Maciste is one of the oldest recurring characters of cinema, created by Gabriele d'Annunzio and Giovanni Pastrone. He is featured throughout the history of the cinema of Italy from the 1910s to the mid-1960s.
Sword-and-sandal, also known as peplum, is a subgenre of largely Italian-made historical, mythological, or biblical epics mostly set in the Greco-Roman antiquity or the Middle Ages. These films attempted to emulate the big-budget Hollywood historical epics of the time, such as Samson and Delilah (1949), Quo Vadis (1951), The Robe (1953), The Ten Commandments (1956), Ben-Hur (1959), Spartacus (1960), and Cleopatra (1963). These films dominated the Italian film industry from 1958 to 1965, eventually being replaced in 1965 by spaghetti Western and Eurospy films.
Heracles, also known as Hercules, is a Greek and Roman mythological hero known for his strength and far-ranging adventures. He is one of the most commonly portrayed figures from classical mythology in the popular culture of the 20th and 21st centuries.
The Black Corsair is an 1898 adventure novel written by Italian novelist Emilio Salgari. Set in the Caribbean during the Golden Age of Piracy, the novel narrates the exploits of Emilio Roccanera, Lord of Ventimiglia and his attempts to avenge his brothers, slain by the Duke Van Guld, now Governor of Maracaibo. The Lord of Ventimiglia, known throughout the Spanish Main as the Black Corsair, allies himself with some of the greatest pirates and buccaneers of the era: François L'Ollonais, Michael the Basque and Henry Morgan, vowing never to rest until he attains his vengeance.
The Black Corsair is an adventure film. It is based on two Emilio Salgari novels, The Black Corsair and The Queen of the Caribbean.
Domenico Paolella was an Italian director, screenwriter and journalist.
Sergio Ciani, best known as Alan Steel, was an Italian bodybuilder and actor.
Hercules Against Rome is a 1964 peplum film directed by Piero Pierotti.
Samson is a 1961 Italian and French international co-production peplum film shot in Yugoslavia. It was written and directed by Gianfranco Parolini in his first film with Brad Harris who plays the title role.
Samson and the Slave Queen is a 1963 Italian peplum directed by Umberto Lenzi. It was originally made as a Maciste film in Italy, in which the fabled strongman meets Zorro. It was redubbed into a "Samson" movie for distribution in the U.S. and "Samson" meets "El Toro"
Samson and the Sea Beast is a 1963 Italian peplum film directed by Tanio Boccia.
Andrea Aureli was an Italian actor.
Ignazio Balsamo was an Italian film and stage actor.
The Queen of the Caribbean is a 1901 adventure novel written by Italian novelist Emilio Salgari. Set in the Caribbean during the Golden Age of Piracy, the novel follows the exploits of Emilio Roccanera, Lord of Ventimiglia as he continues his attempts to avenge his brothers, slain by the Duke Van Guld, as narrated in the first book of the series, The Black Corsair. This novel focuses on the struggles between the Black Corsair's quest for vengeance and his guilt for having abandoned Honorata, his love interest and daughter of his enemy.
Totò vs. the Black Pirate is a 1964 Italian adventure-comedy film written and directed by Fernando Cerchio.
Piero Pierotti was an Italian director and screenwriter.
Hercules vs. Moloch is a 1963 Italian/French international co-production peplum film written and directed by Giorgio Ferroni and starring Gordon Scott. The film reuses battle scenes from Ferroni's 1961 film The Trojan Horse.
Hercules and the Masked Rider is a 1963 Italian peplum film written and directed by Piero Pierotti and starring Alan Steel and Mimmo Palmara. A crossover film, it is set in the seventeenth century Spain and it features Hercules in a Zorro-like scenario.
Renato Navarrini (1892–1972) was an Italian stage and film actor. He was married to the actress Fanny Marchiò.
The Masked Man Against the Pirates is a 1964 Italian pirate swashbuckler film co-written and directed by Vertunnio De Angelis and starring George Hilton.
