1820s California, in a bygone era of sprawling haciendas and haughty caballeros, suffers beneath the whip of oppression. Missions are pillaged, native peasants are abused, and innocent men and women are persecuted by the corrupt governor and his army. But a champion of freedom rides the highways. His identity hidden behind a mask, the laughing outlaw Zorro defies the tyrant’s might. A deadly marksman and a demon swordsman, his flashing blade strikes down those who exploit the poor and oppressed.
First published in 1919, The Mark of Zorro remains a paradigm of swashbuckling adventure and a popular novel to this day.
Johnston McCulley (1883–1958) created his most famous character, Zorro, in 1919. He was the author of hundreds of stories, fifty novels, and numerous screenplays for film and television. He wrote sixty Zorro stories during his career.
Armando Duran has appeared in films, television, and regional theaters throughout the West Coast. For the last decade he has been a member of the repertory acting company at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. A native Californian, he divides his time between Los Angeles and Ashland, Oregon.