Zorro

Zorro, the masked avenger of the Old Southwest, has been one of the most popular heroic figures of the twentieth century. The character, created by Johnston McCulley (1883–1958) in 1919, first appeared in a story titled "The Curse of Capistrano" in the pulp magazine All-Story Weekly. El Zorro ("The Fox") dressed completely in black and wore a mask and a wide-brimmed hat to conceal his identity as he fought evildoers in nineteenth-century California. He rode a jet-black horse named Tornado and was a master with both sword and whip. His trademark was to carve a "Z" with his blade upon his enemies. Without his costume, Zorro was the wealthy Spanish count Don Diego, who assumed a foppish manner to conceal his secret identity. (A fop is a man who is overly concerned about his looks and his clothes.) Zorro's adventures have thrilled Americans for generations as he has appeared in novels, film, television (see entry under 1940s—TV and Radio in volume 3), and cartoons, as well as in a multitude of merchandise and collectibles.

Zorro emerged from pulp magazines (see entry under 1930s—Print Culture in volume 2) to become a national phenomenon. Readers loved the swashbuckler as he displayed a devil-may-care attitude, great swordsmanship, and compassion for the oppressed (mistreated). McCulley penned sixty-five of the hero's adventures over nearly forty years. Zorro was successful in print, but he was even more popular on film. Douglas Fairbanks Sr. (1883–1939) first portrayed him in The Mark of Zorro (1920) to great acclaim. Numerous Zorro films and serials appeared into the 1970s. Perhaps the most popular depiction of Zorro was in the 1940 version of The Mark of Zorro. Actor Tyrone Power (1914–1958) perfectly characterized both the weak Don Diego and bold hero Zorro.

Zorro was also often featured on television. Disney produced a Zorro series in the 1950s starring Guy Williams (1924–1989) that sparked a bonanza of merchandise. In 1980, George Hamilton (1939–) appeared in the campy Zorro, The Gay Blade. The film showed Zorro wearing a pink leather costume and was a complete disaster. Between 1989 and 1994, Duncan Regehr (1952–) appeared as the swordsman. The 1980s and 1990s further witnessed several animated Zorro programs. In 1998, Zorro again dominated the national consciousness when Anthony Hopkins (1937–) and Antonio Banderas (1960–) starred in The Mask of Zorro, which introduced the character to another generation of fans.

Zorro was one of the twentieth century's first popular heroic icons. He is a dashing, gentleman bandit who performs heroic feats, woos lovely ladies, and fights corruption—all with a charming elegance and flashing blade. Dozens of heroic characters, most notably Batman (see entry under 1930s—Print Culture in volume 2), have followed the pattern established by McCulley's masked daredevil.

—Charles Coletta

For More Information

Curtis, Sandra. Zorro Unmasked: The Official History. New York: Hyperion, 1998.

Hutchinson, Don. The Great Pulp Heroes. Buffalo: Mosaic Press, 1996.

McCulley, Johnston. The Mark of Zorro. New York: American Reprint Co., 1924, 1976.

Toth, Alex. Zorro: The Complete Classic Adventures. Forestville, CA: Eclipse Books, 1988.