Dynamite Entertainment to Produce Zorro Comic Book Series
March 21, 2007 Runnemede, NJ - Zorro Productions, Inc. and Dynamite Entertainment are proud to announce the signing of an agreement that will allow for Dynamite to create a new comic book series featuring Zorro! The new Dynamite series will feature not only the masked hero, but also the incredible cast of characters from the venerable Zorro franchise, including fan favorite Lady Rawhide. The agreement allows for Dynamite to also produce a separate Lady Rawhide comic book series.
Created by pulp writer Johnston McCulley, Zorro made his appearance in The Curse of Capistrano, serialized in the pulp magazine All-Story Weekly in 1919. Zorro is a master swordsman who cleverly uses sword, whip and acrobatic skills to defend oppressed people living in the Spanish-era California of the early 1800's. After Zorro's first heroic adventure he became a regular feature in numerous pulp fiction magazines including West and Argosy. His immediate popularity led to Zorro's transition to the silver screen, starring in the the silent film The Mark of Zorro (1920) starring Douglas Fairbanks. Since then, Zorro has been the featured in numerous feature films, television programs, comic books, novels and more. Most recently Zorro has been portrayed by Sir Anthony Hopkins and Antonio Banderas in The Mask of Zorro (1998) and the sequel The Legend of Zorro (2005), with Antonio Banderas.
Dynamite stated, "To have the opportunity to add another powerful, iconic character to our line up is an absolute honor. Taking into consideration the awesome response we've received from our revival of other existing characters and creating high profile comics fans enjoy, this is definitely exciting news. We're speaking with creative teams now, and will make announcements in the near future. Zorro is noted is as one of the earliest ancestors of the modern masked marvels in comics and movies today, and we're certain fans are truly going to enjoy delving into the adventures of one the very first super heroes."
"We're delighted to be partnering with Dynamite for a new Zorro comic series," noted John Gertz, President of Zorro Productions. "Throughout the life of the character, there has been a continual interplay between the printed page and the iconic image of the character. The comic book renditions of Zorro have been an arena for exploration, imagination, and the development of unique storylines and characters. We look forward to that tradition continuing in Dynamites creative hands."
The agreement also allows Dynamite to create fine art and posters, collections of existing material, statues, and other high end collectibles. Details on the creative team and scheduling for the series will be released in the coming weeks.
