Product Description
-------------------
Out of the night, when the full moon is bright, comes the
horseman known as Zorro. Debuting October 10, 1957, Walt Disney's
thrilling series about the ed avenger was so successful, it
made Zorro a household name -- and quashed every series that went
up against it. Filled with action, adventure and suspense, this
volume presents the first season's 39 episodes (all newly
restored and remastered) in their original blakc-and-white
format. To enrich your experience of Disney's unforgettable
classic, this six-disc set also includes ZORRO: EL BANDIDO and
ZORRO: ADIOS EL CUCHILLO, the rarely seen two-part, one-hour
specials shown on Disney's anthology series, WALT DISNEY
PRESENTS. Then discover the many faces of Zorro from his literary
beginnings through the creation of the Disney TV series.
Featuring exclusive introductions by film historian Leonard
Maltin, this is a timeless collection from generations past for
generations to come.
.com
----
Like Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier, Disney's Zorro
transcends nostalgia. From the thrilling theme song ("Out of the
night / When the full moon is bright / Rides the horseman known
as Zorro….") to the lively fights and swashbuckling
derring-do, this rousing 1957 series has lost none of its
entertainment value for old or young. The 39-episode first
season, presented in glorious black and white and complete with
"be with us next week" teasers, unfolds in three story arcs. The
first, Zorro's origin story, is best. The setting is Spanish
California in 1820. Don Diego de la Vega (Guy Williams, like Fess
Parker, an unknown actor catapulted to icon status) has been
urgently summoned from Spain by his her to return home to
Pueblo de Los Angeles, where the tyrannical Capitan Monastario
has unleashed a reign of terror and injustice. Diego, a man of
action, passes himself off as a bookish man of letters and by
night dons a cape and to become the outlaw Zorro ("the
fox"), champion of the oppressed. The other two story arcs
concern a conspiracy to rule Southern California led by the
shadowy Eagle.
Zorro was Walt Disney's first prime-time half-hour series and it
benefits greatly from Disney's keen eye for casting, storytelling
genius, and high production values. The cast includes Henry
Calvin as the bumbling and rotund Sergeant Garcia and Gene
Sheldon as Diego's trusty, mute right-hand man Bernardo (the two
actors were later paired as the Laurel & Hardy-esque characters
in Disney's Babes in Toyland). Zorro deftly blends action and
comedy in its first season, with no mushy romance to slow things
down. The dialogue is at once kid-friendly (younger viewers may
appreciate it when in one episode Sergeant Garcia reads a Wanted
aloud), but not condescending. Diego/Zorro possesses a
rapier-like wit with which he handily disarms his foes.
This collectible Walt Disney Treasures set contains rarely seen
archival goodies and rarities, including a clip from a 1957
anniversary episode of the Disneyland TV series in which Walt
regales the Mouseketeers with a preview of Zorro. There is a
featurette about the Zorro legend and the enduring character's
various incarnations on the page and screen, and a new-to-home
video 1960 two-hour two-parter that features Rita Moreno and
Gilbert "The Cisco Kid" Roland as a dashing bandit leader. Fans
eager to savor "new dangers and new thrills in the adventurous
life of Zorro" should proceed directly to The Complete Second
Season. --Donald Liebenson