The New Adventures of Zorro (1981 TV series) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The New Adventures of Zorro (1981) |
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Genre | Animation |
Created by | Johnston McCulley (characters) |
Written by |
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Voices of |
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Theme music composer |
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Composer(s) | |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 13 |
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Producer(s) |
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Editor(s) |
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Production company(s) | Filmation |
Distributor | CBS Television Distribution |
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Original network | CBS |
Original release | September 12 – December 5, 1981 |
The New Adventures of Zorro is an exciting animated TV show from the United States. It was made by a company called Filmation in 1981. This series has 13 episodes and is based on the famous hero, Zorro. Zorro is a fictional character created by Johnston McCulley.
The show was part of a bigger TV block called The Tarzan/Lone Ranger/Zorro Adventure Hour. Interestingly, this was the only series where Filmation hired an outside studio, Tokyo Movie Shinsha in Japan, to do the animation. Filmation usually did all their animation themselves.
Contents
Meet the Characters
This section introduces the main characters and their roles in the story.
Zorro's Secret Identity
The main hero is Don Diego de la Vega. He is a young man from a rich family in Los Angeles. Don Diego has a secret identity: he is Zorro! Zorro fights against unfair rulers and helps people.
Zorro has a loyal black horse named Tempest. He also has a young helper named Miguel. Miguel is a skilled swordsman. He wears a disguise similar to Zorro's, but in different colors. Miguel rides a horse called a Palomino.
Zorro's Enemies
Ramón is the captain of the local army. He is Zorro's main enemy and tries to catch him. Captain Ramón gets help from González. Sergeant González is a bit silly, but he is friends with Don Diego's family. This character was in the original Zorro stories.
Voice Actors
Here are the talented people who gave voices to the characters in the show:
- Henry Darrow as Zorro
- Julio Medina as Miguel
- Don Diamond as Gonzales
- Eric Mason as Ramon
- Christine Avila as Maria
- Socorro Valdez as Lucia
- Carlos Rivas as Don Alejandro
- Ismael 'East' Carlo as Fray Gaspar
Episode Guide
There are 13 episodes in The New Adventures of Zorro. Each one tells a new story about Zorro's adventures.
No. | Title | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
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1 | "Three Is a Crowd" | Arthur Browne Jr. | September 12, 1981 | 101 |
Zorro tries to get back tax money from pirates. But then more thieves show up, making things even harder for Zorro.
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2 | "Flash Flood" | Arthur Browne Jr. | September 19, 1981 | 102 |
Zorro must stop a dam from breaking and flooding the land. Some bad guys try to use the panic to their advantage.
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3 | "The Blockade" | Arthur Browne Jr. | September 26, 1981 | 103 |
Zorro risks his life to fight an enemy French warship. This ship is blocking the port of San Pedro.
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4 | "The Frame" | Ron Schultz Sam Schultz |
October 3, 1981 | 104 |
Zorro is blamed for crimes he didn't do. All the clues point to him, and Zorro realizes someone powerful is behind it.
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5 | "Turnabout" | Ron Schultz Sam Schultz |
October 10, 1981 | 105 |
Things start to go wrong for Zorro. He needs to find a way to get back to being the hero he once was.
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6 | "The Tyrant" | Marty Warner Arthur Browne Jr. |
October 17, 1981 | 106 |
A bad ruler steals from the rich and taxes the poor. Only Zorro can stop him, but he must be smart to avoid being called a traitor.
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7 | "Terremoto" | Arthur Browne Jr. | October 24, 1981 | 107 |
Zorro tries to free prisoners from Santa Catalina island. At first, people think he's a traitor. But then they see how badly the prisoners were treated.
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8 | "The Trap" | Arthur Browne Jr. | October 31, 1981 | 108 |
Zorro and Miguel are on their way to Santa Barbara. They fall into one of Captain Ramon's traps. Zorro must come up with an escape plan.
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9 | "Fort Ramon" | Robby London | November 7, 1981 | 109 |
Zorro tries to get into Fort Ramon to free a prisoner.
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10 | "The Take Over" | Robby London | November 14, 1981 | 110 |
A bandit kidnaps the Governor General and declares himself ruler. Zorro must act fast, but he doesn't know the bandit is an old enemy.
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11 | "Double Trouble" | Arthur Browne Jr. | November 21, 1981 | 111 |
Two of Zorro's enemies team up to try and defeat him.
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12 | "The Conspiracy" | Arthur Browne Jr. | November 28, 1981 | 112 |
Zorro gets caught in a secret plot. The only way out is to solve the mystery.
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13 | "The Mysterious Traveler" | Robby London | December 5, 1981 | 113 |
Zorro tries to figure out if recent strange events are caused by an unknown person.
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Learning from Zorro
At the end of each episode, The New Adventures of Zorro shared interesting facts. Viewers learned about California and how Spanish language and culture influenced the area. These kinds of educational messages were common in cartoons from the 1980s. For example, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe also taught moral lessons.
Zorro Toys and Merchandise
In 1981, a toy company called Gabriel made a line of Zorro action figures. These toys were based on the characters from Filmation's animated series. You could collect figures of Zorro, Miguel, Captain Ramon, and Sergeant Gonzalez. There were also figures of the horses, Tempest and Picaro.
See also
In Spanish: Las nuevas aventuras del Zorro para niños