Disney aggressively trademarked the iconic auditory sequence of the Tarzan yell, making it one of the few entirely sound-based trademarks recognized by the federal government.

A closer look

Disney aggressively trademarked the iconic auditory sequence of the Tarzan yell, making it one of the few entirely sound-based trademarks recognized by the federal government. The estate of Edgar Rice Burroughs initially tried to lock down the legal ownership of a man screaming in the jungle, but trademark offices rejected it because you supposedly cannot own a screeching vocalization. Disney, armed with an army of terrifyingly competent corporate lawyers and a highly expensive studio synthesizer, managed to legally copyright the specific audio file from their 1999 animated movie, effectively monopolizing a jungle scream. It is a bleak, profoundly cynical reminder that mega-corporations will literally commodify the primal noises of the human vocal cords if they genuinely think it will stop a competitor from selling an unlicensed plastic lunchbox!