Johnny Weissmüller

Born

1904-06-02

Died

1984-01-20

Birthplace

Freidorf, Austria-Hungary [now Timisoara, Timis County, Romania]

Biography

Johnny Weissmuller (born Johann Peter Weißmüller; June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an Austro-Hungarian-born American swimmer and actor. Weissmuller was one of the world's best swimmers in the 1920s, winning five Olympic gold medals and one bronze medal. He won fifty-two US National Championships and set sixty-seven world records. After his swimming career, he became the sixth actor to portray Tarzan in films, a role he played in twelve motion pictures. Dozens of other actors have also played Tarzan, but Weissmuller is by far the best known. His character's distinctive, ululating Tarzan yell is still often used in films. Description above from the Wikipedia article Johnny Weissmuller, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.