At the end of the movie, Cheeta (who is an ape) drinks the elixir.
She does not turn into a baby chimp, she becomes a monkey with a tail.
The Fountain of Youth retards aging, it would not cause evolutionary regression.
The least that we can say is that feature is not the worst Tarzan adventure ever. Maybe not the best, but an interesting yarn.
Edgar Rice Burroughs' Ape Man creation had already seen some rocky cinematic days by the time "Tarzan's Magic Fountain" was released in 1949. Still, this inoffensive adventure will most likely placate fans of the series, particularly with Lex Barker making his debut in the leading role.
Tarzan's Magic Fountain which introduced Lex Barker to the role of Tarzan and marked Brenda Joyce's farewell performance as Jane was hardly a change from some of what the RKO Studio was doing with the franchise when Johnny Weissmuller was swinging on the vines at RKO. Tarzan's keeping secrets again even from Jane about yet another civilization lost in the jungle.
Lord of the jungle Lex Barker (as Tarzan) and beautiful blonde Brenda Joyce (as Jane) are given an old cigarette case and journal "Cheeta" the chimp finds while frolicking with a mate. They belong to famous pilot Evelyn Ankers (as Gloria James), who disappeared in a 1928 plane crash.
Tarzan learns that a female aviator who crashed in the jungle a couple of decades ago may hold the key to helping a man wrongly accused of a crime. Not only does Tarzan know the woman, he knows where to find her.
Tarzan's Magic Fountain (1949) ** 1/2 (out of 4) After Johnny Weissmuller walked away from the Tarzan series RKO was quick to replace him with Lex Barker and the first of the new series actually turned out to be a good little film. Tarzan (Barker) and Jane (Brenda Joyce) find a cigarette case, which just happens to belong to Gloria Jessup (Evelyn Ankers), a pilot who went missing twenty-years earlier.
The first Tarzan film minus Weissmulle,r and replaces him with Lex Barker as the new Tarzan. In this outing the Lord of the Apes finds a secret Valley where nobody ages, so it's basically "Lost Horizon" with more loincloths.
Anyone notice that Brenda Joyce looked a little heavy in this film?
TARZAN'S MAGIC FOUNTAIN (RKO Radio, 1949), directed by Lee Sholem, introduces Lex Barker to the role of Tarzan, and marks the fifth and final performance of blonde actress Brenda Joyce as Jane. With Lex Barker as a new Tarzan after 16 years and 12 installments starring Johnny Weissmuller at both MGM and RKO studios, this must have been a hard act to follow, especially for Barker, since comparisons are evident.
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