`TARZAN' SWINGS ONTO THE SCREEN AGAIN : TARZAN ADVENTURES.

Byline: Nancy Hewitt Daily News Staff Writer

Tarzan lives.

Edgar Rice Burroughs would be astounded - and pleased - that the fictional character he created in 1912 has endured for so long.

In fact, his Tarzan character is so popular worldwide that AMC, one of TV's biggest cable networks, has put together a three-day marathon of 32 Tarzan films, as well as a one-hour documentary, ``Investigating Tarzan,'' beginning Friday and ending Monday. Brendan Fraser - star of the upcoming Disney feature ``George of the Jungle'' - is the host.

According to producer Nathalie Barton, the documentary looks at all the forms Tarzan has taken, including books, comic books, serials, films, television series, art, radio and fan conventions.

Early films of Tarzan depicted the character as simple. ``The Hollywood Tarzan was not like the real character (Burroughs created),'' Barton said. ``There's more originality and more depth to the real Tarzan. (Burroughs' character) was brilliantly taught, self-taught, multilingual. He had a sense of ecology. He could talk to the animals.''

George McWhorter, curator of the Edgar Rice Burroughs Memorial Collection at the University of Louisville in Louisville, Ky., agreed with Barton's assessment.

``The movies are not what Burroughs wrote,'' he explained. ``They represented what the film industry was able to accomplish on celluloid. They made Tarzan - who is multilingual - speak in monosyllables: `Me, Tarzan. You, Jane.'''

The documentary also features anecdotes from some of the Tarzans and Janes of the screen, including Gordon Scott, Denny Miller, Herman Brix, Maureen O'Sullivan and the late Johnny Weissmuller.

Miller, who played Tarzan in the 1959 remake of ``Tarzan, the Ape Man'' has a certain fondness for the role fans still remember after 38 years. ``It was like going to the circus,'' he recalled of his time spent making the film. ``It was such a joy. For the last 15 years I've had EX-TARZAN on my (car) license plate.''

An important part of uncovering the appeal of Tarzan came from street interviews with people in Canada, the U.S. and France. ``Everyone knows Tarzan,'' Barton said. ``We all have our own associations with him. For some, it's harmony with nature or his love of animals. Then there are the issues of racism and sexism.''

In ``Investigating Tarzan,'' a young African-American woman said she thought Tarzan was the ``white fantasy.'' An African man remarked: ``Tarzan is unbelievable and gives the wrong impression of Africa.'' However, most of the people interviewed agreed that Tarzan had a special place in their lives because he was a real hero.

When: 5 p.m. June 6 through 1:15 a.m. June 9

Network: AMC

Host: Brendan Fraser

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Photo: (1-3--Color) A-A-A-A-A-A! TARZAN SWINGS THROUGH THE YEARS IN AMC MARATHON