Zorro (novel) Zorro (novel) Zorro is a 2005 novel by Chilean author Isabel Allende. Its subject is the pulp hero Diego de la Vega, better known as El Zorro (The Fox), who was featured in an early 20th-century novel. The novel takes the form of a biography and was the first origin story for this legendary character. In terms of material, it is a prequel to Johnston McCulley's 1919 novella "The Curse of Capistrano," which first featured the character of Zorro. The story incorporates details from a variety of works that have featured the pulp hero, including the 1998 film "The Mask
Zorro Inc., argued that it owned the copyright to the original character because Johnston McCulley assigned his Zorro rights to Mitchell Gertz in 1949. Gertz died in 1961, and his estate transferred to his children, who created Zorro Productions, Inc. Fireworks Entertainment argued that the original rights had already been transferred to Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. in 1920 and provided documents showing this was legally affirmed in 1929, and also questioned whether the copyright was still valid. The court ruled that "since the copyrights in "The Curse of Capistrano" and "The Mark of Zorro" lapsed in 1995 or before, the character Zorro