Tarzan, King of the Apes and Adventure Comics
Hal Foster’s Tarzan. The Complete Sunday Comics 1931-1937
Dian Hanson Hardcover, 392 pages
€ 200 | US$ 200 | € 200 | HK$ 1800
ISBN 978-3-7544-0264-1 (Multilingual edition: English, French, German)
In 1929 Hal Foster illustrated Tarzan of the Apes as a 60-episode daily newspaper strip: the first adventure comic. From 1931 to 1937, 292 full-page Tarzan Sunday comics followed. Foster’s ape man defined Tarzan and adventure comics for decades to come. Hal Fosterʼs Tarzan: The Complete Sunday Comics 1931–1937—releasing in May 2026 from TASCHEN—reprints every comic from the original newspapers, in a colorful XXL format. Preorder now from TASCHEN.
Hal Foster made a man in a leopard loincloth a Sunday morning icon
In 1928 commercial artist Hal Foster took a job to turn Edgar Rice Burroughs’ novel Tarzan of the Apes into a 60-installment black-and-white newspaper comic. Initially, no American papers wanted it, so it premiered in England, to great acclaim. When U.S. papers picked it up and wanted more, Foster wasn’t interested. It was only in 1931, with the Great Depression threatening his family with starvation, that he consented to take it on as a full-color, full-page Sunday comic, still calling the low-paid job “a bit of pottage.”
That bit of pottage fed him for the next seven years, as Tarzan became the first adventure comic, and one of the most beloved Sunday strips in America. Though newspapers complained about the violence (Burroughs countered that Tarzan’s success was the result of a “human weakness for gory and gruesome situations”) and the incessant nudity (the writer’s script notes asked for “a great deal of female nakedness”) readers found Tarzan’s adventures with ancient Egyptians, modern criminals, Vikings, dinosaurs, killer apes, and a slew of provocative queens and princesses mesmerizing, right up until Foster handed off the strip to Burne Hogarth in mid-1937.
Produced from original newspapers, preserving the color and texture of the Ben Day dot coloring process distinctive to vintage comics, Hal Foster’s Tarzan carries you back to Sunday morning, belly-down on the living room rug, “funnies” spread before you, lost in a world of exotic adventure while mom whips up your own bowl of oatmeal pottage.
THE AUTHOR AND EDITOR
Dian Hanson is a senior editor and writer for TASCHEN, with over 50 books to her credit. In addition to Hal Foster’s Tarzan, her recent works include ARNOLD, The Art of Pin-up, Masterpieces of Fantasy Art, and The Fantastic Worlds of Frank Frazetta.
VISIT US THIS WEEKEND AT WONDERCON!
If you’re in Southern California this weekend, stop by WonderCon at the Anaheim Convention Center and say hello to the Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., team at booth #1119! We will have a full array of Tarzan, John Carter, and Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe books, t-shirts, and other merchandise available—including 17 new t-shirt designs and other merch! Also, don’t miss our panel on Saturday in Room 211!
WonderCon Panel: Meet Tarzan Author Joe R. Lansdale plus Esteemed Guests
Saturday, March 28, 2026 at 1:00 p.m.– 2:00 p.m. PDT
Room 211
Three decades ago, Edgar Rice Burroughs’ grandson found a lost Tarzan manuscript in a vault in Tarzana, California, and selected rising-star author Joe R. Lansdale (Bubba Hotep, Hap and Leonard) to complete it. Now, Lansdale is a legend in his own right, and he will be joining us to discuss new Tarzan projects including the 30th anniversary edition of Tarzan: The Lost Adventure. The panel also features Llana Jane Burroughs, ERB’s great-granddaughter, whose father recovered the lost manuscript and worked tirelessly to promote ERB’s legacy. Next, Tom Akel of Rocketship Entertainment offers a glimpse at a new epic Tarzan comics project in the works. Also on hand are Wolf Larson (former Tarzan TV star and VP of ERB Entertainment) and the ERB, Inc., team to discuss upcoming books, comic books, merchandise, and movie and TV series in development. Attendees will receive a Tarzan: The Lost Adventure 30th anniversary bookmark!
For more information about attending, visit the WonderCon website.
ABOUT EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS, INC.
Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., administers the intellectual property of American author Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950), one of the twentieth century’s most prolific and enduring writers. The company, which licenses the copyrights and trademarks of Mr. Burroughs’ fictional heroes, including Tarzan of the Apes®, John Carter of Mars®, Carson of Venus®, and many more, is owned by his heirs and operates from offices the author built in 1927 on the site of his former Tarzana ranch in Tarzana, California.
© Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Trademarks Tarzan®, Tarzan of the Apes®, John Carter®, John Carter of Mars®, Dejah Thoris®, Carson of Venus®, Victory Harben™, Hucklebuck™, and Edgar Rice Burroughs® Owned by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. Used by Permission.
