A Post for World Book Day

So, today's World Book Day, and I've got a report looming over me like the anvil suspended over my head. Well, I have a moment, so I want to take the time to do a book review.

When I started writing, I wanted to do something reminiscent of the old pulp magazines. With that in mind, I'd like to talk about one of my favourite pulp tales; Johnston McCulley's The Curse of Capistrano, also known as The Mark of Zorro. First written in 1919 and serialised in All Story Weekly, it was the debut of the masked swashbuckler made popular by Antonio Banderas.

Most people know who Zorro is, but if you don't, here's a brief summary: Don Diego Vega is a Spanish nobleman living in California during the early 19th Century. To most people, he's a lazy fop who detests any form of physical activity. However, this is all a façade, as he secretly assumes the persona of Señor Zorro (Mr Fox), a masked swordsman who protects the oppressed while fighting corruption and injustice.

The original story follows Diego as he tries to win the heart of Lolita Pulida, the daughter of an impoverished noble, while she is attracted to Zorro. Also present is Captain Ramon, the local military commander, and his underling Sergeant Gonzales, a friend of Diego who is determined to find Zorro. On top of that, Zorro is often appearing to punish anybody in power who abuse others.

The story has plenty of swashbuckling action and heroics, along with a surprisingly tight ending. In fact, McCulley only intended to write one story. It was Douglas Fairbanks who popularised the story by starring in the 1920 silent film, The Mark of Zorro. The success brought Zorro into the popular culture, with McCulley writing more adventures between 1922 up until his death in 1958. While that was going on, his hero was appearing in numerous serials, TV shows, and more film adaptations, including a sound remake of the Douglas Fairbanks film in 1940, and the more well-known 1998 film, The Mask of Zorro. I saw that again recently, and it holds up really well.

Like most pulp characters, the continuity is very loose. The original stories take place during the period when California was part of Mexico, but some versions take place slightly earlier, when it was still under Spanish rule. Other versions of the story establish him as a legacy character. For example, the 1937 serial Zorro Rides Again takes place in a contemporary setting, with the persona assumed by Diego's great-grandson James Vega. The Republic serials are available on YouTube, and are quite entertaining. The two I recommend are Zorro Rides Again and Zorro's Fighting Legion.

While most of the other stories are quite hard to find, the original story is public domain, and available here: https://archive.org/details/markzorro