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Ron Ely
Ely as Doc Savage in 1975
Born	Ronald Pierce Ely (1938-06-21)June 21, 1938 Hereford, Texas, US
Died	September 29, 2024(2024-09-29) (aged 86) Los Alamos, California, US
Occupations	Actor novelist
Years active	1957–2001, 2014
Spouses	Helen Janet Triplet ​ ​(m. 1959; div. 1961)​ Valerie Lundeen ​ ​(m. 1984; died 2019)​
Children	3

Ronald Pierce Ely (June 21, 1938 – September 29, 2024) was an American actor and novelist, best known for portraying Tarzan in the 1966–1968 NBC series Tarzan and playing the lead role in the film Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze (1975). He hosted the Miss America pageant telecast in 1980 and 1981.

Career

Ely won the role of Tarzan in 1966 after playing supporting roles in films such as South Pacific (1958), as an airplane navigator, The Fiend Who Walked the West (1958) and The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker (1959).

During the filming of Tarzan, Ely did almost all of his own stunts, and received over two dozen injuries, including two broken shoulders and several lion bites.

Ely's height (6'4") and athletic build also won him the title role in the film Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze (1975), as well as various guest shots. He was in five episodes of the series Fantasy Island; in one, in 1978, he portrayed Mark Antony in a Roman military short tunic and breastplate and starred in the Wonder Woman two-part episode, "The Deadly Sting".

Ely starred on the series The Aquanauts in 1960–1961, in the western adventure film The Night of the Grizzly (1966) opposite Clint Walker, and later appeared in Jürgen Goslar's slavery movie Slavers (1978). In the 1980s, he hosted the musical game show Face the Music, as well as the 1980 and 1981 Miss America Pageants, replacing longtime host Bert Parks. He starred in a 1987–1988 revival of the 1960s adventure series Sea Hunt as Mike Nelson, the role played by Lloyd Bridges in the original series.

In the 1990s, Ely's roles included a retired alternate universe variant of Superman in the Superboy episode "The Road to Hell", and hunter Gordon Shaw in the Tarzán episode "Tarzan the Hunted". Until about 2001, he appeared on such shows as Sheena and Renegade. He wrote two mystery novels featuring private investigator Jake Sands: Night Shadows (1994) and East Beach (1995).

Ely retired from acting in 2001, returning with an appearance in the television film Expecting Amish (2014).

Personal life and death

Ely was born in Hereford, Texas on June 21, 1938 and raised in Amarillo. He married his high school sweetheart, Helen Janet Triplet, in 1959. Both natives of Hereford, Texas, they divorced in July 1961.

In 1984, Ely married Valerie Lundeen, who won the Miss Florida USA title in 1981, and they had three children.

Murder of wife and death of son

On October 15, 2019, Ely's son Cameron, then 30 years old, stabbed Valerie Ely to death at the family's home in Hope Ranch, California, a coastal residential community in Santa Barbara. Police officers were called to the scene for a "family disturbance" and killed Cameron Ely, claiming he posed a threat to officers.

The Santa Barbara district attorney ruled the police shooting a justifiable homicide. No charges were filed, and an attorney representing Ely disputed the police account of Cameron's death. An autopsy found Cameron was in the early stages of chronic traumatic encephalopathy before he died.

Death

Ely died at the home of one of his daughters in Los Alamos, California, on September 29, 2024, at age 86. His death was not announced until October 23, 2024.

Filmography

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Source:

Film

Television

References

1. ^ "Ron Ely: Woman found dead at Tarzan star's California home". BBC News. October 16, 2019.
2. ^ "'Tarzan' actor Ron Ely's wife killed; son shot by deputies". Associated Press. October 16, 2019.
3. Rutledge, Leigh W. (1989). The Gay Fireside Companion. Alyson Publications, Inc. p. 146. ISBN 978-1-55583-164-6.
4. "Our History | Miss America 2.0". Miss America. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
5. BnF catalog entry for Ron Ely. Bibliothèque nationale de France. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
6. "Aquanauts Diver Reaches Stardom in Short Time". Simpson's Leader-Times. Kittanning, Pennsylvania. February 11, 1961. p. 11.
7. ^ Farrell, Paul (October 16, 2019). "Valerie Lundeen, Ron Ely's Wife: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy.com. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
8. O'Neill, Natalie (October 16, 2019). "'Tarzan' actor Ron Ely's wife stabbed to death: reports". New York Post. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
9. Parker, Ryan (October 16, 2019). "Homicide Suspect Killed by Deputies in Home of 'Tarzan' Actor Ron Ely". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
10. Roberto, Melissa (October 16, 2020). "Ron Ely challenges Santa Barbara district attorney after fatal shooting of his son deemed 'justifiable'". Fox News. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
11. "No charges against sheriff's deputies who shot, killed son of 'Tarzan' actor Ron Ely in Santa Barbara County". ABC7 KABC. October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
12. Hayden, Tyler (October 7, 2020). "Don't Believe Your Ears in Ely Case, Authorities Say ― Believe the Deputies". The Santa Barbara Independent.
13. Dalton, Andrew (October 23, 2024). "Ron Ely, TV's 'Tarzan' in the 1960s, dies at 86". Associated Press. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
14. Risen, Clay (October 23, 2024). "Ron Ely, Who Played an Updated Tarzan in the 1960s, Dies at 86". The New York Times. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
15. Overhultz, Lauryn (October 23, 2024). "'Tarzan' star Ron Ely dead at 86". Fox News. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
16. Barnes, Mike (October 23, 2024). "Ron Ely, Star of the First Tarzan Series for Television, Dies at 86". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
17. Sheffield, Taria (October 23, 2024). "Ron Ely, Star of Tarzan Series, Dies at 86, 5 Years After the Shocking Death of His Wife and Son". People.
18. "Ron Ely". TVGuide.com. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
19. "Face the Music". IMDb.

External links

• Ron Ely at IMDb
• Ron Ely at Brian's Drive-In Theater
• "Ron Ely looks back at Tarzan". Daily Express. April 7, 2013. Archived from the original on December 20, 2019.
• Ron Ely discography at Discogs

• 1938 births
• 2024 deaths
• 20th-century American male actors
• 20th-century American male writers
• 20th-century American novelists
• 21st-century American male actors
• Amarillo High School alumni
• American game show hosts
• American male film actors
• American male novelists
• American male television actors
• Male actors from Texas
• People from Amarillo, Texas