Weissmuller, though, was good at wrestling alligators and a marvellous swimmer (a former Olympics champion).

ECONOMIST: Maureen O��Sullivan

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Johnny Weissmuller, Judy Collins, Jack Nicklaus, Dinah Shore, Alan Alda, Joni Mitchell and many more.

CNN: Amputees never say 'I can't'

Johnny Weissmuller, though, was hardly the Tarzan of the books, described as an English lord fluent in six languages.

ECONOMIST: Maureen O��Sullivan

But don't give up hope, America, because holy Johnny Weissmuller, look!

NPR: Mr. Phelps' Mission: Saving U.S. At The Olympics

His early speed inevitably took its toll but he was still able to churn through his last 100 in 56.08, quicker than Johnny "Tarzan" Weissmuller's time for his back-to-back 100 meters Olympic wins in the 1920s.

CNN: Records tumble at last day in pool