Reuters is
reporting this morning that BCI Eclipse, the folks who brought
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe to DVD (and the
Afterschool Specials as well!) has obtained new rights to shows from the Filmation Library. Among those are
Zorro.
Filmation's library is currently held by a U.K. company named Entertainment Rights ("ER"). Reuters reports that ER has sold rights to
Zorro and other Filmation properties to BCI, thanks to their successful handling of
He-Man. According to Reurters, ER CEO Mike Heap said in a statement, "This agreement is further evidence of the timeless quality and appeal of the Filmation library and further demonstrates ER's ability to deliver on its strategy of expanding its business in the key U.S. market." BCI Eclipse, owned by Navarre, is no doubt pleased to be ER's partner in terms of delivering on that strategy in the North American (Region 1) market. No comments from BCI were available in the Reuters article, however.
The 1981
Zorro (a.k.a.
The New Adventures of Zorro) animated series starred the voice of Henry Darrow as Don Diego/Zorro, and ran on CBS for 13 episodes. Stay tuned and we'll have more word for you about a DVD release of this show when info becomes available.
Our thanks to the readers who e-mailed us to tell us about the story, beginning with Mark Vasquez who beat everyone else to the punch!