One of the the triumphs of Fury s book is the fact that we come to see clearly that his personal stature expanded a fictional legend into a real one. We cannot imagine Tarzan without Weissmuller. He truly set the mark by which all other Tarzans pale in the shadow of this great, heroic American. Fury s skill as a biographer improves with every book he writes. The depth of detail and understanding displayed in this Weissmuller book is overwhelming.
Fury leaves no stone unturned.
By the time you are finished reading Twice a Hero you feel you have lived next to this man from childhood to the grave, and that is the goal every biographer wishes to attain. Johnny moved into his Tarzan role as smoothly as he cleaved the water. He hydroplaned over the critics despite his lack of training as an actor because he was a natural for the role. His cat-like grace of movement made everyone else seem stiff and formal, which acting still largely was in the 1930 s. He could stand almost naked with comfort amongst a group of people in clothing because as a swimmer he had done this most of his life.