ZORRO'S FIGHTING LEGIONS (1939) Reed Hadley & Sheila Darcy | Action, Adventure, Drama | B&W

Zorro's Fighting Legion is a 1939 Republic Pictures film serial consisting of twelve chapters starring Reed Hadley as Zorro and directed by William Witney and John English. The plot revolves around his alter-ego Don Diego's fight against the evil Don Del Oro.

SYNOPSIS
The masked hero leads a fighting force to fight a villian who plots the conquest of The Republic of Mexico.

The mysterious Don Del Oro ("Lord of Gold"), an idol of the Yaqui, emerges and attacks the gold trade of the Republic of Mexico, intent on becoming Emperor. A man named Francisco is put in charge of a fighting legion to combat the Yaqui tribe and protect the gold; he is attacked by men working for Don Del Oro. Francisco's partner recognizes Zorro as the hidalgo Don Diego Vega. Francisco asks Diego, as Zorro, to take over the fighting legion and defeat Don Del Oro.

CAST & CREW
Reed Hadley as Don Diego Vega/Zorro
Sheila Darcy as Volita
William Corson as Ramón
Leander De Cordova as Governor Felipe
Edmund Cobb as Manuel González
John Merton as Comandante Manuel
C. Montague Shaw as Chief Justice Pablo/Don Del Oro
Budd Buster as Juan
Carleton Young as Benito Juárez
Bud Geary as Don Del Oro (body and voice)

Directed by William Witney, John English
Written by Ronald Davidson, Franklin Adreon, Morgan Cox
Sol Shor, Barney A. Sarecky, Johnston McCulley (Original Zorro Novel)
Produced by Hiram S. Brown Jr
Cinematography Reggie Lanning
Distributed by Republic Pictures
Release date December 16, 1939
Running time 12 chapters (211 minutes) (serial), 6 26½-minute episodes (TV)
Language English
Budget $137,826 (negative cost: $144,419)

NOTES
The serial is unusual in featuring a real historical personage, Mexican President Benito Juárez, as a minor character. It is the second in a series of five Zorro serials: Zorro Rides Again (1937), Zorro's Black Whip (1944), Son of Zorro (1947) and Ghost of Zorro (1949).

Though there were numerous Zorro serials, Reed Hadley was the only actor to play the original Zorro in any of them.

Zorro's Fighting Legion's official release date is 16 December 1939, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges. The serial was re-released on 24 March 1958, making it the last serial released by Republic, which re-released serials for several years following the release of their final serial King of the Carnival in 1955.

In the early 1950s, Zorro's Fighting Legion was one of fourteen Republic serials edited into a television series. It was broadcast in six 26½-minute episodes.

Differences from the Zorro canon
The story takes a few liberties with Zorro's official timeline: it takes place in Mexico instead of Alta California; Zorro wears a masquerade mask, rather than the traditional bandana; the characters Don Alejandro Vega (Don Diego's father) and Bernardo are absent; and Zorro's horse, Tornado, was changed to white (much like Kaiketsu Zorro). However, this story is presented as a further adventure of Zorro, a sequel to the traditional "Mark of Zorro" origin story originally starring Douglas Fairbanks and Noah Beery Sr., which would be remade the year after Zorro's Fighting Legion with Tyrone Power and Basil Rathbone: Don Diego is said to be visiting from Los Angeles, and the serial intentionally did not remake the Zorro story; instead, it shows Zorro visiting Mexico because his help is needed there. The people of Mexico immediately recognize Zorro when he first appears, strongly suggesting that Zorro is a well-known hero.

The date given for the movie is 1824, which in and of itself establishes that it takes place well after Zorro's California adventures: Zorro opposed a corrupt Spanish Colonial government in his canon tales, and California ceased being a Spanish Colony in 1821.

Chapter titles
The Golden God
The Flaming "Z"
Descending Doom
The Bridge of Peril
The Decoy
Zorro to the Rescue
The Fugitive
Flowing Death
The Golden Arrow
Mystery Wagon
Face to Face
Unmasked