''The Sons of Hercules'' is a syndicated Embassy Pictures

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

show that aired in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in the 1960s. The series repackaged 13

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

sword-and-sandal films by giving them a standardized

theme song Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...

for the opening and closing titles, as well as a standard introductory narration attempting to relate the lead character in each film to the Greek demigod Hercules. These films however were not all originally made as "Hercules" films in Italy. Although two of them did originally feature

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...

(and not his sons), four of the films were originally

Maciste 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. He is usually depicted as a Herc ...

movies in Italy, and the others were just isolated gladiator or mythological

hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...

movies not released theatrically in the US.

Films in the series

There were 13 films in the Sons of Hercules syndication package. The first title listed for each film was its American television title, followed by the translated original Italian title in parentheses: (Note* - Some channels broke the films up into two parts, and showed them in two weekly one-hour time slots as if it were a weekly TV series.) * '' Mole Men vs the Son of Hercules'' (''

Maciste, the Strongest Man in the World ''Mole Men Against the Son of Hercules'' ( it, Maciste, l'uomo più forte del mondo/ ''Maciste, the Strongest Man in the World'') is a 1961 Italian ''peplum (film genre), peplum'' film directed by Antonio Leonviola and starring Mark Forest. Plot ...

'') 1961, starring Mark Forest * '' Triumph of the Son of Hercules'' (''The Triumph of Maciste'') 1961, starring Kirk Morris * '' Fire Monsters Against the Son of Hercules'' (''Maciste vs the Monsters'') 1962, starring Reg Lewis * '' Venus Against the Son of Hercules'' (''Mars, God Of War'') 1962, starring Roger Browne * ''

Ulysses Against the Son of Hercules ''Ulysses Against the Son of Hercules'' ( it, Ulisse contro Ercole) is a 1962 ''peplum'' film directed by Mario Caiano. Plot Hercules captures Ulysses, during the latter's return to Ithaca, by order of Zeus. The hero intends to bring him to P ...

'' ('' Ulysses against Hercules'') 1962, starring Mike Lane * '' Medusa Against the Son of Hercules'' (''Perseus the Invincible'') 1962, starring Richard Harrison * ''

Son of Hercules in the Land of Fire ''Ursus in the Land of Fire'' ( it, Ursus nella terra di fuoco), released directly to U.S. television as ''Son of Hercules in the Land of Fire'', is a 1963 Italian peplum film directed by Giorgio Simonelli and starring Ed Fury as Ursus, and Adria ...

'' (''Ursus In The Land Of Fire'') 1963, starring Ed Fury * '' Tyrant of Lydia Against The Son of Hercules'' ('' Goliath and the Rebel Slave'') 1963, starring Gordon Scott * '' Messalina Against the Son of Hercules'' (''The Last Gladiator'') 1963, starring Richard Harrison * ''

The Beast of Babylon Against the Son of Hercules ''The Beast of Babylon Against the Son of Hercules'' ( it, L'eroe di Babilonia, french: Héros de Babylone, also known as ''Heroes of Babylon'', ''Hero of Babylon'' and ''Goliath, King of Slaves'') is a 1963 Italian-French peplum film written and ...

'' (''Hero Of Babylon'') 1963, a.k.a. ''Goliath, King of the Slaves'', starring Gordon Scott * '' Terror of Rome Against the Son of Hercules'' (''Maciste, Gladiator of Sparta'') 1964, starring Mark Forest * '' Son of Hercules in the Land of Darkness'' ('' Hercules the Invincible'') 1964, starring Dan Vadis * '' Devil of the Desert Against the Son of Hercules'' ('' Anthar the Invincible'') 1964, (a.k.a. ''The Slave Merchants'', a.k.a. ''Soraya, Queen of the Desert'') starring Kirk Morris, directed by Antonio Margheriti

Films in the series

See also