Presents

Volume 1162
FAREWELL TARZANA
A Final Photo & Verse Tribute 
by
Larry Lingeman
with additional photos by
Steve Ramada and Peter O'Keefe 
of the Tarzana Cultural Center

 
Danton's Last Photos at Tarzana Ranch

Danton with friends Tim McGovern, real estate agent (l) 
and Professor John Westervelt (m) in front of
John's vintage Packard.
Photos to the side are of Danton and the original columns
that decorated the historic Tarzana Ranch pool


Coming up the driveway to the south front entrance

Shaded  Entrance
 

Tarzana Ranch

In the spring of  2004 I was fortunate enough to spend eight days at the historic Tarzana Ranch.

Danton Burroughs, director of Edgar Rice Burroughs Inc. and grandson of famed author Edgar Rice Burroughs, enlisted me to oversee the property as it was prepared for sale. As a former teacher and aspiring writer, I was thrilled.

Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote over ninety books, despite beginning his professional writing career at age thirty-six. His imagination knew little boundary and his creative view of worlds (other than Earth) seemed to pave the way for other science-fiction writers. He will, of course, be forever closely associated with his creation of one of the most recognized literary characters – Tarzan of the Apes.

Once part of a 550-acre estate, the remaining portion of the ranch now sits atop a small hill overlooking the vast San Fernando Valley. The stately two story ranch house, which was formerly the writing quarters and theater room of Edgar Rice Burroughs, is surrounded by immense pines and other varieties of beautiful trees.

For a writer, the setting could not have been more perfect. On one particularly quiet and still evening, the rich history and palpable folklore inspired me to write this poem:

Larry Lingeman

Front Entrance ~ South
East Side and Driveway
Ode to Tarzana
Within its walls his spirit dwells,
A grand adventure its story tells
Of days before in splendid lore with
Faint but chilling screams, of those who dare
Amid his lair to question their own dreams

The foreboding grounds behest the sounds
of creatures both great and small.
It seems to be the rest you’ll see as night begins to fall.

The shimmering eyes above the skies bring
Comfort on evenings clear, for tales are told
Of Martian souls both living far and near.
The tangled branches overhead swaying gently in the breeze,
illuminate the Planet Red for those beneath their leaves.

The sound of footsteps quiet descent into the historic room,
eerily remind of tribal drums pounding out impending doom.
Imagination running wild from the ceilings to the floor
and with each opening of the iron gates, the fateful Lion’s roar.

L. R. Lingeman 

East Side Entrance

East Side Entrance

Historic Pool on East

Historic Tarzana Ranch Pool

Main Living Room

Dining Room

Stairs to Second Level

Second Level Study

Second Level Bathroom

Second Level Fireplace

Ballroom/Theatre

Ballroom/Theatre

Ballroom/Theatre

Ballroom/Theatre
Northside stone wall and exotic trees
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS
 Larry Lingenan (photos with "ll" prefix)

Steve Ramada and Peter O'Keefe 
of the Tarzana Cultural Center (photos with "ps" prefix)
Scans Courtesy of Cathy Wilbanks, ERB, Inc. Offices

Click for full-screen view of the photo

RELATED TARZANA RANCH FEATURES 
at Bill Hillman's ERBzine Site
Back to Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzana Ranch 1921
An Illustrated Docu-Novel by Bill Hillman starting at ERBzine 1041
The Tarzana Ranch Story in ERBzine 0008
Ranch Tour: ERBzine 0064
Tarzana Ranch Mosaics:
ERBzine 0954 and ERBzine 0955
El Caballero Promotional Booklet 
Photos ~ Text by ERB ~ Art by Studley Burroughs
ERBzine 1091 ~ ERBzine 1092 ~ ERBzine 1093
THE STORY OF TARZANA 
 A rare booklet from the '20s 
 written and published by Edgar Rice Burroughs 
Tarzana Trek
A Photo Diary by Bill Hillman
Home
Article and Letters describing Tarzana by Edgar and Mary Evaline Burroughs
TARZANA ECOF CONVENTION 2002
Tarzana: Then and Now
The Final Farewell


BackForward

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