Johnny Weissmüller

Acting

Johnny Weissmüller

Born 1904-06-02 · Freidorf, Austria-Hungary [now Timisoara, Timis County, Romania]

Johnny Weissmuller (born Johann Peter Weißmüller; June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an Austro-Hungarian-born American swimmer and actor. Weissmuller was one of the world's best swimmers in the 1920s, winning five Olympic gold medals and one bronze medal. He won fifty-two US National Championships and set sixty-seven world records. After his swimming career, he became the sixth actor to portray Tarzan in films, a role he played in twelve motion pictures. Dozens of other actors have also played Tarzan, but Weissmuller is by far the best known. His character's distinctive, ululating Tarzan yell is still often used in films. Description above from the Wikipedia article Johnny Weissmuller, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Acting credits

Tarzan's Desert Mystery poster
6.1

A letter from Jane, who is nursing British troops, asks Tarzan's help in obtaining a malaria serum extractable from jungle plants. Tarzan and Boy set out across the desert looking for the plants. Along the way they befriend a stranded American lady magician.

Tarzan's Desert Mystery

1943

Tarzan the Ape Man poster
6.6

James Parker and Harry Holt are on an expedition in Africa in search of the elephant burial grounds that will provide enough ivory to make them rich. Parker's beautiful daughter Jane arrives unexpectedly to join them. Jane is terrified when Tarzan and his ape friends abduct her, but when she returns to her father's expedition she has second thoughts about leaving Tarzan.

Tarzan the Ape Man

1932

Tarzan Escapes poster
6.9

White hunter Captain Fry tries to take Tarzan back to civilization, caged for public display. He arrives in the jungle with Jane's cousins, Eric and Rita, who want Jane's help in claiming a fortune left her.

Tarzan Escapes

1936

Tarzan and His Mate poster
6.6

Harry Holt returns to Africa with his friend Martin Arlington to head up a large ivory expedition.

Tarzan and His Mate

1934

Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood poster
4.4

A would-be filmmaker and actress shake up the industry with a trick dog who gets discovered by a studio bus driver in the 1920s.

Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood

1976

Hollywood: The Dream Factory poster
7.2

A documentary about the glorious history of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and its decline leading to the sale of its back lot and props. By extension this provides a general history of Hollywood's Golden Age and the legendary studio system.

Hollywood: The Dream Factory

1972

It's Showtime poster
7.5

A collection of film clips profiling animal actors.

It's Showtime

1976

Tarzan's Secret Treasure poster
5.9

A scientific expedition happens to discover that gold exists on Tarzan's escarpment. The villainous Medford and Vandermeer kidnap Jane and Boy to extort from Tarzan the location of the gold.

Tarzan's Secret Treasure

1941

Devil Goddess poster
6.7

Jungle-Jim type Johnny Weissmuller helps Professor Blakely look for a missing colleague who is now playing "god" for a bunch of natives.

Devil Goddess

1955

Captive Girl poster
4.5

Jungle Jim is out to save Joan from an evil witch doctor whilst simultaneously fighting evil treasure hunter Barton.

Captive Girl

1950

Tarzan and the Mermaids poster
6.0

A high priest tries to force a young beauty to marry a pearl trader who is masquerading as the god Balu.

Tarzan and the Mermaids

1948

Stage Door Canteen poster
6.3

A young soldier on a pass in New York City visits the famed Stage Door Canteen, where famous stars of theatre and film appear and host a recreational center for servicemen during the war. The soldier meets a pretty young hostess and they enjoy the many entertainers and a growing romance.

Stage Door Canteen

1943

That's Entertainment, Part II poster
7.0

Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire present more golden moments from the MGM film library, this time including comedy and drama as well as classic musical numbers.

That's Entertainment, Part II

1976

Tarzan's New York Adventure poster
6.4

Circus owner Buck Rand kidnaps Boy to perform in his show. He forces a pilot to fly him, Boy and his animal trainer out of the jungle. Tarzan and Jane follow them to New York.

Tarzan's New York Adventure

1942

Tarzan and the Leopard Woman poster
5.8

A tribe devoted to the leopard cult is dedicated to preventing civilization from moving further into Africa.

Tarzan and the Leopard Woman

1946

Hollywood: Style Center of the World poster
5.8

An MGM short promoting the studio's impact on fashion through film through their chief of costume design, Adrian; in rural America, a mother and daughter are shopping and observe a designer dress worn by Joan Crawford in a recent movie.

Hollywood: Style Center of the World

1940

Going Hollywood: The '30s poster
9.0

Robert Preston hosts this documentary that shows what people of the 1930s were watching as they were battling the Depression as well as eventually getting ready for another World War.

Going Hollywood: The '30s

1984

Tarzan and the Amazons poster
6.4

A group of archaeologists asks Tarzan to help them find an ancient city in a hidden valley of women. He refuses, but Boy is tricked into doing the job. The queen of the women asks Tarzan to help them.

Tarzan and the Amazons

1945

Tarzan Finds a Son! poster
6.1

A young couple die in a plane crash in the jungle. Their son is found by Tarzan and Jane who name him Boy and raise him as their own. Five years later a search party comes to find the young heir to millions of dollars. Jane agrees, against Tarzan's will, to lead them to civilization.

Tarzan Finds a Son!

1939

Tarzan Triumphs poster
6.2

Zandra, white princess of a lost civilization, comes to Tarzan for help when Nazis invade the jungle with plans to conquer her people and take their wealth. Tarzan, the isolationist, becomes involved after the Nazis shoot at him and capture Boy: "Now Tarzan make war!"

Tarzan Triumphs

1943

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? poster
6.3

Period music, film clips and newsreel footage combined into a visual exploration of the American entertainment industry during the Great Depression.

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

1975

The Comic poster
6.1

An account of the rise and fall of a silent film comic, Billy Bright. The movie begins with his funeral, as he speaks from beyond the grave in a bitter tone about his fate, and takes us through his fame, as he ruins it with womanizing and drink, and his fall, as a lonely, bitter old man unable to reconcile his life's disappointments. The movie is based loosely on the life of Buster Keaton.

The Comic

1969

Tarzan and the Huntress poster
5.7

A shortage of zoo animals after World War II brings beautiful animal trainer Tanya, her financial backer and her cruel trail boss to the jungle. After negotiating a quota with the native king, they take more animals than allowed. Tarzan intervenes.

Tarzan and the Huntress

1947

Cannibal Attack poster
6.2

Jungle Jim fights enemy agents who are trying to steal cobalt while disguised as crocodiles.

Cannibal Attack

1954