Released as a 15-chapter serial in 1928 by Universal Pictures, Tarzan the Mighty starred Frank Merrill as Tarzan and Natalie Kingston as Mary Trevor. Louise Lorraine would appear as the traditional Jane in the follow-up serial the following year, Tarzan the Tiger. Tarzan the Mighty is now considered a lost film. However, to publicize the serial, a novelization of the complete serial was written and published in newspapers across the country. The author, Arthur B. Reeve, is best known for his American Detective, Craig Kennedy, who was a contemporary and legitimate equal to Sherlock Holmes.