The Romance Of The Pink Panther
Encyclopedia
Romance of the Pink Panther was to be the seventh film
in the Pink Panther series, and would have starred Peter Sellers
in the role of Inspector Clouseau
in his sixth Panther appearance. Herbert Lom
would have reprised his role as Charles Dreyfus, with the character now working as a private detective. However, the unexpected death of Peter Sellers in July 1980 led to the project's eventual abandonment. Only two script drafts were completed.
The film, written by Peter Sellers
and Jim Moloney from Moloney's original story treatment, was originally scheduled to have begun filming in September or October 1980, for a summer release in 1981, but after concerns from the studio over the script, production was delayed until early 1981.
According to The Hollywood Reporter in December 1978, Sellers was negotiating to direct the film himself, but the studio opted for Sidney Poitier
instead. Poitier pulled out in 1979 because of delays in Sellers and Moloney delivering the script. The first draft was submitted in December 1979. Clive Donner
was attached to direct at that time.
United Artists executive Steven Bach
details the studio's poor reception to this draft in his book Final Cut
. The deal nearly fell apart until Sellers' wife, Lynne Frederick
, was brought aboard as executive producer. Studio executive, Danton Rissner, was set to produce and Sellers and Moloney completed a rewrite just days before Sellers' death in July 1980.
While Bach indicates he was pleased with the rewrite, Donner has stated he was scheduled to meet with Sellers the week after his death to discuss further rewrites. Donner's wife, designer Jocelyn Rickards, was preparing drawings for the film, which was set to shoot at Studio de Boulogne in Paris. Pamela Stephenson
would have joined Sellers, Herbert Lom
, Burt Kwouk
, Graham Stark
, André Maranne
and longtime Sellers friend Max Geldray
on the film.
After Sellers' death, the studio attempted to keep the project alive by bringing in Dudley Moore
as Clouseau. Moore, who had been planning a Panther-style spy comedy with Blake Edwards
called The Ferret, at Orion
, was only interested in playing the role one time to give the series the conclusion its star intended. The studio wanted Moore to commit to a multi-picture deal and began trying to convince Edwards to come aboard to direct and rewrite the Sellers-Moloney script.
Edwards rejected the idea of using Sellers' script and instead suggested the series could be revived with a new character. The results of these negotiations were 1982's transitional film, Trail of the Pink Panther
, utilizing Sellers' outtakes from 1976's The Pink Panther Strikes Again
, and 1983's failed relaunch, Curse of the Pink Panther
, with Ted Wass
as incompetent New York police detective Sergeant Clifton Sleigh.
Romance of the Pink Panther is referenced in the 2004 biopic The Life and Death of Peter Sellers
, but the film erroneously depicts the project as belonging to Blake Edwards
, with Sellers uninterested in reprising his most famous role.
The plot of the film involved Clouseau falling in love with a daring cat burglar called "The Frog" (to be played by Pamela Stephenson
) because of the scattered natures and locations of her crimes. The name was a pun on a British slur for the French. Clouseau would have pronounced the name like the 1960s dance "the froog," with detective and thief smitten with one another in spite of themselves.
The first draft saw Clouseau promoted to police commissioner at the conclusion, while in the rewrite, Clouseau retires from the force and joins his lover in a life of crime (similar to the ending of 1983's Curse of the Pink Panther
).
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
in the Pink Panther series, and would have starred Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
in the role of Inspector Clouseau
Inspector Clouseau
Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau is a fictional character in Blake Edwards' The Pink Panther series. In most of the films, he was played by Peter Sellers, with one film in which he was played by Alan Arkin and one in which he was played by an uncredited Roger Moore...
in his sixth Panther appearance. Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom is a Czech film actor, best known for his role as former Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movie series.-Life and career:...
would have reprised his role as Charles Dreyfus, with the character now working as a private detective. However, the unexpected death of Peter Sellers in July 1980 led to the project's eventual abandonment. Only two script drafts were completed.
The film, written by Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers
Richard Henry Sellers, CBE , known as Peter Sellers, was a British comedian and actor. Perhaps best known as Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series, he is also notable for playing three different characters in Dr...
and Jim Moloney from Moloney's original story treatment, was originally scheduled to have begun filming in September or October 1980, for a summer release in 1981, but after concerns from the studio over the script, production was delayed until early 1981.
According to The Hollywood Reporter in December 1978, Sellers was negotiating to direct the film himself, but the studio opted for Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier
Sir Sidney Poitier, KBE is a Bahamian American actor, film director, author, and diplomat.In 1963, Poitier became the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field...
instead. Poitier pulled out in 1979 because of delays in Sellers and Moloney delivering the script. The first draft was submitted in December 1979. Clive Donner
Clive Donner
Clive Stanley Donner was a British film director who was a defining part of the British New Wave, directing films such as The Caretaker, Nothing But the Best, Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush and What's New Pussycat?...
was attached to direct at that time.
United Artists executive Steven Bach
Steven Bach
Steven Bach was senior vice-president and head of worldwide productions for United Artists studios.In 1990, he was a member of the jury at the 40th Berlin International Film Festival....
details the studio's poor reception to this draft in his book Final Cut
Final cut
Final cut may refer to:* The Final Cut , a 1983 album by Pink Floyd** "The Final Cut" , a song included on the above Pink Floyd album* The Final Cut , an industrial music group...
. The deal nearly fell apart until Sellers' wife, Lynne Frederick
Lynne Frederick
Lynne Maria Frederick was an English film actress. In a career spanning ten years she made about thirty films or television drama appearances, but she is best remembered as the last wife of Peter Sellers. She was married twice after his death.-Early life:Frederick was born in Hillingdon,...
, was brought aboard as executive producer. Studio executive, Danton Rissner, was set to produce and Sellers and Moloney completed a rewrite just days before Sellers' death in July 1980.
While Bach indicates he was pleased with the rewrite, Donner has stated he was scheduled to meet with Sellers the week after his death to discuss further rewrites. Donner's wife, designer Jocelyn Rickards, was preparing drawings for the film, which was set to shoot at Studio de Boulogne in Paris. Pamela Stephenson
Pamela Stephenson
Pamela Helen Stephenson Connolly is a New Zealand-born Australian clinical psychologist and writer now resident in the United Kingdom. She is best known for her work as an actress and comedian during the 1980s...
would have joined Sellers, Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom is a Czech film actor, best known for his role as former Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movie series.-Life and career:...
, Burt Kwouk
Burt Kwouk
Burt Kwouk OBE , born Herbert Kwouk, is an English actor of Chinese descent, known for many television appearances and for his role as Cato in the Pink Panther films.-Career:...
, Graham Stark
Graham Stark
Graham Stark is an English comedian, actor, writer and director.Stark was born in Wallasey on the Wirral in Cheshire, England. He first came to prominence on BBC Radio, making his debut in Happy Go Lucky and going on to Ray's A Laugh, Educating Archie and substitute on The Goon Show...
, André Maranne
André Maranne
André Maranne is an Anglo-French actor who appeared chiefly in English-language roles from the mid 1950s.-Career:Born in Toulouse, France, Maranne's most prominent recurring role was Sergeant François Chevalier in six of The Pink Panther films, alongside Peter Sellers and Herbert Lom. Before the...
and longtime Sellers friend Max Geldray
Max Geldray
Max Geldray was a jazz harmonica player, usually credited as being the first such.Born Max van Gelder to Jewish parents in Amsterdam, Netherlands, he was best known for his playing and occasional acting on the BBC comedy radio series, The Goon Show before emigrating to the United States...
on the film.
After Sellers' death, the studio attempted to keep the project alive by bringing in Dudley Moore
Dudley Moore
Dudley Stuart John Moore, CBE was an English actor, comedian, composer and musician.Moore first came to prominence as one of the four writer-performers in the ground-breaking comedy revue Beyond the Fringe in the early 1960s, and then became famous as half of the highly popular television...
as Clouseau. Moore, who had been planning a Panther-style spy comedy with Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards was an American film director, screenwriter and producer.Edwards' career began in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon turned to writing radio scripts at Columbia Pictures...
called The Ferret, at Orion
Orion Pictures
Orion Pictures Corporation was an American independent production company that produced movies from 1978 until 1998. It was formed in 1978 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and three former top-level executives of United Artists. Although it was never a large motion picture producer, Orion...
, was only interested in playing the role one time to give the series the conclusion its star intended. The studio wanted Moore to commit to a multi-picture deal and began trying to convince Edwards to come aboard to direct and rewrite the Sellers-Moloney script.
Edwards rejected the idea of using Sellers' script and instead suggested the series could be revived with a new character. The results of these negotiations were 1982's transitional film, Trail of the Pink Panther
Trail of the Pink Panther
Trail of the Pink Panther is a 1982 comedy film starring Peter Sellers. It was the seventh film in the Pink Panther series, and the last in which Peter Sellers starred as Inspector Jacques Clouseau, although Sellers died before production began and the film thus contains no original material...
, utilizing Sellers' outtakes from 1976's The Pink Panther Strikes Again
The Pink Panther Strikes Again
The Pink Panther Strikes Again is the fifth film in the Pink Panther series and picks up where The Return of the Pink Panther leaves off...
, and 1983's failed relaunch, Curse of the Pink Panther
Curse of the Pink Panther
Curse of the Pink Panther is a 1983 comedy film, the eighth installment of the The Pink Panther series of films started by Blake Edwards in the early 1960s....
, with Ted Wass
Ted Wass (actor)
Ted Wass , is an American actor and director. Goodman School of Drama graduate Wass made his Broadway debut in the 1976 production Grease...
as incompetent New York police detective Sergeant Clifton Sleigh.
Romance of the Pink Panther is referenced in the 2004 biopic The Life and Death of Peter Sellers
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers is a 2004 film about the life of English comic actor Peter Sellers, based on Roger Lewis' book of the same name...
, but the film erroneously depicts the project as belonging to Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards was an American film director, screenwriter and producer.Edwards' career began in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon turned to writing radio scripts at Columbia Pictures...
, with Sellers uninterested in reprising his most famous role.
The two drafts
Two drafts were written. One was finished in December 1979 and the other one was finished in July 1980, eight days before Sellers' death. Both drafts have the same basic storyline but are very different, most notably in their endings.The plot of the film involved Clouseau falling in love with a daring cat burglar called "The Frog" (to be played by Pamela Stephenson
Pamela Stephenson
Pamela Helen Stephenson Connolly is a New Zealand-born Australian clinical psychologist and writer now resident in the United Kingdom. She is best known for her work as an actress and comedian during the 1980s...
) because of the scattered natures and locations of her crimes. The name was a pun on a British slur for the French. Clouseau would have pronounced the name like the 1960s dance "the froog," with detective and thief smitten with one another in spite of themselves.
The first draft saw Clouseau promoted to police commissioner at the conclusion, while in the rewrite, Clouseau retires from the force and joins his lover in a life of crime (similar to the ending of 1983's Curse of the Pink Panther
Curse of the Pink Panther
Curse of the Pink Panther is a 1983 comedy film, the eighth installment of the The Pink Panther series of films started by Blake Edwards in the early 1960s....
).