The Works of Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950) Last Updated November 2004

ERB significant refs to his life and works:

  1999 book "TARZAN FOREVER" 
                      The Life of Edgar Rice Burroughs
                      Creator of Tarzan
                      by: JOHN TALIAFERRO
 
  1996 book "EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS' FANTASTIC WORLDS"
                      presented by: JAMES VAN HISE

  1975 book "EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS "
                     The Man Who Created Tarzan 
                      by: IRWIN PORGES  (1310 pages)

  1975 book "A Guide To Barsoom"
                     Eleven sections of references in one
                     volume dealing the martian stories
                     written by Edgar Rice Burroughs
                     by: John Flint Roy (200 pages)




Ghek comments on some of ERB's works:

The Mad King, one of ERB's masterworks, is obviously inspired by Anthony Hope's "Prisoner of Zenda" and its sequel "Rupert of Hentzau". The Mad King is much more fun and has a much better ending from a romance point of view. One can get a real feel for his talents by reading Zenda/Hentzau and then the Mad King...The point is that ERB can start with an origional idea or one of someone elses and most of the time come up with another great novel. Over 90% of his novels are good stuff and about 50% are fantastic! He wrote two other tales of royal offspring in tiny european nations: "The Rider" and "The Lad and the Lion". He also wrote about one of Englands lost royal son's in "The Outlaw of Torn", which I consider one of the most wonderful works considering love and friendship. Others might call it a great study of hatred and revenge, or leadership and courage. Set during the war of the roses, it could have been the start of another series in my opinion...ERB researched some periods like this one a great deal and could have easily produced sequels. He also tried an earlier period with the son of a briish leader being taken to rome as a slave of a roman emperor in "I am a Barbarian". But the novels that became great series were about "supermen" and/or fantastic places, ie: Tarzan of the apes(24 books) , John Carter of Mars(11), Carson Napier of Venus(5), David Innes of Pellucedar (inner earth)(7)...He planned another series starting with a mysteriously transported earthman in "Beyond the Farthest Star". A wonderful adventure with many political overtones on a planet that has been at war for generations, and surprise, it is one of several planets that share an orbit and a common air corridor which would allow airplane flight from one planet to another!!!

Barsoom Games on the Computer

Just as there have been no John Carter of Mars movies made yet (at least now the tech is around to do it right! Actually "A Princess of Mars" will be out in 2006!) no Barsoomian computer games have been made. A barsoomian online massive multiplayer graphical game would be nice, it would be almost perfect for that since its full of opportunities for fighting, quests, and heroism. To fill the gap, I have created 4 barsoomian scnarios for a pc game called Empire Deluxe which came out in the early 1990's. (I'm working on a 5th one that will include info from Tarzan On Mars..and its done now in 2011.) Yes, you can conquer Mars!!! You can control the mighty navy of Helium or the Black Pirates of Barsoom, or the Green Martion hordes, or Hormads from the vat, or the high tech ships of Jahar, or Sasoom invaders, or the unfrozen pathans of Panar.or the Holy Thern Jihad of Issus...or sit back and watch them fight it out with the computer controlling all sides...Included in Barsoom.zip is an accurate ingame map of Barsoom, ship and other unit names drawn from the books...Empire Deluxe is needed to play the scenarios or create your own with the map! (WWII style units - ships, planes, armys, tanks.. with cities to control, productions choices, various types of terrain, exploration rules, automated patrolling, prduction routing, auto pathing.) [I have no connection with Killerbee software, but I notice that they have had my scnarios and many others available for download for years. Currently they are finishing up an Internet version of Empire Deluxe which would allow you to conquer mars with/against your friends over the internet!!!]






Things look grim for Greater and Lesser Helium on turn one, can Heliums might battleships fight their way free before the city surrenders to an infantry or horse (tank) unit? (designer view)


Looks grim for helium

Note the unusual rock formation (ERB) below


ERB rock formation

How I came to be called Ghek and where it has taken me

Set the way back machine to the early 1960's, I was five years old. My father bought the hardback sized picturecover "Tarzan of the Apes" (green) and "The Return of Tarzan" (blue)....and gave them to my older sister and I. They were the first non-childrens books that I read and the first novels as well. A few months after reading them, I(we) got to talk to Johnny Weissemuller at a car dealership in the ancient dead seabottom of Kansas....thus, my journey to the many worlds of ERB, had truely begun....and still no end in sight! In my teens, my sisters and I liked to chain read the Tarzan and Barsoomian series.....In sequence, read book 1, pass to little sister1, read book 2, pass it on..etc.....Barsoom in a weekend, Tarzan in a week. In the early 1980's chatting on the linked Calfifonia State Universitiy computers using $TALK, I needed a handle. I chose "Ghek the Kaldane" and still use it today. (I was already naming my prgramming assignments after the red martian names for planets: Jasoom1, Jasoom2..)....In 1991, I started up a one phone line bbs in Sacramento, it needed a name. Where else would Ghek live but...BANTOOM BBS.....(Theme songs: Oingo Boingo's "Dead Man's Party" and Mary Hopkin's "Those were the Days"....Private mail section "Martian Rural Route One")...linked with Citadel boards arcoss the nation, I could discuss things with people in New Jersey, allowing a couple of days for replys. Locally popular with computer hobbists, college students, high schoolers, and WOW Lazer Tag players (I ran the SMULTG league for several years). Which lead in the late '90's to BANTOOM.COM. Currently, Ghek Dekaldane is a 50+ level dwarf paladin in Everquest on the Tribunal server ,and he is also a top twenty Space Marines 5 player in the monday night league at Lazer Force. ERB fan wise I have only made it to the 38th DumDum in La circa 1999...and ECOF '04 in Sacramento......I keep meaning to join fan assciations and then not quite getting around to it. I have joined the ERB ECOF listserver and enjoy the emails.


ghek and metrobabe at ecof04


Dick and Pat Lupoff 

Above: Dick and  Pat Lupoff

     Below: Ghek picking pictures for Lydie Denier (Jane) to autograph


Below: Lydie Denier at head table with special escorts (left) Henry Frank and (right) Jerry O~Hara(?)


Lydie trying to eat
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