Jad-bal-ja, the Golden Lion is a fictional character in

Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American writer, best known for his prolific output in the adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Best known for creating the characters Tarzan (who appeared in ...

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, a feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer. Creat ...

novels, and in adaptations of the saga to other media, particularly comics.

Character

Jad-bal-ja serves as a companion to Tarzan, to whom he is attached as a dog is to its master, sometimes hunting for him and at other times fighting by his side, rescuing him from peril, or protecting his friends or allies from danger. He is portrayed as especially close to Nkima, the monkey who served as Tarzan's other primary animal companion.

In the Tarzan novels

Jad-bal-ja first appears in the ninth Tarzan novel, '' Tarzan and the Golden Lion'' (1922 serial, 1923 novel), in which the ape-man discovers him as an orphaned cub and raises and trains him. He is named for the color of his coat, Jad-bal-ja meaning "the golden lion" in the language of Pal-ul-don, a prehistoric lost land visited by Tarzan in the previous novel, '' Tarzan the Terrible'' (1921). Jad-bal-ja goes on to play a prominent part in the novel in which he is introduced, and re-appears in the tenth Tarzan novel (1924's ''

Tarzan and the Ant Men ''Tarzan and the Ant Men'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the tenth in his Tarzan (book series), series of twenty-four books about the jungle hero Tarzan. It was first published as a seven-part serial in the magazine ''Argosy ...

''); the eleventh (1927's ''

Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle ''Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle'' is an American animated series created by the Filmation studio for Saturday mornings on CBS, starting in 1976. This was the first animated series about the jungle hero. There are 36 episodes produced over four seas ...

''); the fourteenth (1930's ''

Tarzan the Invincible ''Tarzan the Invincible'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, the fourteenth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan. The novel was originally serialized in the magazine '' Blue Book'' from October, ...

''); the sixteenth (1932's '' Tarzan and the City of Gold'', in which he saves Tarzan from certain death at the jaws of another lion); the seventeenth (1938's '' Tarzan and the Lion Man'', in which he finds a mate); and the twenty-sixth (1995's '' Tarzan: the Lost Adventure''). Jad-bal-ja is also featured in the 1936 children's story, " Tarzan and the Tarzan Twins, with Jad-bal-ja, the Golden Lion".

In other media

The character of Jad-bal-ja also appears in the Tarzan comic strip and comic books, both in adaptations of the original novels and in stories newly written for the medium. He has had one film appearance, in the 1927 silent movie '' Tarzan and the Golden Lion'', an adaptation of the novel. He also appears as a recurring character in

Filmation Filmation Associates was an American production company founded by Lou Scheimer, Hal Sutherland and Norm Prescott in 1962, before closing by Group W Productions on February 3, 1989. Located in Reseda, California, Filmation produced animated ...

's animated series ''

'' (1976–1981).

References

* Brady, Clark A. ''The Burroughs Cyclopǣdia''. McFarland & Company, Jefferson, NC, c1996, pp. 156–157. * Ullery, David A. ''The Tarzan Novels of Edgar Rice Burroughs: An Illustrated Reader's Guide''. McFarland & Company, Jefferson, NC, 2001, pp. 170–172. Lions in literature Fictional lions Orphan characters in literature Tarzan characters Characters in fantasy literature Characters in American novels of the 20th century Literary characters introduced in 1922 {{fantasy-char-stub