In all the Olympian excitement, it’s sometimes easy to forget that ‘Tarzan’ won three gold medals in swimming events at the 1924 Olympics in Paris, and two gold medals and one bronze at the 1928 Games in Amsterdam.
I refer, of course, to the wonderful Johnny Weissmuller – who was the best ‘Tarzan’ of them all!
Weissmuller was actually born in Pardany in Hungary in June 1904, but his parents emigrated to the USA in 1904. Ironically, only took up swimming when he was a child in order to battle polio – but, well, he became rather good at it..
After his triumphs at the 1928 Games, he signed a Hollywood contract, appeared in his first ‘Tarzan film’ in 1932 – and overnight became a worldwide star as a result of that film.
Not surprisingly, Weissmuller also won gold medals in the lion and crocodile wrestling events, too, and a silver in the ‘talking to monkeys’ pentathlon.
So, we’re all very curious here to see what Michael Phelps plans to do next…
To celebrate the amazing life and Olympian achievements of Johnny Weissmuller, we’ve posted two stories about him below.
Hull Daily Mail – Saturday 22 October 1932
Image © Northcliffe Media Limited. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000324/19321022/027/0002
Hull Daily Mail – Monday 21 July 1924
Image © Northcliffe Media Limited. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000324/19240721/001/0002
Hull Daily Mail – Saturday 22 October 1932
Image © Northcliffe Media Limited. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000324/19321022/027/0002
