The Zweig Total Return Fund, Inc. Discloses Sources of Distribution -- Section 19A Notice

NEW YORK, NY, Oct 05 (MARKET WIRE) --
The Board of Directors of The Zweig Total Return Fund, Inc. (NYSE: ZTR)
declared a distribution of $0.034 per share to shareholders of record on
October 12, 2009, payable October 26, 2009. The Fund has a Managed
Distribution Plan to pay 10 percent of the Fund's net asset value ("NAV")
on an annualized basis. The Board believes that regular, fixed cash
payouts will enhance shareholder value and serve the long-term interests
of shareholders.

The following is a required Section 19A notice:

You should not draw any conclusions about the Fund's investment
performance from the amount of this distribution or from the terms of the
Fund's Managed Distribution Plan.

This notice discloses information on the sources of the distribution as
required by SEC Rule 19(a) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the
Fund's SEC Exemptive Order under Section 19(b) as follows:

October 2009 Year-to-date
Distribution Estimates (MTD) (YTD) (1)
Percentage Percentage
Per Share of Current Per Share of Current
(Sources) Amount Distribution Amount Distribution
Net Investment Income $ 0.004 11.7% $ 0.042 14.4%
Net Realized Short-Term
Capital Gains - 0.0% - 0.0%
Net Realized Long-Term
Capital Gains - 0.0% - 0.0%
Return of Capital (or
other Capital Source) 0.030 88.3% 0.252 85.6%
Total Distribution $ 0.034 100.0% $ 0.294 100.0%

(1) YTD February 1, 2009 to January 11, 2010. (The distribution paid on
January 12, 2009 was reportable for tax on Form 1099 in 2008)

The Fund estimates that it has distributed more than its income and
net realized capital gains; therefore, a portion of your distribution may
be a return of capital. A return of capital may occur, for example, when
some or all of the money that you invested in the Fund is paid back to
you. A return of capital distribution does not necessarily reflect the
Fund's investment performance and should not be confused with "yield" or
"income."

The amounts and sources of distributions reported in this Notice are only
estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The
actual amounts and sources of the amounts for tax reporting purposes will
depend upon the Fund's investment experience during the remainder of its
fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The
Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell
you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes.

Information regarding the Fund's performance and distribution rates is set
forth below. Please note that all performance figures are based on the
Fund's NAV and not the market price of the Fund's shares. Performance
figures are not meant to represent individual shareholder performance.

Average Annual Total Return on NAV for the 5-year period ended
September 30, 2009 (2) 4.60%
Current Fiscal YTD Annualized Distribution Rate (3) 9.48%

YTD Cumulative Total Return on NAV (4) 12.15%
YTD Cumulative Distribution Rate (5) 7.11%

(2) Average Annual Total Return on NAV is the annual compound return
for the five year period. It reflects the change in the Fund's NAV
and reinvestment of all distributions.
(3) Current Fiscal YTD Annualized Distribution Rate is the Cumulative
Distribution Rate annualized as a percentage of the Fund's NAV as
of September 30, 2009.
(4) YTD Cumulative Total Return on NAV is the percentage change in the
Fund's NAV from January 1, 2009 to September 30, 2009, including
distributions paid and assuming reinvestment of those
distributions.
(5) YTD Cumulative Distribution Rate is the dollar value of
distributions from January 1, 2009 to September 30, 2009 as a
percentage of the Fund's NAV as of September 30, 2009.

The Zweig Total Return Fund, Inc. is a closed-end fund with an
investment objective to seek the highest total return, consisting of
capital appreciation and current income, consistent with the preservation
of capital. The Zweig closed-end funds are advised by Zweig Advisers LLC.
For more information on the Fund, please contact Shareholder Services at
800.272.2700 or visit us on the web at www.virtus.com.

ZTR Cusip: 989837109

For Further Information:
Zweig Funds Shareholder Services
(800) 272-2700
Patricia Baronowski
The Altman Group
(212) 400-2604

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