You probably know this story better under the title The Mark of Zorro. First serialized in five segments in 1919 in All-Story Weekly, The Curse of Capistrano was then adapted into the feature film The Mark of Zorro in 1920 (see Movie Monday for more information).

So here’s something you should know about me, right off the bat. I’ve always been a bit of a Zorro fan. I liked the two Antonio Banderas Zorro films.  I think the climactic duel between Tyrone Power and Basil Rathbone in the 1940 version is one of the best pure swordfights I’ve ever seen. I even liked the goofy Italian version that came out in 1975 starring Alain Delon and Stanley Baker (“la-la-la-la-la-la, Zorro’s back”).

So it was a bit of a shock to read