The Mark of Zorro Sequel

According to the Zorro Productions Inc website and the Zorro Swashbuckling News and Updates blog a sequel to The Mark of Zorro is forthcoming. Award winning Australian dramatist Barry Creyton (Australian Broadcasting Corporation and BBC) will man the helm for the follow up production replacing the late Yuri Rasovsky. Interestingly Creyton has a reputation for creating cinematic audio drama so the expectation will be for high octane sound effects and music. Val Kilmer and Ruth Livier will return to reprise their roles as Zorro and Lolita Pulido. No word on what other noted Hollywood names might be cast in the follow up to the Grammy and double Audie nominated drama.

The Mark of Zorro
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/4-mark-of-zorro.html

The Best Swashbuckling Audio Dramas

1. The Mark of Zorro - By far the best swashbuckling audio drama ever made and arguably the best audio drama since the original Star War radio dramas. Based on Zorro creator Johnston McCulley's first ever Zorro story (originally titled The Curse of Capistrano) this one stars Hollywood actors Val Kilmer as Diego de la Vega/Zorro, Ruth Livier as Lolita Pulido, Armin Shimerman as the Tavern Landlord, Meshach Taylor as Sergeant Gonzalez, and Elizabeth Pena as Catalina Pulido. A great story highlighted by great acting and sound design makes this one an instant classic. Produced by Hollywood Theater of the Ear. The Mark of Zorro has been selected by AudioFile Magazine, Parade Magazine, and Sound Commentary as one of the best audio books of 2011 (technically The Mark of Zorro is an audio drama). It is also a 2012 Grammy Award nominee and a 2012 Audie Award nominee. Rumor has it there's a sequel underway though we are still attempting to confirm this.

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/4-mark-of-zorro.html

2. Zorro The Legend Begins - Absolutely the most fun Zorro radio drama ever made. A great story loaded with action, adventure, drama, comedy and romance. Zorro defends the residents of the Pueblo de Los Angeles from the exploits of corrupt Alcalde Luis Miguel Montero.

3. The Three Musketeers - The BBC's superbly made rendition of Alexander Dumas tale of Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artagnan vividly brings swashbuckling adventure to life. A great tale featuring great acting and sound design. The Three Musketeers is highly entertaining!

https://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/search?q=zorro+the+legend+begins

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/12/123-three-musketeers-bbc.html

4. Zorro and the Pirate Raiders - Based on D.J. Arneson's adaptation of Johnston McCulley's second Zorro story The Further Adventures of Zorro. This tale is reminiscent of the old Saturday matinee cliffhanger serial adventures. A nail biter from start to finish Zorro and the Pirate Raiders is high octane swashbuckling fun. This production features a fine story, good acting, and great sound design. Kevin Cirone, Shonna McEachern, J.T. Turner, Hugh Metzler, Sam Donato, Joseph Zamperelli Jr, and Dan Powell star in this Colonial Radio Theater production.

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/31-zorro-and-pirate-raiders-crt.html

5. Zorro Rides Again - The third of Johnston McCulley's Zorro stories. Based on the D.J. Arneson adaptation. Once again swashbuckling action comes to life as Zorro rides to save the day. An imposter is defaming the legendary masked hero by means of cruel misdeeds forcing Zorro to take swift action in order to preserve his name and his life. A thrill-a-minute fast paced fun story. Produced by Colonial Radio Theater this presentation features the same fine cast of actors as Zorro and the Pirate Raiders.

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/32-zorro-rides-again-crt.html

6. The Count of Monte Cristo - The BBC's fantastic production of Alexander Dumas gripping tale of revenge. Well written and wonderfully acted this 7 hour long drama will be certain to delight swashbuckling fans. 

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/12/122-count-of-monte-cristo-bbc.html

7. The Scarlet Pimpernel - Though not a product of the modern era of audio drama the 1952 production of The Scarlet Pimpernel starring Marius Goring as Sir Percy Blakely (aka The Scarlet Pimernel) is a great swashbuckling audio adventure. This series featuring 52 half hour shows is undoubtedly the best production of Baroness Emmuska Orczy's fictional book about one man's fight to help those being oppressed by the French revolutionary government of 1792.

Featured above: Leslie Howard and Merle Oberon from the 1934 motion picture version of The Scarlet Pimpernel.

8. Black Bartlemy's Treasure - Jeffrey Farnol's swashbuckling novel of pirates, vengeance, love and death is expertly brought to sonic life in the outstanding BBC production. Set in England and on a desert island Martin Conisby seeks vengeance on Sir Richard Brandon.

9. Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson's classic tale of pirates is well produced by the BBC. Captain Flint's treasure map has fallen into the hands of young Jim Hawkins. With the map comes adventure and danger. But the ship's crew is made up almost entirely of pirates who are lead by the one legged Long John Silver.

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/08/74-treasure-island-bbc.html

10. Captain Blood - Rafael Sabatini's great swashbuckling adventure is dramatized by Colonial Radio Theater. A rousing tale of pirates, love and high seas adventure awaits in this production.

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/08/73-captain-blood-crt.html

11. The Man in the Iron Mask - Though not from the modern era, George Edwards 1948 Australian made production of Alexander Dumas classic novel is highly entertaining and well worth hearing. The series consists of Fifty-two 13 minute episodes.

#123 The Three Musketeers (BBC)

Athos, Porthos, Aramis are sworn to protect the King and Queen of France. As musketeers, bodyguards of the royalty, it's their duty. Young D'Artagnan has come to Paris to join the musketeers. No sooner does he arrive and he finds himself in a series of duels. First with the sinister Comte de Rochefort then with Athos, Porthos and Aramis.  However, what seems to be ill fated luck turns out to be good fortune for D'Artagnan as he quickly becomes a close friend to The Three Musketeers. Soon the four of them find themselves caught up in the adventure of a life time. It's up to these four brave men to upset the plans of the scheming and villainous Cardinal Richelieu, his evil agent the stunningly beautiful and equally deadly Milady de Winter and the sinister Comte de Rochefort. If they fail the Queen will be dead and perhaps the King with her, the country will be at war and the Cardinal will rule the country with an iron hand.

"Come d'Artagnan, we're off to save the Queen!" It's "All for one and one for all" in this remarkable full-cast audio production of Alexander Dumas' The Three Musketeers. This is no doubt one of the best audio adaptations in the BBC archives. This three hours of swashbuckling fun will not disappoint.

Starring:
Jamie Glover, Robert Glenister, Timothy Spall, Anton Lesser, Nicholas Boulton, Julian Glover, Malcom Ward, Imelda Staunton, Michael Cochrane, Helen Abreck, Dominic Letz, Tom Bevin, Theresa Gallagher, Gerth Armstrong, Lyndon Greggory, Frances Jeter, Stewart Organ, Michael Onslow, John Roe.

From the BBC:


'All for one and one for all' ...

17th Century France. Dashing young swordsman D'Artagnan heads for Paris, dreaming of serving the King as a member of his elite guard. On arrival, he meets the three musketeers - Athos, Porthos and Aramis - and the four men soon become fast friends.Together, they strive to outwit the murderous schemes of power-hungry Cardinal Richelieu, and save the Queen from a plot to dishonour her. Their adventures take them on a perilous journey through the French countryside and across the Channel to England...



http://www.amazon.com/Three-Musketeers-Full-Cast-Radio-Drama/dp/product-description/1609984854

The Mark of Zorro Nominated For A Grammy!

Congratulations to Mr. Yuri Rasovsky, producer for Hollywood Theater of the Ear, for 2 Grammy nominations in the Spoken Word category.

Nominated for Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books and Story Telling):

The Mark of Zorro (from Blackstone Audio) starring Val Kilmer, Ruth Livier, Armin Shimerman, Elizabeth Peña, Meshach Taylor, Keith Szarabajka, Ned Schmidtke, Scott Brick, Stefan Rudnicki, Kristoffer Tabori, Philip Proctor, John Sloan, Gordo Panza and Lorna Raver (the announcer).

Congratulations also to Josh Stanton (Blackstone Audio), John Gertz (Zorro Productions Inc.) and Daryl McCullough associate producers on The Mark of Zorro.

http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/4-mark-of-zorro.html

http://www.amazon.com/Mark-Zorro-Full-Cast-Audio-Dramatization/dp/1441728899

William Shakespeare's Hamlet (from Blackstone Audio) featuring Dan Donohue & Various Artists - Oregon Shakespeare Festival

http://www.grammy.com/nominees?year=2011&genre=32

Parade Magazine picks The Mark of Zorro as the #2 best audio.

Looking for a great radio drama to listen to? Want GREAT acting? Swashbuckling adventure? A great story? Look no further than The Mark of Zorro! Parade Magazine picks The Mark of Zorro as the second best audio over all for summer listening. That's an impressive rating considering the hundreds of audio books and audio dramas released in 2011.

The Mark of Zorro stars Val Kilmer, Ruth Livier, Elizabeth Pena, Armin Shimerman, Meshach Taylor and an amazing cast.

http://www.parade.com/news/summer-reading-guide/featured/top-14-audio-books.html#comment_focus

If you like Zorro or just like swashbuckling action there's two other Zorro radio dramas available. Zorro and the Pirate Raiders and Zorro Rides Again.These being produced by Colonial Radio Theatre.

#32 Zorro Rides Again (CRT)

Zorro Rides again based on D.J. Arneson's adaptation of Johnston McCulley's third story Zorro story. Ride along in another exciting Zorro adventure that will fill your ears with swashbuckling fun.

Zorro Rides Again featuring Kevin Cirone, Jeremy Benson, Shonna McEachern, Shana Dirk, Sam Donato, and Hugh Metzler. 

From CRT:
Has Zorro gone mad? That's the rumor spreading like wildfire through Reina de Los Angeles. For a dazzling swordsman wearing cape and mask is terrorizing innocent citizens. Riding with the night, he leaves the Mark of Zorro on his cruel deeds.
Already the govenor has placed a price on Zorro's head, dispatching a cutthroat army led by the ruthless Captain Rocha to hunt him down. But Zorro's loyal band and a gallant Indian tribe refuse to believe the foul lie. Still, only one man can expose the truth - and unmask the evil impostor.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=zorro+rides+again+colonial&x=0&y=0

If you're a fan of Zorro or just love a great swashbuckling story be sure to look at post #31 and #4.
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/31-zorro-and-pirate-raiders-crt.html

The Mark of Zorro (featuring Val Kilmer)
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/4-mark-of-zorro.html

The Mark of Zorro Sequel
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2012/06/mark-zorro-sequel.html

#31 Zorro and the Pirate Raiders (CRT)

Colonial Radio Theater brings you high seas swashbuckling action in Zorro and the Pirate Raiders. This story is based on D.J. Arneson's adaptation of Johnston McCulley's serial cliff hanger style story The Further Adventures of Zorro. Zorro and the Pirate Raiders is filled with swashbuckling and adventure. Hugh Metzler gives a superb performance as the pirate Captain Bardoso and Shonna McEachern is a feisty Lolita Pulido.

Zorro and the Pirate Raiders stars Kevin Cirone, Shonna McEachern, Hugh Metzler, J.T. Turner, Sam Donato, Joseph Zamperelli Jr., and Dan Powell.  From CRT: The Pirate Raiders, with the villainous Captain Bardoso in command, are employed by the vicious Captain Ramon to kidnap the daughter of a wealthy caballero, hoping to use her to trap Zorro. Battles on land and sea, flashing swords and booming cannon explode before your very ears in this exciting audio production.  http://www.amazon.com/Zorro-Pirate-Raiders-Radio-Dramatization/dp/B004B5J6YQ If you're a fan or Zorro or just enjoy swashbuckling adventure make sure to see post #32 and #4. Zorro Riders Again http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/32-zorro-rides-again-crt.html The Mark of Zorro (featuring Val Kilmer) http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/4-mark-of-zorro.html The Mark of Zorro Sequel http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2012/06/mark-zorro-sequel.html

#4 The Mark of Zorro

The Mark of Zorro written and produced by Yuri Rasovsky of Hollywood Theater of the Ear for Blackstone Audio features a brilliant cast that includes such names as Val Kilmer (Top Gun, Heat, Tombstone), Ruth Livier (Ylse), Armin Shimerman (Star Trek Deep Space 9), Elizabeth Pena (The Incredibles), and Meshach Taylor (Designing Women). This original tale of the masked hero of Spanish California is a swashbuckling adventure masterpiece.

Val Kilmer brings a menacing toughness to the role of Zorro with delivery that falls somewhere between the forcefulness of Tyrone Power, the authoritative command of Duncan Regehr and the charm of Guy Williams. Kilmer's performance is nothing less than stellar. Ruth Livier nearly steals the show as fiery Lolita Pulido while Armin Shimerman and Meshach Taylor are brilliant as the Landlord and Sgt Gonzalez. The voice acting in this production is absolutely fantastic. The entire cast gives a performance for the ages. The Mark of Zorro provides three hours of listening fun.

Without a doubt this is a great audio drama. In our opinion, one of the best ever made! Others too have found The Mark of Zorro to be a fine production as it has been selected by AudioFile Magazine, Parade Magazine, and Sound Commentary as one of the best audio books of 2011. It is also a 2012 Grammy Award nominee and a 2012 Audie Award nominee.



From Blackstone Audio:

Set in Los Angeles during the era of early nineteenth century Colonial Spanish California, the story introduces us to wealthy, young aristocrat Don Diego de la Vega, son of the richest ranchero in the country. Don Diego is an idler who has never concerned himself with more than the cut of his clothes. Unlike other full-blooded youths of his age, he presents himself as a fop, lacking in vigor, vitality, and strength. But Vega’s timorous reputation is merely a mask to conceal his alter ego—El Zorro. As Zorro, dressed in black and wearing a mask, he is transformed into a cunning swordsman who fearlessly pulls off dashing and daring escapades in his quest to avenge the helpless, aid the poor and oppressed, and punish cruel officials. Deemed an outlaw by California’s corrupt governor, he is ever-hunted by the Commandante of La Reina de Los Angeles, Capitan Ramón, and his henchman, Sergeant Pedro Gonzalez.
Forced to find a wife or lose his inheritance, Diego sets off to romance the fiery, outspoken Lolita Pulido, the most beautiful señorita in Los Angeles. Unimpressed with Diego’s passionless efforts to win her affections, Lolita finds herself attracted to the dashing and courageous Zorro. With the Pulido family having been impoverished by the corrupt governor, her father would see her married to the rich Don Diego. At the same time, the nobly born, but morally dissolute, Captain Ramón has also taken an interest in the fair señorita, making matters worse. As tensions heighten between Ramon and the Pulido family and pursuit of the masked avenger intensifies, Zorro leaves his mark on those who would perpetrate injustice.
The Mark of Zorro, masterfully adapted into a full-cast audio drama by the award-winning Hollywood Theater of the Ear especially for Blackstone Audio, is an exciting, action packed, swashbuckling adventure that will have listeners on the edge of their seats. 

http://www.downpour.com/the-mark-of-zorro-1


For more Zorro see also:

Zorro and the Pirate Raiders
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/31-zorro-and-pirate-raiders-crt.html

Zorro Rides Again
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/32-zorro-rides-again-crt.html

The Mark of Zorro Sequel
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2012/06/mark-zorro-sequel.html