Celebrity Nooz: Ron Ely

Ron Ely - (Actor) Tarzan, Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze

Updated: 4/11/18

Name: Ron Ely

Birth Name: Ronald Pierce Ely

Born: June 21, 1938 in Hereford, Texas, USA

Claim To Fame: Ron Ely is an American actor and novelist best known for having portrayed the titular role on the 1966 NBC series Tarzan and for playing the lead in the film Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze.

Family Life: Ely has been married twice. First to Cathy Ely from 1959 to 1961, and then to former Miss Florida, Valerie Lundeen since 1984. They have three children, Kirsten, Kaitland, and Cameron.

Info: Won many of his screen roles due to his height (6'4") and athletic build.

Hosted a game show in the early 1980s called Face the Music (1979). A delightful trademark of his performance was his tendency to preface a statement to the contestants with the introductory identifier, "Contestants!"

Ely is also a published writer and has authored two mystery novels featuring private eye Jake Sands: Night Shadows (1994) and East Beach (1995).

Trivia: Attended The University of Texas at Austin in mid-1950s and was in ROTC.

Dated Ursula Andress in 1963/64.

Arguably the 15th screen Tarzan.

During his time on Tarzan, Ely did virtually all of his stunts, and suffered two dozen major injuries in the process, including two broken shoulders and various lion bites.

Where Are They Now: Ely has been cast as Ares in the upcoming film Mesopotamia (2018), which is currently in pre-production.

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