86
Age
21
Movies
23
TV Shows
6.0
Rating
Ronald Pierce "Ron" Ely (born June 21, 1938) was an American actor and novelist born in Hereford, Texas. Ely is best known for having portrayed Tarzan in the 1966 NBC series Tarzan and for playing the lead role in the 1975 film Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze.
86
Died at
21
Movies
23
TV Shows
6.0
Avg Rating
Ronald Pierce "Ron" Ely (born June 21, 1938) was an American actor and novelist born in Hereford, Texas. Ely is best known for having portrayed Tarzan in the 1966 NBC series Tarzan and for playing the lead role in the 1975 film Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze.
1977
Ronald Pierce "Ron" Ely (born June 21, 1938) was an American actor and novelist born in Hereford, Texas. Ely is best known for having portrayed Tarzan in the 1966 NBC series Tarzan and for playing the lead role in the 1975 film Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze.
Ely obtained the role after playing various bit-parts, including an airplane navigator in the 1958 film South Pacific and a guest-starring role on Barbara Eden's first television series, the romantic comedy How to Marry a Millionaire. Ely's height (6' 4") and athletic build also won him the title role in the 1975 film Doc Savage, as well as various guest shots. In a 1978 Fantasy Island episode, for example, Ely portrayed Mark Antony in a Roman military short tunic and breastplate that displayed almost as much of his physique as his Tarzan costume had.
From 1960-61, Ely starred in the series The Aquanauts. In the 1980s, Ely hosted the musical game show Face the Music. Additionally, Ely hosted the 1980 and 1981 Miss America Pageants, replacing longtime host Bert Parks.
In the 1990s, Ely’s roles included a retired Superman in the 1991 two-part episode "The Road to Hell" of the Superboy syndicated television series, and a big game hunter named Gordon Shaw in the 1992 episode "Tarzan the Hunted" of the syndicated Tarzán TV series (starring Wolf Larson).
In recent years Ely has embarked on a successful writing career and has penned two mystery novels featuring private eye Jake Sands: Night Shadows (1994) and East Beach (1995). Until about 2001, Ely made appearances on popular TV shows, his most recent being Sheena and Renegade. He is now retired from acting.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Ron Ely, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Gender
Male
Birthday
June 21, 1938
Died
September 29, 2024
Birthplace
Hereford, Texas, USA
Also Known As
Tarzan: Lord of the Movies
2017
In Search of Tarzan with Jonathan Ross
1998
Tarzan's Jungle Rebellion
1967
Underground Entertainment: The Movie
2011
Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze
1975
Mitgift
1976
South Pacific
1958
Expecting Amish
2014
The Night of the Grizzly
1966
Once Before I Die
1966
Cry of the Black Wolves
1972
Slavers
1978
The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker
1959
Tarzan's Deadly Silence
1970
The Fiend Who Walked the West
1958
Alleluja & Sartana Are Sons... Sons of God
1972
The Mountains of the Moon
1967
Tarzan and the Perils of Charity Jones
1971
Tarzan at the Movies, Part 2: The Many Faces of Tarzan
1996
Tarzan and the Four O'Clock Army
1968
+ 1 more movies
The Love Boat
1977
The Love Boat
1977
The Love Boat
1977
Ironside
1967
L.A. Law
1986
Renegade
1992
Renegade
1992
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
1955
Thriller
1960
Matt Houston
1982
Wonder Woman
1975
Tarzan
1966
Sheena
2000
The Millionaire
1955
The Courtship of Eddie's Father
1969
The Aquanauts
1960
Stars in the Ring
1959
Blacke's Magic
1986
Steve Canyon
1958
The Hat Squad
1992
+ 3 more TV shows