As a kid, Friday nights were great fun. My Mom and Dad had a standing date night, so my Aunt Margaret would babysit my brother Colin and me. She was a wonderfully caring person. She was always kind to us. But more importantly, she’d take us out for hamburgers.

In upstate NY, there was McDonald’s-like hamburger chain called Carrol’s. Eating their thin burgers and greasy fries was like an Olympic sport that my brother and I wanted to train for. Maaaaan…that was livin’!

(It’s not really part of this story, but for a stretch of time Carrol’s sold Classics Illustrated comic books. Once in a while, you’ll find one of these comics with a Carrol’s price tag still on stuck on the cover. I assume they bought them in bulk and sold them as promotional items.)

Aunt Margaret would get us home in time to watch the new Tarzan show that started at 7:30 pm. (Network TV started earlier back then.) Those were glorious times, and we had a surfeit of riches – Tarzan was surrounded by and competed with soon-to-be classics like Star Trek, The Green Hornet, and Time Tunnel.

Tarzan was played by Ron Ely, a lanky, good-looking actor who mixed charm and gravitas to become the perfect hero and role model to young boys. In this version of Tarzan, all that mushy stuff was gone. There was no romance and no Jane. Gone too was so much of the Edgar Rice Burroughs’ trappings.

(It wouldn’t be until I saw the Filmation Tarzan and jumped into the books in sixth grade that I understood why Tarzan was such a beloved and enduring property.)

Ron Ely, as Tarzan, was kind and patient. He was a mix of a superhero and a local gym teacher. He was confident and focused. As he’d accomplish one amazing task after another, without bluster or fanfare, we just knew that this was how you were supposed to behave as a grown-up. Helpful, selfless, and modest. He was a lot like my Dad too, but Dad wore more than a loincloth. And in fact, my dad and Ron Ely were the same age.

Ely also played other favorite heroes, including Doc Savage and Superman, with mixed results. But it didn’t matter to me and the generation of kids my age. We were in awe of his version of Tarzan. Ron Ely’s personal charisma seemed to be channeled in a way that we all felt encouraged and cheered on.

Meeting Ely, albeit briefly, at San Diego Comic-Con a few years ago was such a treat. I will admit I was bit starstruck.

The news just broke that Ron Ely passed away last month. The Hollywood Reporter has a good write-up here.

This year we lost both my Aunt Margaret and my Dad. And now Ron Ely. Sad for a sixties kid like me, but I was so blessed to have them all in my life. So many great times, so many great role models. Maaaaan….that was livin’.