Zorro Rides Again

Infobox Film
name = Zorro Rides Again


image_size =
caption =
director = William Witney
John English
producer = Sol C. Siegel
writer = Franklin Adreon
Morgan Cox
Ronald Davidson
John Rathmell
Barry Shipman
Johnston McCulley "(original Zorro novel)"
narrator =
starring = John Carroll
Helen Christian
Reed Howes
Duncan Renaldo
Noah Beery
Richard Alexander
cinematography = William Nobles
music = Alberto Colombo
Walter Hirsch
Eddie Cherkose (aka Eddie Maxwell)
Lou Handman
distributor = Republic Pictures
editing = Helene Turner
Edward Todd
released = 20 November 1937 "(serial)"
22 September 1938 "(film)"
1950s "(TV)"
16 January 1959 "(film)"
runtime = 12 chapters (212 min)
country = USA
language = English
budget = $98,110 (negative cost: $110,753)
awards =
preceded_by =
followed_by = Zorro's Fighting Legion (1939)
website =
amg_id = 1:56205
imdb_id = 0029818

"Zorro Rides Again" (1937) is a 12-chapter Republic Movie serial. It was the eighth of the sixty-six Republic serials, the third with a western theme (a third of Republic's serials were westerns) and the last produced in 1937. The serial was directed by William Witney & John English and starred John Carroll as a modern descendant of the original Zorro. The plot is a fairly standard western storyline about a villain attempting to illicitly take valuable land (in this case a new railroad). The setting is a hybrid of modern (1930s) and western elements that was used occasionally in B-Westerns (such as the western feature films also produced by Republic).

Plot

In contemporary (for the 1937 production) California, villain "J. A. Marsden" aims to take over the California-Yucatan Railroad with the aid of his henchman "El Lobo". The rightful owners, "Joyce" and "Phillip Andrews", naturally object. Their parter, "Don Manuel Vega" summons his nephew, "James Vega", to help them as he is the great grandson of the original Zorro, Don Diego de la Vega. He is disappointed, however, to find that his nephew is a useless fop (presumably Don Manuel had not paid too much attention to his family history).

Nevertheless, James Vega installs himself in the original Zorro's hideout and adopts the Zorro identity to defeat Marsden and El Lobo.

Cast

Production

"Zorro Rides Again" was filmed between 8 September and 5 October 1937 under the working title "Mysterious Don Miguel". The sixth chapter was released to film exchanges on 20 November 1937 (recorded as the release date for the serial). The serial was re-edited into a 68-minute movie version which was released 22 September 1938 and re-released 16 January 1959. Additionally, the serial was re-edited into a television series of six 26½-minute episodes in the early 1950s.

The serial was budgetted for $98,110 but went over-budget. The final negative cost was $110,753, going over budget by $12,643 (12.9%). If it had remained on budget it would have been the cheapest Republic serial produced that year (and third cheapest since Republic began making serials) but as it was "The Painted Stallion" (the other western serial of 1937) was made for less at $109,164.

Chapter titles

#Death from the Sky "(29 min 41s)"
#The Fatal Minute "(18 min 1s)"
#Juggernaut "(16 min 18s)"
#Unmasked "(16 min 19s)"
#Sky Pirate "(16 min 54s)"
#The Fatal Shot "(16 min 32s)"
#Burning Embers "(15 min 30s)"
#Plunge of Peril "(17 min 10s)"
#Tunnel of Terror "(17 min 07s)"
#Trapped "(17 min 23s)"
#Right of Way "(15 min 47s)"
#Retribution "(15 min 47s)"

Clffhangers

#"Death from the Sky": Zorro, Joyce and Philip, aboard a train, are bombed from the air by El Lobo.
#"The Fatal Minute": Knocked unconscious in a warehouse, Zorro is caught in the detonation of a hidden bomb.
#"Juggernaut": Zorro's foot is caught in the tracks of a railroad, helpless before an oncoming Express Train.
#"Unmasked": Under cover of his heavies' guns, El Lobo reaches to remove Zorro's mask.
#"Sky Pirate": Zorro's plane comes under fire as it taxies for takeoff.
#"The Fatal Shot": Fighting Trelliger, Zorro falls to the courtyard. El Lobo pulls a gun on the prone vigilante.
#"Burning Embers": Zorro is caught in a burning building when the floor gives way beneath him.
#"Plunge of Peril": Attempting to escape on a funicualr railway, Zorro plummets down a cliff.
#"Tunnel of Terror": Zorro is trapped atop the carriage of a train as it enters a tunnel - which explodes.
#"Trapped": In a rooftop chase, Zorro loses his balance and falls from the skyscraper.
#"Right of Way": Zorro, in a truck, is set for a collision with El Lobo, in a train.

Trivia

* This Zorro uses twin pistols as his main weapons of choice, rather than a more traditional sword or whip.
* Despite being the same character and actor, the secret identity of the title character is extended to "Zorro" appearing separately to "James Vega" in the opening credits.

See also

*Zorro - Article about the character
*Zorro's Fighting Legion (1939) - A Later Zorro Movie Serial
*Zorro's Black Whip (1944) - A Later Zorro Movie Serial
*Son of Zorro (1947) - A Later Zorro Movie Serial
*Ghost of Zorro (1949) - A Later Zorro Movie Serial

References

*"Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement"; Mathis, Jack, 1995, ISBN 0-9632878-1-8
*

External links

*
* [http://www.serialexperience.com/showarticle.php?fldRecNum=196 Zorro Rides Again at Todd Gault's Movie Serial Experience]

###@@@KEY@@@###succession box
title=Republic Serial
before=S.O.S. Coast Guard (1937)
years=Zorro Rides Again (1937)
after=The Lone Ranger (1938)succession box
title=Zorro Serial
before="none"
years=Zorro Rides Again (1937)
after=Zorro's Fighting Legion (1939)succession box
title=Witney-English Serial
before="none"
years=Zorro Rides Again (1937)
after=The Lone Ranger (1938)