Ron Ely, TV’s ‘Tarzan,’ Dies At 86

Ron Ely, who is remembered for headlining the action/adventure Tarzan on NBC from 1966-68, has died at the age of 86. The cause of his passing has not be announced.

"The world has lost one of the greatest men it has ever known – and I have lost my dad," Ely’s daughter, Kirsten, said in a statement. "My father was someone that people called a hero. He was an actor, writer, coach, mentor, family man and leader. He created a powerful wave of positive influence wherever he went. The impact he had on others is something that I have never witnessed in any other person – there was something truly magical about him. This is how the world knew him."

"I knew him as my dad – and what a heaven sent honor that has been. To me, he hung the moon,” she wrote.

Born June 21, 1938, Ely snagged the part of Tarzan after playing supporting roles in films such as South Pacific (1958), The Fiend Who Walked the West (1958), and The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker (1959). He bowed on television as a guest star in multiple series in 1959, including comedies Father Knows Best, How to Marry a Millionaire and The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, and the drama Steve Canyon.

Prior to Tarzan, Ely’s first regularly scheduled series role was in the one season action/adventure The Aquanauts from 1961-62. But it was Tarzan beginning in 1966 that cemented Ely’s place in pop culture.

Ely also appeared in the film The Night of the Grizzly opposite Clint Walker in 1966, and made the rounds as a guest star post-Tarzan in TV series like The Courtship of Eddie’s Father, Ironside, Marcus Welby. M.D., and The Love Boat. In 1978, he had a role in the film Slavers in 1978, and he segued into host of the game show Face the Music as well as the Miss America Pageant in 1980 and 1981, respectively, replacing Bert Parks.

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Ely returned to the action/adventure genre on television in the revival of Sea Hunt from 1987-88.

Later guest appearances included episodes of Superboy, The Hat Squad, Renegade and Sheena. His final on screen appearance was in the TV film Expecting Amish in 2014.

Ely is survived by his daughter, Kirstin. In 2019, his son, Cameron, was shot and killed by Santa Barbara County sheriff's deputies after allegedly stabbing his mother, Ely’s wife, to death.