of programs that originally aired in the 1930s through the 1950s. Audio recordings of films were likely captured from television broadcasts of Tarzan films. The collection also contains dubs of 78rpm albums originally released on Decca Records and Tarzan Records, recordings which have since become extremely rare. Also included are recordings of the 1972 Dum Dum Convention (a gathering of Tarzan enthusiasts), recordings of the soundtrack to the 1931 Dracula film, as well as other radio shows from the 1930s featuring Bing Crosby and Rudy Vallee, among others.
Arrangement
Items were arranged into six series: Tarzan of the apes; Tarzan and the diamond of Asher; The new adventures of Tarzan: the green goddess; Tarzan: lord of the jungle; Miscellaneous Tarzan-related audio; Other material, unrelated to Tarzan. The series Tarzan of the apes and Tarzan: lord of the jungle are both devoted to the radio programs of those titles. The series The new adventures of Tarzan consists of recordings of the 1945 television program of that name. The Miscellaneous Tarzan-related audio consists of recordings of films, television programs, commercial media, and the Dum Dum convention, all of which relate to the theme of Tarzan. The Other material, unrelated to Tarzan series contains recordings of early films and radio programs of the 1930s through the 1950s. Items were arranged chronologically by the date of the content being recorded. In most cases, the recording was made decades after the date of the original content; the date of the original content was treated as the basis for arrangement. In cases where non-consecutive episodes are contained on a single reel, item was arranged in order by the earliest episode on that reel.