Korak (character)
Korak, a fictional character, is the ape name of John "Jack" Clayton III, Earl of Greystoke,[3] the son of Tarzan and Jane Porter.
| Korak | |
|---|---|
 Dust cover of The Son of Tarzan (First edition, 1917), depicting Korak | |
| First appearance | The Eternal Lover |
| Last appearance | Tarzan and the Ant Men |
| Created by | Edgar Rice Burroughs |
| Portrayed by | Gordon Griffith Kamuela C. Searle |
| In-universe information | |
| Alias | Jack Clayton [1] |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Adventurer, Hunter, trapper, fisherman |
| Family | Tarzan (father) Jane Porter (mother) |
| Spouse | Meriem (wife) |
| Children | Jackie Clayton (son)[2] |
| Nationality | English/American |
History
Jack first appeared in the original Tarzan novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs. He was introduced as an infant in the non-Tarzan novel The Eternal Lover (later retitled The Eternal Savage), in which the Ape Man and his family played supporting roles. His next appearance (still as an infant) was in The Beasts of Tarzan, the third Tarzan novel, in which he was kidnapped and taken to Africa. The story of his youth and growth to manhood was told in the fourth novel, The Son of Tarzan, in which he returned to Africa and lived in the jungle, taking for the first time the name Korak ("Killer" in the language of the Great Apes). Most references to him were as "Korak the Killer".
Half of the book relates to Meriem, the girl he rescues from a beating. The two of them run wild in the forest for years before being separated. After many adventures they are re-united and eventually marry.
Korak was later used as a supporting character in the eighth through the tenth entries in the series, Tarzan the Terrible, Tarzan and the Golden Lion, and Tarzan and the Ant Men. The last of those three also briefly mentions Korak and Meriem's young son "Jackie". The Bunduki series by J. T. Edson - and authorized by the Burroughs estate - includes Korak and Meriem's granddaughter Dawn as one of two main characters.
In other media
Besides the Burroughs novels, Korak also appeared in the 1920 movie serial The Son of Tarzan, the Tarzan comic strip, in which he was a major character for many years; and the Tarzan, Korak, Son of Tarzan, and Tarzan Family comic books.
In the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan films, Korak was replaced by an adopted son called Boy (played by Johnny Sheffield). Tarzan and Jane never married in these films (they do in the books), and the substitution was made to avoid censorship. In the Dell comic books of the 1950s, which combine material from the books and the films, Tarzan's son was also called Boy. When the Tarzan comics returned to a more faithful portrayal of Burroughs' characters in the early 1960s, Boy disappeared and Tarzan's son was called Korak, who was later featured in his own comic book.
Portrayal in film
- Gordon Griffith (youth) 1920
- Kamuela C. Searle (adult) 1920
Comic books
- Gold Key Comics published Korak, Son of Tarzan #1–45 from January 1964 to January 1972.[4][5] It featured work by Russ Manning, Warren Tufts, Dan Spiegle, and others.[6][7] In 2013, Dark Horse Comics reprinted the Gold Key issues drawn by Manning in hardcover format.[8][9]
- DC Comics acquired the publication licensing rights to the series in 1972, continuing the numbering from #46–59 (June 1972 to September–October 1975),[10] when it was renamed The Tarzan Family. The retitled series ran an additional seven issues #60–66 (November–December 1975 to November–December 1976)[11] Both series also included other Burroughs' characters. The Korak series featured work from writers Len Wein and Robert Kanigher and artists Frank Thorne, Murphy Anderson, and Rudy Florese. "Carson of Venus" by Wein and Michael Kaluta was the backup feature in issues #46–56.[6][7]
References
- Burroughs, Edgar Rice (1917). The Son of Tarzan.
- Burroughs, Edgar Rice (1924). "Chapter Two". Tarzan and the Ant Men.
- In Burroughs, Edgar Rice (1914). "Chapter XXV". Tarzan of the Apes, referring to the character we will come to know as Tarzan: "Somehow, even against all reason, I seem to see him a grown man, taking his father's place in the world—the second John Clayton—and bringing added honors to the house of Greystoke." ,
- Korak, Son of Tarzan (Gold Key Comics) at the Grand Comics Database
- Fischer, Stuart (March 2018). "Those Unforgettable Super-Heroes of Dell & Gold Key". Alter Ego. TwoMorrows Publishing (151): 45.
- Vaughan, Dan (July 2016). "It's a Jungle Out There! Swingin' with DC's Korak, Son of Tarzan". Back Issue!. Raleigh, North Carolina: TwoMorrows Publishing (89): 27–34.
- Markstein, Don (2010). "Korak, Son of Tarzan". Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on December 3, 2015.
- "Korak, Son of Tarzan Archives Vol. 1". Dark Horse Comics. May 1, 2013. Archived from the original on April 2, 2016.
Collecting Korak, Son of Tarzan #1–6.
- "Korak, Son of Tarzan Volume 2 HC". Dark Horse Comics. September 4, 2013. Archived from the original on April 2, 2016.
Collects Korak, Son of Tarzan #7–11 and #21.
- Korak, Son of Tarzan (DC Comics) at the Grand Comics Database
- The Tarzan Family at the Grand Comics Database
External links
- Korak in Pal-u-don
- The Son of Tarzan at Project Gutenberg
- Korak, Son of Tarzan (Gold Key Comics) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Korak, Son of Tarzan (DC Comics) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- The Tarzan Family at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)