Here’s a trivia question for you: Who was the first person to win the Grammy for Album of the Year? It was legendary composer Henry Mancini, who won for the soundtrack to the television show “Peter Gunn.” Let’s take a look back at all of the albums that have claimed this coveted prize in music history.
The attributes of what makes a great album always vary but a well made album will always be viewed as a work of art. Great albums can just be an amazing collection of songs that flow together musically or they can be songs that collectively make a statement. The albums that have won Album of the Year have encompassed all of these areas. They have ranged from some of the most revered classics, from “Sgt. Pepper” by The Beatles and “Thriller” by Michael Jackson, to the biggest achievements in recent years, from...
The attributes of what makes a great album always vary but a well made album will always be viewed as a work of art. Great albums can just be an amazing collection of songs that flow together musically or they can be songs that collectively make a statement. The albums that have won Album of the Year have encompassed all of these areas. They have ranged from some of the most revered classics, from “Sgt. Pepper” by The Beatles and “Thriller” by Michael Jackson, to the biggest achievements in recent years, from...
- 2/4/2024
- by Charles Bright, Zach Laws and Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
William O’Connell, whose extensive TV and film acting credits in the 1960s and ’70s included a memorably villainous role on Star Trek and a string of adversaries in the films of his frequent collaborator Clint Eastwood, died January 15 at his home in Sherman Oaks, CA. He was 94.
His death was announced to Deadline by a family friend. A cause was not disclosed.
O’Connell scored a lengthy roster of TV episodic credits in the 1960s, becoming a busy character actor of the day. He had small roles, often nameless characters distinguished only by their job titles — Flagman, Cabbie, Field Rep. #1 — in Highway Patrol, Peter Gunn and The Twilight Zone, also popping up on Dennis the Menace, My Three Sons, The Outer Limits, Bonanza, The Munsters, Batman and The Lucy Show.
His most memorable TV role from the era came in 1967, when he was cast in the Season 2 “Journey to Babel” episode of Star Trek as Thelev,...
His death was announced to Deadline by a family friend. A cause was not disclosed.
O’Connell scored a lengthy roster of TV episodic credits in the 1960s, becoming a busy character actor of the day. He had small roles, often nameless characters distinguished only by their job titles — Flagman, Cabbie, Field Rep. #1 — in Highway Patrol, Peter Gunn and The Twilight Zone, also popping up on Dennis the Menace, My Three Sons, The Outer Limits, Bonanza, The Munsters, Batman and The Lucy Show.
His most memorable TV role from the era came in 1967, when he was cast in the Season 2 “Journey to Babel” episode of Star Trek as Thelev,...
- 2/1/2024
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Filmmaker William Friedkin forever changed horror with 1973’s The Exorcist, which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director. He returned to the genre again in 1980 with the Giallo-like thriller Cruising and fearlessly got weird with gory folk horror The Guardian in 1990. Fearless perfectly encapsulates Friedkin’s style and his approach to life; he was never afraid to speak his mind or direct productions too peculiar or niche for mainstream audiences. The not-so-easily defined psychological thriller Bug, and its mixed initial reception, speaks to this.
That likely stemmed from Friedkin’s upbringing and his early career start in nonfiction. Bridging his path from his earlier work in commercials and documentaries to his seminal horror effort was television. It was a single episode of a popular anthology series from a horror master that kickstarted Friedkin’s career in fiction, and Friedkin never seemed to forget it.
While the acclaimed director continued to trailblaze in film,...
That likely stemmed from Friedkin’s upbringing and his early career start in nonfiction. Bridging his path from his earlier work in commercials and documentaries to his seminal horror effort was television. It was a single episode of a popular anthology series from a horror master that kickstarted Friedkin’s career in fiction, and Friedkin never seemed to forget it.
While the acclaimed director continued to trailblaze in film,...
- 8/11/2023
- by Meagan Navarro
- bloody-disgusting.com
Ready to take a slow-motion run on the beach? Because “Baywatch” is coming back, TheWrap can confirm. Freemantle is developing a reboot of the memorable syndicated series and are out to several streamers and linear broadcasters. There are no creatives currently attached.
The original show, which resurrected the career of “Knight Rider” star David Hasselhoff (turning him into a sensation overseas) and popularized Pamela Anderson, first aired on NBC in 1989. It ran for a season on NBC before become a staple of syndication’s golden era, airing until summer 2001. “Baywatch” was essentially a prime time soap opera, based around a group of lifeguards – both the emergencies that they are faced with and their messy interpersonal relationships.
“Baywatch” inspired a spinoff called “Baywatch Nights,” running from 1995 to 1997. The original version of the show featured Hasselhoff, whose character was now part of a private detective agency (the show started life as a...
The original show, which resurrected the career of “Knight Rider” star David Hasselhoff (turning him into a sensation overseas) and popularized Pamela Anderson, first aired on NBC in 1989. It ran for a season on NBC before become a staple of syndication’s golden era, airing until summer 2001. “Baywatch” was essentially a prime time soap opera, based around a group of lifeguards – both the emergencies that they are faced with and their messy interpersonal relationships.
“Baywatch” inspired a spinoff called “Baywatch Nights,” running from 1995 to 1997. The original version of the show featured Hasselhoff, whose character was now part of a private detective agency (the show started life as a...
- 4/15/2023
- by Drew Taylor
- The Wrap
Click here to read the full article.
Gene Cipriano, the always busy woodwind player who soloed on tenor sax for Tony Curtis in Some Like It Hot and recorded with everyone from Miles Davis, Rosemary Clooney and Frank Sinatra to Glen Campbell, Paul McCartney and Olivia Newton-John, has died. He was 94.
Cipriano died Nov. 12 of natural causes at his home in Studio City, his son Paul told The Hollywood Reporter.
Perhaps the most recorded woodwind player in show business history, Cipriano played soprano, alto, tenor, baritone and bass saxophones, all the clarinets and flutes, the oboe and bass oboe, the piccolo and the English horn.
Affectionally known as “Cip,” the session musician performed as a member of the Academy Awards Orchestra in the neighborhood of 60 times since 1958. (At the 1977 show, he exchanged “yo’s” with Barbra Streisand, who had just arrived at the podium after having won for “Evergreen.”)
Cipriano...
Gene Cipriano, the always busy woodwind player who soloed on tenor sax for Tony Curtis in Some Like It Hot and recorded with everyone from Miles Davis, Rosemary Clooney and Frank Sinatra to Glen Campbell, Paul McCartney and Olivia Newton-John, has died. He was 94.
Cipriano died Nov. 12 of natural causes at his home in Studio City, his son Paul told The Hollywood Reporter.
Perhaps the most recorded woodwind player in show business history, Cipriano played soprano, alto, tenor, baritone and bass saxophones, all the clarinets and flutes, the oboe and bass oboe, the piccolo and the English horn.
Affectionally known as “Cip,” the session musician performed as a member of the Academy Awards Orchestra in the neighborhood of 60 times since 1958. (At the 1977 show, he exchanged “yo’s” with Barbra Streisand, who had just arrived at the podium after having won for “Evergreen.”)
Cipriano...
- 11/27/2022
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
Andrew Prine, the charming character actor who proved quite comfortable in the saddle in Bandolero!, Chisum, Wide Country and dozens of other Westerns on television and the big screen, has died. He was 86.
He died Monday in Paris of natural causes while on vacation with his wife, actress-producer Heather Lowe, she told The Hollywood Reporter. “He was the sweetest prince,” she said.
Prine also played the brother of Helen Keller (Patty Duke in an Oscar-winning turn) in The Miracle Worker (1962) and portrayed a lawman in Texarkana, Arkansas, who hunts a hooded serial killer alongside Ben Johnson in the cult classic The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976).
Later in his career, he stood out as Confederate Gen. Richard B. Garnett in the sprawling Gettysburg (1993).
In 1962-63, the lanky Prine got a taste of fame when he starred as the younger brother of Earl Holliman — their...
Andrew Prine, the charming character actor who proved quite comfortable in the saddle in Bandolero!, Chisum, Wide Country and dozens of other Westerns on television and the big screen, has died. He was 86.
He died Monday in Paris of natural causes while on vacation with his wife, actress-producer Heather Lowe, she told The Hollywood Reporter. “He was the sweetest prince,” she said.
Prine also played the brother of Helen Keller (Patty Duke in an Oscar-winning turn) in The Miracle Worker (1962) and portrayed a lawman in Texarkana, Arkansas, who hunts a hooded serial killer alongside Ben Johnson in the cult classic The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976).
Later in his career, he stood out as Confederate Gen. Richard B. Garnett in the sprawling Gettysburg (1993).
In 1962-63, the lanky Prine got a taste of fame when he starred as the younger brother of Earl Holliman — their...
- 11/3/2022
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Joe E. Tata, the character actor best known for playing Nat Bussichio in the popular teen drama series “Beverly Hills, 90210,” died on Wednesday, his daughter Kelly announced on their GoFundMe page. He was 85.
He had long been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, having been officially diagnosed in 2018, according to Kelly’s GoFundMe fundraiser.
“The remaining funds raised from this campaign will be donated to the Alzheimer’s Association,” she wrote.
“90210” star Ian Ziering posted on Instagram a heartfelt account of his experiences working with Tata.
“Joey was truly an Og, I remember seeing him on the Rockford files with James Garner years before we worked together on 90210. He was often one of the background villains in the original Batman series,” Ziering said in his post. “One of the happiest people I’ve ever worked with, he was as generous with his wisdom as he was with his kindness.
He had long been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, having been officially diagnosed in 2018, according to Kelly’s GoFundMe fundraiser.
“The remaining funds raised from this campaign will be donated to the Alzheimer’s Association,” she wrote.
“90210” star Ian Ziering posted on Instagram a heartfelt account of his experiences working with Tata.
“Joey was truly an Og, I remember seeing him on the Rockford files with James Garner years before we worked together on 90210. He was often one of the background villains in the original Batman series,” Ziering said in his post. “One of the happiest people I’ve ever worked with, he was as generous with his wisdom as he was with his kindness.
- 8/25/2022
- by EJ Panaligan
- Variety Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Joe E. Tata, who portrayed the endearing Peach Pit diner owner Nat Bussichio on all 10 seasons of the original Beverly Hills, 90210, has died. He was 85.
Tata died Wednesday night, his daughter, Kelly Katharine Tata, announced on a GoFundMe page. Earlier, she wrote that he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2018 and that he had been moved in April to the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills.
In what has to be some kind of record, Tata played henchmen to three supervillains — Frank Gorshin’s the Riddler, Burgess Meredith’s the Penguin and Victor Buono’s King Tut — on the 1966-68 ABC series Batman.
He also appeared in the ’60s on a trio of Irwin Allen-produced sci-fi shows — ABC’s The Time Tunnel (once as Napoleon) and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and CBS’ Lost in Space...
Joe E. Tata, who portrayed the endearing Peach Pit diner owner Nat Bussichio on all 10 seasons of the original Beverly Hills, 90210, has died. He was 85.
Tata died Wednesday night, his daughter, Kelly Katharine Tata, announced on a GoFundMe page. Earlier, she wrote that he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2018 and that he had been moved in April to the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills.
In what has to be some kind of record, Tata played henchmen to three supervillains — Frank Gorshin’s the Riddler, Burgess Meredith’s the Penguin and Victor Buono’s King Tut — on the 1966-68 ABC series Batman.
He also appeared in the ’60s on a trio of Irwin Allen-produced sci-fi shows — ABC’s The Time Tunnel (once as Napoleon) and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and CBS’ Lost in Space...
- 8/25/2022
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Lady in a Cage
Blu ray
ViaVision [Imprint]
1964/ B&w / 1.78:1 / 95 Minutes
Starring Olivia de Havilland, James Caan, Ann Sothern
Directed by Walter Grauman
Though the title suggests anything from a feminist manifesto to a women-in-prison melodrama, Lady in a Cage is in fact a home invasion thriller with a mile-wide mean streak. Critics in 1964 saw the film itself as the intruder, a smash and grab aberration wallowing in bloodshed and perversion. In The New York Times, Bosley Crowther labeled it as “reprehensible.” Gossipmonger Hedda Hopper wailed, “The picture should be burned.” Chances are good the reaction to Walter Grauman’s claustrophobic shocker would have been far less shrill without the presence of its leading lady, Olivia de Havilland—according to Hollywood taste-makers, Maid Marian should not be consorting with such riffraff.
De Havilland plays Cornelia Hilyard, a ripely beautiful dowager who lives in a spacious if drably generic house in an unnamed city.
Blu ray
ViaVision [Imprint]
1964/ B&w / 1.78:1 / 95 Minutes
Starring Olivia de Havilland, James Caan, Ann Sothern
Directed by Walter Grauman
Though the title suggests anything from a feminist manifesto to a women-in-prison melodrama, Lady in a Cage is in fact a home invasion thriller with a mile-wide mean streak. Critics in 1964 saw the film itself as the intruder, a smash and grab aberration wallowing in bloodshed and perversion. In The New York Times, Bosley Crowther labeled it as “reprehensible.” Gossipmonger Hedda Hopper wailed, “The picture should be burned.” Chances are good the reaction to Walter Grauman’s claustrophobic shocker would have been far less shrill without the presence of its leading lady, Olivia de Havilland—according to Hollywood taste-makers, Maid Marian should not be consorting with such riffraff.
De Havilland plays Cornelia Hilyard, a ripely beautiful dowager who lives in a spacious if drably generic house in an unnamed city.
- 2/8/2022
- by Charlie Largent
- Trailers from Hell
John Williams turns 90 years old on Feb. 8. And the world’s most famous film composer shows no signs of slowing down.
The five-time Oscar winner, creator of many of the most well-known movie themes of all time — everything from “Jaws” and “Star Wars” to “E.T.” and “Harry Potter” — is finishing work on two new film scores and, Covid permitting, plans to conduct concerts with at least five orchestras between April and November.
Commemorating Williams’ nonagenarian status is the release of “John Williams: The Berlin Concert,” a two-disc Deutsche Grammophon set recorded during the composer’s Oct. 14-16 concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic.
The 93-minute collection includes many of Williams’ familiar signature tunes — “Star Wars,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “Jurassic Park,” “Superman” — plus a few less familiar pieces, including his theme for “Solo: A Star Wars Story” and his moving, non-film “Elegy for Cello and Orchestra.”
The Berlin album might...
The five-time Oscar winner, creator of many of the most well-known movie themes of all time — everything from “Jaws” and “Star Wars” to “E.T.” and “Harry Potter” — is finishing work on two new film scores and, Covid permitting, plans to conduct concerts with at least five orchestras between April and November.
Commemorating Williams’ nonagenarian status is the release of “John Williams: The Berlin Concert,” a two-disc Deutsche Grammophon set recorded during the composer’s Oct. 14-16 concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic.
The 93-minute collection includes many of Williams’ familiar signature tunes — “Star Wars,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “Jurassic Park,” “Superman” — plus a few less familiar pieces, including his theme for “Solo: A Star Wars Story” and his moving, non-film “Elegy for Cello and Orchestra.”
The Berlin album might...
- 2/7/2022
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
After years of second-class citizenship, it appears that music for television is finally being taken seriously by Grammy voters, based on this year’s unprecedented number of TV nominations in the visual media categories.
Seven of the 18 nominations, or more than one-third of the total in the score soundtrack, compilation soundtrack, and original song categories, originated in projects for the home screen.
By comparison, during the previous 20 years of Grammy nominations, Grammy voters chose only seven scores, 13 compilation albums and seven songs to compete in those three categories. And only three won: a song from “Malcolm in the Middle” (2001), the soundtrack from “Boardwalk Empire” (2011) and the score for “Chernobyl” (2019).
Grammy has rewarded TV music occasionally through the years. Henry Mancini’s jazzy “Peter Gunn” soundtrack won album of the year for 1958, the only time a TV soundtrack has actually triumphed in one of the top three categories.
TV themes have...
Seven of the 18 nominations, or more than one-third of the total in the score soundtrack, compilation soundtrack, and original song categories, originated in projects for the home screen.
By comparison, during the previous 20 years of Grammy nominations, Grammy voters chose only seven scores, 13 compilation albums and seven songs to compete in those three categories. And only three won: a song from “Malcolm in the Middle” (2001), the soundtrack from “Boardwalk Empire” (2011) and the score for “Chernobyl” (2019).
Grammy has rewarded TV music occasionally through the years. Henry Mancini’s jazzy “Peter Gunn” soundtrack won album of the year for 1958, the only time a TV soundtrack has actually triumphed in one of the top three categories.
TV themes have...
- 12/17/2021
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
Blake Edwards would’ve celebrated his 97th birthday on July 26, 2019. Though best known for his comedies, the Oscar-nominated director dipped his toes into a number of different genres throughout his career, including thrillers, musicals and westerns. In honor of his birthday, let’s take a look back at 15 of his greatest films, ranked worst to best.
Born in 1922, Edwards got his start as an actor before becoming a writer for movies and television. He rose to prominence after creating the TV show “Peter Gunn,” which starred Craig Stevens as a super-stylish detective. The series brought Edwards Emmy nominations for writing and directing in 1959.
He enjoyed his greatest big screen successes with the “Pink Panther” series, featuring Peter Sellers as bumbling French detective Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The films established Edwards as a master of physical comedy and sight gags, which his leading man was more than capable of delivering. The two...
Born in 1922, Edwards got his start as an actor before becoming a writer for movies and television. He rose to prominence after creating the TV show “Peter Gunn,” which starred Craig Stevens as a super-stylish detective. The series brought Edwards Emmy nominations for writing and directing in 1959.
He enjoyed his greatest big screen successes with the “Pink Panther” series, featuring Peter Sellers as bumbling French detective Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The films established Edwards as a master of physical comedy and sight gags, which his leading man was more than capable of delivering. The two...
- 7/26/2019
- by Zach Laws
- Gold Derby
Blake Edwards would’ve celebrated his 97th birthday on July 26, 2019. Though best known for his comedies, the Oscar-nominated director dipped his toes into a number of different genres throughout his career, including thrillers, musicals and westerns. In honor of his birthday, let’s take a look back at 15 of his greatest films, ranked worst to best.
Born in 1922, Edwards got his start as an actor before becoming a writer for movies and television. He rose to prominence after creating the TV show “Peter Gunn,” which starred Craig Stevens as a super-stylish detective. The series brought Edwards Emmy nominations for writing and directing in 1959.
SEEJulie Andrews movies: 15 greatest films ranked from worst to best
He enjoyed his greatest big screen successes with the “Pink Panther” series, featuring Peter Sellers as bumbling French detective Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The films established Edwards as a master of physical comedy and sight gags, which his...
Born in 1922, Edwards got his start as an actor before becoming a writer for movies and television. He rose to prominence after creating the TV show “Peter Gunn,” which starred Craig Stevens as a super-stylish detective. The series brought Edwards Emmy nominations for writing and directing in 1959.
SEEJulie Andrews movies: 15 greatest films ranked from worst to best
He enjoyed his greatest big screen successes with the “Pink Panther” series, featuring Peter Sellers as bumbling French detective Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The films established Edwards as a master of physical comedy and sight gags, which his...
- 7/26/2019
- by Zach Laws and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Here’s how one pushed the limits of good taste in 1974. James Caan and Alan Arkin run the gamut of racist, raunchy, sexist & homophobic jokes as bad boy cops breaking the rules, and director Richard Rush delivers some impressive, expensive action stunts on location in San Francisco. Does it get a pass because it’s ‘outrageous?’ The public surely thought so. If the star chemistry works the excess won’t matter. With Valerie Harper, Loretta Swit and Jack Kruschen.
Freebie and the Bean
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1974 / Color / 2:40 widescreen / 113 min. / Street Date August 8, 2017 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Alan Arkin, James Caan, Valerie Harper, Loretta Swit, Jack Kruschen, Mike Kellin, Paul Koslo, Linda Marsh, Alex Rocco.
Cinematography: Laszlo Kovacs
Film Editors: Michael MacLean, Fredric Steinkamp
Original Music: Dominic Frontiere
Written by Robert Kaufman, Floyd Mutrux
Produced and Directed by Richard Rush
‘Buddy’ pictures have been around forever, but I...
Freebie and the Bean
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1974 / Color / 2:40 widescreen / 113 min. / Street Date August 8, 2017 / available through the WBshop / 21.99
Starring: Alan Arkin, James Caan, Valerie Harper, Loretta Swit, Jack Kruschen, Mike Kellin, Paul Koslo, Linda Marsh, Alex Rocco.
Cinematography: Laszlo Kovacs
Film Editors: Michael MacLean, Fredric Steinkamp
Original Music: Dominic Frontiere
Written by Robert Kaufman, Floyd Mutrux
Produced and Directed by Richard Rush
‘Buddy’ pictures have been around forever, but I...
- 8/8/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
'The Pink Panther' with Peter Sellers: Blake Edwards' 1963 comedy hit and its many sequels revolve around one of the most iconic film characters of the 20th century: clueless, thick-accented Inspector Clouseau – in some quarters surely deemed politically incorrect, or 'insensitive,' despite the lack of brown face make-up à la Sellers' clueless Indian guest in Edwards' 'The Party.' 'The Pink Panther' movies [1] There were a total of eight big-screen Pink Panther movies co-written and directed by Blake Edwards, most of them starring Peter Sellers – even after his death in 1980. Edwards was also one of the producers of every (direct) Pink Panther sequel, from A Shot in the Dark to Curse of the Pink Panther. Despite its iconic lead character, the last three movies in the Pink Panther franchise were box office bombs. Two of these, The Trail of the Pink Panther and Curse of the Pink Panther, were co-written by Edwards' son,...
- 5/29/2017
- by altfilmguide
- Alt Film Guide
Unsung actress Beverly Garland becomes TV’s first lady cop, in what’s claimed to be the first TV show filmed on the streets of New York City. This one-season wonder from 1957 has vintage locations, fairly tough-minded storylines and solid performances, from Bev and a vast gallery of stage and TV actors on the way up.
Decoy
(Policewoman Decoy)
TV Series
DVD
Film Chest Media
1957-’58 / B&W / 1:33 flat full frame (TV) / 39 x 30 min. / Street Date May 30, 2017 / 19.98
Starring: Beverly Garland
Art Direction (some episodes): Mel Bourne
Original Music: Wladimir Selinsky
Written by Lillian Andrews, Nicholas E. Baehr, Cy Chermak, Jerome Coopersmith, Don Ettlinger, Frances Frankel, Steven Gardner, Abram S. Ginnes, Mel Goldberg, Saul Levitt, Leon Tokatyan
Produced by Arthur H. Singer, David Alexander, Stuart Rosenberg, Everett Rosenthal
Directed by Teddy Sills, Stuart Rosenberg, David Alexander, Michael Gordon, Don Medford, Arthur H. Singer, Marc Daniels
How did I experience...
Decoy
(Policewoman Decoy)
TV Series
DVD
Film Chest Media
1957-’58 / B&W / 1:33 flat full frame (TV) / 39 x 30 min. / Street Date May 30, 2017 / 19.98
Starring: Beverly Garland
Art Direction (some episodes): Mel Bourne
Original Music: Wladimir Selinsky
Written by Lillian Andrews, Nicholas E. Baehr, Cy Chermak, Jerome Coopersmith, Don Ettlinger, Frances Frankel, Steven Gardner, Abram S. Ginnes, Mel Goldberg, Saul Levitt, Leon Tokatyan
Produced by Arthur H. Singer, David Alexander, Stuart Rosenberg, Everett Rosenthal
Directed by Teddy Sills, Stuart Rosenberg, David Alexander, Michael Gordon, Don Medford, Arthur H. Singer, Marc Daniels
How did I experience...
- 5/16/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Reel-Important People is a monthly column that highlights those individuals in or related to the movies that have left us in recent weeks. Below you'll find names big and small and from all areas of the industry, though each was significant to the movies in his or her own way. Lola Albright (1924-2017) - Actress, Singer. A regular on TV's Peter Gunn, she also appears in the movies Easter Parade, The Pirate, Champion, The Way West, The Tender Trap, Joy House, Lord Love a Duck, The Monolith Monsters and Kid Galahad. She died on March 23. (THR) Chuck Barris (1929-2017) - Game Show Host, Producer, Director, Songwriter, Author. He created The Dating Game, The Newlywed Game and The Gong Show, hosting the latter, and...
Read More...
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- 4/5/2017
- by Christopher Campbell
- Movies.com
Variety Cher has dropped out of her expected return to acting with Flint, a TV movie about the water crisis in Michigan citing "serious family issues" (sending her good vibes)
Coming Soon Joseph Gordon-Levitt & Channing Tatum will team-up for an R rated jukebox musical called Wingmen about two pilots who crash land in Vegas
Variety Lola Albright film actress of the 1940s and 1950s and know for TV's Peter Gunn has died at 92
NPR there's a way to search IMDb now for movies that are female created or female focused... but it's tricky
Vanity Fair life tips from Shirley Maclaine
/Film Soderbergh's Cinemax series The Knick has been cancelled. :(
Av Club Wonder Woman pees fire
Interview shares an old interview / photo session of Penélope Cruz from '99
Playbill recaps 'everything we know (so far) about Mary Poppins Returns' but they leave out the most important news that we covered...
Coming Soon Joseph Gordon-Levitt & Channing Tatum will team-up for an R rated jukebox musical called Wingmen about two pilots who crash land in Vegas
Variety Lola Albright film actress of the 1940s and 1950s and know for TV's Peter Gunn has died at 92
NPR there's a way to search IMDb now for movies that are female created or female focused... but it's tricky
Vanity Fair life tips from Shirley Maclaine
/Film Soderbergh's Cinemax series The Knick has been cancelled. :(
Av Club Wonder Woman pees fire
Interview shares an old interview / photo session of Penélope Cruz from '99
Playbill recaps 'everything we know (so far) about Mary Poppins Returns' but they leave out the most important news that we covered...
- 3/25/2017
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Sultry singer and actress Lola Albright, who starred in TV’s Peter Gunn and in Kirk Douglas’s classic film Champion, has died at 92.
Albright died Thursday in Toluca Lake, California, her friend, Eric Anderson, confirmed to Ohio’s Akron Beacon Journal.
“She went very peacefully,” friend Eric Anderson said. “She died at 7:20 a.m. of natural causes. We loved her so much.”
Albright’s breakout role came as Douglas’s spurned lover in the boxing classic Champion, which earned Douglas an Oscar nomination.
She’s perhaps best remembered for playing the smokey-voiced nightclub singer Edie Hart opposite Craig Stevens...
Albright died Thursday in Toluca Lake, California, her friend, Eric Anderson, confirmed to Ohio’s Akron Beacon Journal.
“She went very peacefully,” friend Eric Anderson said. “She died at 7:20 a.m. of natural causes. We loved her so much.”
Albright’s breakout role came as Douglas’s spurned lover in the boxing classic Champion, which earned Douglas an Oscar nomination.
She’s perhaps best remembered for playing the smokey-voiced nightclub singer Edie Hart opposite Craig Stevens...
- 3/25/2017
- by Mike Miller
- PEOPLE.com
Lola Albright, the charming actress with the smoky voice who sang and starred on TV's Peter Gunn and was spurned by the back-stabbing Kirk Douglas in the classic 1949 boxing drama Champion, has died. She was 92.
Albright died Thursday in a home in the Toluca Lake enclave of Los Angeles, her friend, Eric Anderson, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. News of her death was first reported by the Akron Beacon-Journal; she was born and raised in the Ohio city.
Albright was perhaps best known for playing the sultry singer Edie Hart, the girlfriend of private eye Craig Stevens,...
Albright died Thursday in a home in the Toluca Lake enclave of Los Angeles, her friend, Eric Anderson, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. News of her death was first reported by the Akron Beacon-Journal; she was born and raised in the Ohio city.
Albright was perhaps best known for playing the sultry singer Edie Hart, the girlfriend of private eye Craig Stevens,...
- 3/24/2017
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
It’s icky, drippy and grindingly gross — and will make your forehead itch — but Abel Ferrara’s Bowery-set dime store horror opus has withstood the test of time. It’s a decent enough psychodrama, if one can set aside all the psychological-philosophical booshwah that’s leaked into horror criticism. Oops, Savant’s guilty of that too.
The Driller Killer
Blu-ray + DVD
Arrow Video
1979 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 101, 96 min. / Street Date December 13, 2017 / 39.95
Starring Abel Ferrara, Carolyn Marz, Baybi Day, Harry Schultz, Alan Wynroth
Cinematography Ken Kelsch, Jimmy Spears
Film Editor Jimmy Laine, Orlando Gallini
Original Music Joe Delia
Written by N.G. St. John
Produced by Rochelle Weisberg
Directed by Abel Ferrara
As some may have noticed, I’ve mellowed on the output of low-budget and independent horror efforts from the 1970s. While I was in film school bending my own tastes toward high production values and artistic merit, some crazy young filmmakers,...
The Driller Killer
Blu-ray + DVD
Arrow Video
1979 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 101, 96 min. / Street Date December 13, 2017 / 39.95
Starring Abel Ferrara, Carolyn Marz, Baybi Day, Harry Schultz, Alan Wynroth
Cinematography Ken Kelsch, Jimmy Spears
Film Editor Jimmy Laine, Orlando Gallini
Original Music Joe Delia
Written by N.G. St. John
Produced by Rochelle Weisberg
Directed by Abel Ferrara
As some may have noticed, I’ve mellowed on the output of low-budget and independent horror efforts from the 1970s. While I was in film school bending my own tastes toward high production values and artistic merit, some crazy young filmmakers,...
- 1/3/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Otto Preminger looks at police corruption and comes up with a classy noir starring Dana Andrews as a rogue cop and Gene Tierney as the woman whose father he accidentally frames for murder. With Karl Malden, Gary Merrill and velvety-slick B&W cinematography by Joseph Lashelle. Where the Sidewalk Ends Blu-ray Twilight Time Limited Edition 1950 / B&W / 1:37 Academy / 95 min. / Ship Date February 9, 2016 / available through Twilight Time Movies / 29.95 Starring Dana Andrews, Gene Tierney, Gary Merrill, Bert Freed, Tom Tully, Karl Malden, Ruth Donnelly, Craig Stevens. Cinematography Joseph Lashelle Art Direction J. Russell Spencer, Lyle Wheeler Film Editor Louis R. Loeffler Original Music Cyril J. Mockridge Written by Ben Hecht, Robert E. Kent, Frank P. Rosenberg, Victor Trivas from the novel Night Cry by William L. Stuart Produced and Directed by Otto Preminger
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Want to see an example of a gloriously polished studio production, a film noir...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
Want to see an example of a gloriously polished studio production, a film noir...
- 2/21/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
When I was younger, so much, much, much younger than today, there was a television show. Then, when I was a little older, they added a second channel and we got a second show. Eventually that led to four channels and lots more shows. One of those shows was Peter Gunn.
Peter Gunn was a private eye show that aired on NBC then ABC from September 22, 1958 until September 18, 1961. It starred Craig Stevens as the eponymous P.I. and is probably best remembered for its jazz sound track and the theme song written by Henry Mancini. Even if you’ve never seen an episode of the show, I’ll bet you’ve heard the theme song.
I’ll also bet you don’t think I’m here to write about a TV theme song. There, you’d be correct. I’m here to write about the show. Specifically, Season 1, Episode 28, the April 6, 1959 episode,...
Peter Gunn was a private eye show that aired on NBC then ABC from September 22, 1958 until September 18, 1961. It starred Craig Stevens as the eponymous P.I. and is probably best remembered for its jazz sound track and the theme song written by Henry Mancini. Even if you’ve never seen an episode of the show, I’ll bet you’ve heard the theme song.
I’ll also bet you don’t think I’m here to write about a TV theme song. There, you’d be correct. I’m here to write about the show. Specifically, Season 1, Episode 28, the April 6, 1959 episode,...
- 7/11/2014
- by Bob Ingersoll
- Comicmix.com
The Grammys! They’re this coming Sunday and I almost forgot! To celebrate, here are all 55 winners of the Record of the Year Grammy ranked for your consideration. Now beat it.
55. “Don’t Worry Be Happy,” Bobby McFerrin
Finger-snapping never sounded so un-snappy.
54. “Rosanna,” Toto
You know, a Grammy windfall was bound to happen one of those exactly 1982 bands (Air Supply, Foreigner, Reo Speedwagon, etc), and Toto was the big winner. “Rosanna” is fun, but Grammy-worthy?
53. “Sunny Came Home,” Shawn Colvin
You know, a Grammy windfall was bound to happen to one of those exactly 1998 female singer-songwriters (Meredith Brooks, Natalie Imbruglia, Paula Cole, etc.), and Shawn Colvin was the big winner. “Sunny Came Home” is contemplative, but Grammy-worthy?
52. “Change the World,” Eric Clapton
Sort of annoying when a legendary artist wins for his most palatable and forgettable material. “Change the World” is merely radio-friendly, not an artistic breakthrough.
51. “We are the World,...
55. “Don’t Worry Be Happy,” Bobby McFerrin
Finger-snapping never sounded so un-snappy.
54. “Rosanna,” Toto
You know, a Grammy windfall was bound to happen one of those exactly 1982 bands (Air Supply, Foreigner, Reo Speedwagon, etc), and Toto was the big winner. “Rosanna” is fun, but Grammy-worthy?
53. “Sunny Came Home,” Shawn Colvin
You know, a Grammy windfall was bound to happen to one of those exactly 1998 female singer-songwriters (Meredith Brooks, Natalie Imbruglia, Paula Cole, etc.), and Shawn Colvin was the big winner. “Sunny Came Home” is contemplative, but Grammy-worthy?
52. “Change the World,” Eric Clapton
Sort of annoying when a legendary artist wins for his most palatable and forgettable material. “Change the World” is merely radio-friendly, not an artistic breakthrough.
51. “We are the World,...
- 1/21/2014
- by Louis Virtel
- The Backlot
Joseph Ruskin, an actor known for roles on film and television, died on Saturday (Dec. 28). He was 89, according to the Screen Actors' Guild.
Ruskin's almost 60-year career began with TV roles -- mostly in westerns -- in the 1950s. Over the years, the character actor appeared in a wide variety of roles, some of them even in the same show. Ruskin appeared on such programs as "Peter Gunn," "The Twilight Zone," "The Untouchables," "Mister Ed," "Get Smart," "Charlie's Angels" and more.
One of Ruskin's earliest notable roles was as Galt in the original "Star Trek" series -- the actor later had the notable distinction of appearing in a "Star Trek" movie as well as two of the show's later spinoffs, "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and "Star Trek: Voyager." Ruskin played the role of Alain Christophe in three episodes of "Alias" in 2002, a departure from earlier roles in which he...
Ruskin's almost 60-year career began with TV roles -- mostly in westerns -- in the 1950s. Over the years, the character actor appeared in a wide variety of roles, some of them even in the same show. Ruskin appeared on such programs as "Peter Gunn," "The Twilight Zone," "The Untouchables," "Mister Ed," "Get Smart," "Charlie's Angels" and more.
One of Ruskin's earliest notable roles was as Galt in the original "Star Trek" series -- the actor later had the notable distinction of appearing in a "Star Trek" movie as well as two of the show's later spinoffs, "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and "Star Trek: Voyager." Ruskin played the role of Alain Christophe in three episodes of "Alias" in 2002, a departure from earlier roles in which he...
- 1/2/2014
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Pop2it
TBS and TNT announced on Wednesday that they are about to become the first national networks to live stream on-air content across multiple platforms 24/7.
The networks made the announcement during TNT and TBS's annual upfront presentation in New York, noting that their content will be streamed through their websites and a pair of newly created apps: Watch TNT and Watch TBS.
"Starting this summer, subscribers will be able to watch TBS and TNT live –- anytime, anywhere, on multiple devices," Steve Koonin, president of Turner Entertainment Networks, told the upfront audience. Additional platforms for TBS and TNT's live streaming will be added by the end of the year.
TNT's coverage of the NBA games, TBS's coverage of Major League Baseball and both network's coverage of the Ncaa will be available for live streaming as well.
Audiences will soon have the opportunity to watch some new content from some...
The networks made the announcement during TNT and TBS's annual upfront presentation in New York, noting that their content will be streamed through their websites and a pair of newly created apps: Watch TNT and Watch TBS.
"Starting this summer, subscribers will be able to watch TBS and TNT live –- anytime, anywhere, on multiple devices," Steve Koonin, president of Turner Entertainment Networks, told the upfront audience. Additional platforms for TBS and TNT's live streaming will be added by the end of the year.
TNT's coverage of the NBA games, TBS's coverage of Major League Baseball and both network's coverage of the Ncaa will be available for live streaming as well.
Audiences will soon have the opportunity to watch some new content from some...
- 5/15/2013
- by Jaimie Etkin
- Huffington Post
We already know TNT is bringing Sean Bean, Eric Dane, and the mind of Frank Darabont back to our TVs, but at today’s Turner Upfront, TNT and TBS announced some more big names developing potential shows for the networks — including Steven Spielberg, Sylvester Stallone, Steve Carell, Jamie Foxx, Elizabeth Banks, Diablo Cody, Denis Leary, Dick Wolf, and Nicholas Sparks. The loglines:
TNT Scripted Series:
• Portal House: This project is the story of a group of young scientists who, while investigating what they believe to be a haunted house, stumble upon a portal into the time-space continuum. Things then take...
TNT Scripted Series:
• Portal House: This project is the story of a group of young scientists who, while investigating what they believe to be a haunted house, stumble upon a portal into the time-space continuum. Things then take...
- 5/15/2013
- by Mandi Bierly
- EW - Inside TV
At its upfront today, TNT and TBS unveiled scripted and unscripted development slates, which include projects from Steven Spielberg, Steve Carell, Diablo Cody, Denis Leary, Sylvester Stallone, Dick Wolf, Nicholas Sparks, Marcia Clark, Dee Johnson, Walt Becker, Jamie Foxx and James Duff. Here is the list with details: Related: TBS & TNT To Offer Live Streaming 24/7 TNT Scripted Series Development Portal House This project is the story of a group of young scientists who, while investigating what they believe to be a haunted house, stumble upon a portal into the time-space continuum. Things then take a turn for the worse when one of their own vanishes into the portal. – Executive Producers: Steven Spielberg, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Scott Rosenberg (writer), Jeff Pinkner (writer), Josh Appelbaum (writer) and Andre Nemec (writer) – Production Company/Studio: Amblin Television Peter Gunn This re-imagining of the classic post-modern Blake Edwards-Craig Stevens’ series centers on...
- 5/15/2013
- by NELLIE ANDREEVA
- Deadline TV
TNT and TBS unveiled robust slates of scripted and nonscripted fare in development from a roster of top producers including Steven Spielberg, Diablo Cody, Denis Leary, Sylvester Stallone, Dick Wolf, Jamie Foxx and more as it continues its push to become a year-round home to original programming. TNT, which recently added dramas The Last Ship (Michael Bay) and Legends (Howard Gordon), will build its drama brand with seven scripted dramas including a reimagining of Blake Edwards-Craig Stevens series Peter Gunn from exec producer Spielberg. On the unscripted side, TNT -- which recently picked up Boston's Finest for an
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- 5/15/2013
- by Lesley Goldberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
By Harvey Chartrand
Mr. Lucky: The Complete Series is now available for the first time ever as a 4-dvd box set from Timeless Media Group… all 34 episodes, with a running time of about 840 minutes. Mr. Lucky– created by writer/director Blake Edwards (Peter Gunn) – ran for only one season (from 1959 to 1960), even though it was a hit with viewers.
This adventure/crime drama is a sort of Peter Gunn Lite, featuring a lush, organ-powered theme song by Henry Mancini (a bonus CD of Mr. Lucky’s soundtrack is included in the set), an assortment of shady characters aboard a floating casino, and competent acting by series regulars John Vivyan (as suave professional gambler Mr. Lucky), Ross Martin (as his sidekick and business partner Andamo), Pippa Scott (as Mr. Lucky’s girlfriend Maggie Shank-Rutherford) and Tom Brown (as Lieutenant Rovacs, Mr. Lucky’s...
By Harvey Chartrand
Mr. Lucky: The Complete Series is now available for the first time ever as a 4-dvd box set from Timeless Media Group… all 34 episodes, with a running time of about 840 minutes. Mr. Lucky– created by writer/director Blake Edwards (Peter Gunn) – ran for only one season (from 1959 to 1960), even though it was a hit with viewers.
This adventure/crime drama is a sort of Peter Gunn Lite, featuring a lush, organ-powered theme song by Henry Mancini (a bonus CD of Mr. Lucky’s soundtrack is included in the set), an assortment of shady characters aboard a floating casino, and competent acting by series regulars John Vivyan (as suave professional gambler Mr. Lucky), Ross Martin (as his sidekick and business partner Andamo), Pippa Scott (as Mr. Lucky’s girlfriend Maggie Shank-Rutherford) and Tom Brown (as Lieutenant Rovacs, Mr. Lucky’s...
- 2/15/2013
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Anybody who has ever been to a high school reunion (and I’ve been to my share) will tell you that the calendar and the clock can be incredibly cruel (particularly when combined with the long-term effects of gravity, but let’s not go there).
Time punishes creative works as well. Some work grows dated, stale, stiff. Time and the evolving form of the given art leaves a once vibrant and exciting work behind looking dead and obsolete.
More cruel, perhaps, is work that is simply…forgotten. Not for any good reason. Good as it was, maybe it was simply not successful enough to lodge very deeply in the popular consciousness; working well enough in its day, but soon lost among the ever-growing detritus of a lot of other pieces of yesterday.
Movie music is particularly vulnerable to the cruelties of time. Outside of the form’s devotees, it rarely...
Time punishes creative works as well. Some work grows dated, stale, stiff. Time and the evolving form of the given art leaves a once vibrant and exciting work behind looking dead and obsolete.
More cruel, perhaps, is work that is simply…forgotten. Not for any good reason. Good as it was, maybe it was simply not successful enough to lodge very deeply in the popular consciousness; working well enough in its day, but soon lost among the ever-growing detritus of a lot of other pieces of yesterday.
Movie music is particularly vulnerable to the cruelties of time. Outside of the form’s devotees, it rarely...
- 1/14/2013
- by Bill Mesce
- SoundOnSight
Normal 0 false false false En-us X-none X-none
By Harvey F. Chartrand
Peter Gunn: The Complete Series is now available for the first time ever as a 12-dvd box set from Timeless Media Group… all 114 episodes, with a running time of over 58 hours.
Peter Gunn – created and produced by Blake Edwards – ran for three seasons – from 1958 to 1961. This classic detective show was a delightful blend of film noir and fifties cool, featuring a modern jazz score by Henry Mancini (a bonus CD of the soundtrack is included in the set), outbreaks of the old ultra-violence, a gallery of eccentric and sleazy characters (usually informants, gangsters and Beat Generation bohemians), and great acting by series leads Craig Stevens (as Gunn), Lola Albright (as his squeeze, sultry nightclub singer Edie Hart) and Herschel Bernardi (as Gunn’s friend and competitor Lieutenant Jacoby, who seems to work all by himself 24 hours a day...
By Harvey F. Chartrand
Peter Gunn: The Complete Series is now available for the first time ever as a 12-dvd box set from Timeless Media Group… all 114 episodes, with a running time of over 58 hours.
Peter Gunn – created and produced by Blake Edwards – ran for three seasons – from 1958 to 1961. This classic detective show was a delightful blend of film noir and fifties cool, featuring a modern jazz score by Henry Mancini (a bonus CD of the soundtrack is included in the set), outbreaks of the old ultra-violence, a gallery of eccentric and sleazy characters (usually informants, gangsters and Beat Generation bohemians), and great acting by series leads Craig Stevens (as Gunn), Lola Albright (as his squeeze, sultry nightclub singer Edie Hart) and Herschel Bernardi (as Gunn’s friend and competitor Lieutenant Jacoby, who seems to work all by himself 24 hours a day...
- 1/7/2013
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Spy Hunter is one of those games that feels like its been around since the beginning of video games. Originally released in 1983, it predates just about every modern day franchise, with the exception of only a few sustaining classics like Space Invaders and Pac-Man. The original put players in the driver's seat of a souped-up sports car as a spy, trying to evade and attack enemies. One of the most memorable aspects of the game was its unique top-down perspective that gave players a limited view of the horizon while their car was traveling at high speeds on both land and water. The other game-defining feature was the use of an amazing arrangement of Henry Mancini's Peter Gunn theme song as the soundtrack. Since its original release, Spy Hunter was rebooted in the early 2000s, and now it's seeing its second resurrection on the 3Ds and PlayStation Vita.
This...
This...
- 10/15/2012
- by Jason Cipriano
- MTV Multiplayer
Julie Andrews admits she's regarding the end-of-year holidays with a "bittersweet" feeling.
The much-beloved, Oscar-winning star of such screen classics as "The Sound of Music" and "Mary Poppins" is approaching the Dec. 15 anniversary of the 2010 death of her husband: Blake Edwards, the hugely versatile filmmaker whose movies ranged from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and "Experiment in Terror" to "Days of Wine and Roses" and "The Pink Panther."
And with Andrews, he made several more enduring pictures including "Victor/Victoria," "10" and "S.O.B.," a wickedly biting Hollywood satire. "He had six ideas a day," Andrews tells Zap2it, "and one never knew quite what was going to happen next. The thing that amazed me about him, in terms of his work, was how varied it was.
"It was either a musical or something like the Western 'Wild Rovers,' which is a really interesting piece. It has all the wonderful, traditional shots...
The much-beloved, Oscar-winning star of such screen classics as "The Sound of Music" and "Mary Poppins" is approaching the Dec. 15 anniversary of the 2010 death of her husband: Blake Edwards, the hugely versatile filmmaker whose movies ranged from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and "Experiment in Terror" to "Days of Wine and Roses" and "The Pink Panther."
And with Andrews, he made several more enduring pictures including "Victor/Victoria," "10" and "S.O.B.," a wickedly biting Hollywood satire. "He had six ideas a day," Andrews tells Zap2it, "and one never knew quite what was going to happen next. The thing that amazed me about him, in terms of his work, was how varied it was.
"It was either a musical or something like the Western 'Wild Rovers,' which is a really interesting piece. It has all the wonderful, traditional shots...
- 12/2/2011
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Pop2it
Every year, the Library of Congress chooses 25 sound recordings to preserve in its National Recording Registry. This year's batch is a diverse group of America's best and brightest, including the song that best represents America's favorite pastime: baseball. Yes, "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" by Edward Meeker (not Billy Corgan's version) is now in the Library of Congress. Other additions include "Tumbling Tumbleweeds," by Roy Rogers, Tim Spencer and Bob Nolan a.k.a. The Sons of the Pioneers, Al Green's "Let's Stay Together," Henry Mancini's "The Music From 'Peter Gunn'", "Stand by Your Man" by Tammy Wynette, Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band's "Trout Mask Replica," and Steely Dan's 1977 album "Aja". Guess the library needed to fill their jazz flute quota. The registry also included some less musical recordings including the songs of humpback whales and the Gopac Strategy and Instructional Tapes...
- 4/7/2011
- by Melissa Locker
- ifc.com
They're staying together for all eternity. Al Green's seminal 1971 tune "Let's Stay Together," Tammy Wynette's 1968 anthem "Stand By Your Man," and De La Soul's 1989 debut album 3 Feet High and Rising are among the latest batch of 25 recordings that will be preserved by the Library of Congress, it was announced today. Songs are singled out on an annual basis for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." On that score, you can't get any more significant than Edward Meeker's rendition of the unofficial baseball anthem "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" or Henry Mancini's famous theme for TV's Peter Gunn. More: Library of...
- 4/6/2011
- E! Online
When the news of Blake Edwards’ passing at age 88 broke earlier this month, it stood to reason his obituaries would mandatorily lead off identifying him as the writer/director behind the “Pink Panther” movies and as a “master of sophisticated slapstick comedy.” After all, the “Panther” films may not have been his best work, but, in a career marked by as many flops as hits, they were his most recognized and consistently popular efforts with six films spanning 20 years (excluding 1993’s execrable post-Peter Sellers Son of the Pink Panther).
In the longer obits, it was nice to see his more sophisticated work also remembered like romantic comedy Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), another iconic rom-com for another decade in 10 (1979), his 2/3 brilliant and 100% brutal skewering of Hollywood in S.O.B. (1981), and an early turn at drama with Days of Wine and Roses (1962), still one of the most disturbing portraits of alcoholism in a studio film.
In the longer obits, it was nice to see his more sophisticated work also remembered like romantic comedy Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), another iconic rom-com for another decade in 10 (1979), his 2/3 brilliant and 100% brutal skewering of Hollywood in S.O.B. (1981), and an early turn at drama with Days of Wine and Roses (1962), still one of the most disturbing portraits of alcoholism in a studio film.
- 12/27/2010
- by Bill Mesce
- SoundOnSight
Chicago – If you love movies, you love Blake Edwards. The iconic comic director, best known for teaming with Peter Sellers in a series of wacky Pink Panther adventures, also directed such classics as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” “Days of Wine and Roses,” “The Great Race” “10” and “Victor Victoria.” Blake Edwards died Wednesday at age 88.
Born William Blake Crump in 1922 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Edwards began his career as a writer/director in Hollywood’s “Silver Age” in the 1950’s, after a stint as an actor in the 1940’s, mostly playing uncredited military types in such films as “They were Expendable” and “The Best Years of Our Lives.” He began in radio, writing the popular “Richard Diamond” series, and moved on to television with Diamond star Dick Powell with “Four Star Playhouse.”
Peter Sellers (left) and Blake Edwards (right) trying out a gag during their memorable collaboration
Photo credit: BFI
Edwards went...
Born William Blake Crump in 1922 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Edwards began his career as a writer/director in Hollywood’s “Silver Age” in the 1950’s, after a stint as an actor in the 1940’s, mostly playing uncredited military types in such films as “They were Expendable” and “The Best Years of Our Lives.” He began in radio, writing the popular “Richard Diamond” series, and moved on to television with Diamond star Dick Powell with “Four Star Playhouse.”
Peter Sellers (left) and Blake Edwards (right) trying out a gag during their memorable collaboration
Photo credit: BFI
Edwards went...
- 12/18/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
We've got another unfortunate movie-related obituary to report this week as we close in on the end of 2010. Blake Edwards, the acclaimed director known best for his collaborations with Peter Sellers, has died at the age of 88. He succumbed to complications from pneumonia after undergoing knee surgery a few weeks ago in in Santa Monica, California. He had been involved in nearly 50 films throughout his illustrious career, and will definitely be remembered as one of the greats. He is survived by his wife Julie Andrews and their five children. Edwards' biggest hits included The Pink Panther and its sequels, starring Peter Sellers as the bumbling Inspector Clouseau, as well as Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Party, and The Great Race. He was also involved in television early on, having created the late '50s / early '60s private eye series Peter Gunn, which is where he first started working with composer Henry Mancini.
- 12/17/2010
- by Sean
- FilmJunk
Film director best known for the Pink Panther, Breakfast at Tiffany's and 10
The film-maker Blake Edwards, who has died aged 88, will be best remembered as the creator of the Pink Panther films, and as the husband of the entertainer Julie Andrews. But Edwards was a third-generation show-business figure whose complex and controversial career spanned more than 50 years, initially as an actor and writer and subsequently as one of America's most prolific producer-directors, primarily concerned with the popular genres of comedy and musicals and with creating television series.
Despite working in mainstream cinema, his maverick spirit and ego made him an uneasy partner with Hollywood studios. He famously savaged the hand that had fed him so well with S.O.B. (1981), a raucous, vitriolic attack on Tinseltown. His sophisticated work drew strongly on his love of early cinema (his stepgrandfather had directed silent films), and on his own life and psychological problems (he...
The film-maker Blake Edwards, who has died aged 88, will be best remembered as the creator of the Pink Panther films, and as the husband of the entertainer Julie Andrews. But Edwards was a third-generation show-business figure whose complex and controversial career spanned more than 50 years, initially as an actor and writer and subsequently as one of America's most prolific producer-directors, primarily concerned with the popular genres of comedy and musicals and with creating television series.
Despite working in mainstream cinema, his maverick spirit and ego made him an uneasy partner with Hollywood studios. He famously savaged the hand that had fed him so well with S.O.B. (1981), a raucous, vitriolic attack on Tinseltown. His sophisticated work drew strongly on his love of early cinema (his stepgrandfather had directed silent films), and on his own life and psychological problems (he...
- 12/17/2010
- by Brian Baxter
- The Guardian - Film News
Blake Edwards, director of the Pink Panther films, has died aged 88. We look back over his career in clips
Not many fledgling scriptwriters can upset the masses enough to make the front page of the New York Times the following day, but that's what happened when Orson Welles handpicked Blake Edwards to work on his notorious 1938 radio play War Of The Worlds.
However, it was television where Edwards began to carve out his own distinctive style. Created as a response to Mike Hammer, Sam Spade and countless other noir private dicks of the time, the late 50s NBC series Peter Gunn would prove to be the birthplace of much of Blake Edwards's style.
Slick where his counterparts were abrasive, dapper where they were downbeat, Gunn – propelled by Henry Mancini's timeless theme music – was cooler than anyone could have imagined.
Edwards wasn't responsible for the screenplay for 1961's Breakfast at Tiffany's,...
Not many fledgling scriptwriters can upset the masses enough to make the front page of the New York Times the following day, but that's what happened when Orson Welles handpicked Blake Edwards to work on his notorious 1938 radio play War Of The Worlds.
However, it was television where Edwards began to carve out his own distinctive style. Created as a response to Mike Hammer, Sam Spade and countless other noir private dicks of the time, the late 50s NBC series Peter Gunn would prove to be the birthplace of much of Blake Edwards's style.
Slick where his counterparts were abrasive, dapper where they were downbeat, Gunn – propelled by Henry Mancini's timeless theme music – was cooler than anyone could have imagined.
Edwards wasn't responsible for the screenplay for 1961's Breakfast at Tiffany's,...
- 12/17/2010
- by Stuart Heritage
- The Guardian - Film News
Screenwriter, producer and director Blake Edwards, famous for the Peter Sellers Pink Panther film cycle and for the 1979 hit 10, has died of complications in a case of pneumonia at Santa Monica.
Aged 88, Edwards was a powerful force in Hollywood comedies for nearly half a century - though many are surprised to see his name appear in the Audrey Hepburn classic Breakfast At Tiffany's, and other forays into different genres.
Edwards was born into a theatrical and cinematically-oriented family, and started his screenwriting career in Chandler country, churning out humorous detective-genre scripts, which pursuit ultimately led him to create the 'tec series Peter Gunn, the famous theme music to which was scored by Henry Mancini, later to collaborate with Edwards on the Pink Panther movies.
Edwards' greatest screen legacy remains his two-decade collaboration with Peter Sellers on the tales of the inept Inspector Clouseau, beginning with The Pink Panther in 1963. Five sequels followed,...
Aged 88, Edwards was a powerful force in Hollywood comedies for nearly half a century - though many are surprised to see his name appear in the Audrey Hepburn classic Breakfast At Tiffany's, and other forays into different genres.
Edwards was born into a theatrical and cinematically-oriented family, and started his screenwriting career in Chandler country, churning out humorous detective-genre scripts, which pursuit ultimately led him to create the 'tec series Peter Gunn, the famous theme music to which was scored by Henry Mancini, later to collaborate with Edwards on the Pink Panther movies.
Edwards' greatest screen legacy remains his two-decade collaboration with Peter Sellers on the tales of the inept Inspector Clouseau, beginning with The Pink Panther in 1963. Five sequels followed,...
- 12/17/2010
- Shadowlocked
Today director/screenwriter Blake Edwards died at the age of 88. To those born in the 1980s and upward Edwards is likely a name that won't resonate with their generation, but for the older ones that came of age in the 1960s to the beginnings of the '80s, his movies are remembered. 10 with Bo Derek and Dudley Moore. Victor/Victoria with Julie Andrews and which was nominated for a Best Screenplay Oscar. The creator of The Pink Panther and its hapless hero, Inspector Clouseau. The director of Breakfast at Tiffany's, which gave us the iconic image of a black-gloved Audrey Hepburn holding her fashionably long cigarette holder.
Edwards began his career writing the screenplays for two westerns of the late 1940s, Stampede and Panhandle. He went on to find regular work in the television shows of the 1950s, being a staff writer on The Mickey Rooney Show before selling his...
Edwards began his career writing the screenplays for two westerns of the late 1940s, Stampede and Panhandle. He went on to find regular work in the television shows of the 1950s, being a staff writer on The Mickey Rooney Show before selling his...
- 12/17/2010
- by Patrick Sauriol
- Corona's Coming Attractions
Beloved filmmaker Blake Edwards passed away late Wednesday evening after losing a battle with a recent bout of pneumonia. His wife Julie Andrews and other family members and friends were by his bedside in hospital. He was 88.
Edwards was one of the most influential comedy filmmakers from the late 60's through to the 80's. He's best known for his work directing Peter Sellers in "The Pink Panther" film series, but also helmed films like "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "10," "Victor/Victoria" (for which he scored a Oscar nomination for the screenplay), "Days of Wine and Roses," "The Party," "The Great Race," "S.O.B.," "Skin Deep" and the TV series "Peter Gunn".
Edwards may be gone, but he leaves behind a large legacy of great films that will keep people amused and entertained for many years to come.
Edwards was one of the most influential comedy filmmakers from the late 60's through to the 80's. He's best known for his work directing Peter Sellers in "The Pink Panther" film series, but also helmed films like "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "10," "Victor/Victoria" (for which he scored a Oscar nomination for the screenplay), "Days of Wine and Roses," "The Party," "The Great Race," "S.O.B.," "Skin Deep" and the TV series "Peter Gunn".
Edwards may be gone, but he leaves behind a large legacy of great films that will keep people amused and entertained for many years to come.
- 12/17/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Beloved filmmaker Blake Edwards passed away late Wednesday evening after losing a battle with a recent bout of pneumonia. His wife Julie Andrews and other family members and friends were by his bedside in hospital. He was 88.
Edwards was one of the most influential comedy filmmakers from the late 60's through to the 80's. He's best known for his work directing Peter Sellers in "The Pink Panther" film series, but also helmed films like "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "10," "Victor/Victoria" (for which he scored a Oscar nomination for the screenplay), "Days of Wine and Roses," "The Party," "The Great Race," "S.O.B.," "Skin Deep" and the TV series "Peter Gunn".
Edwards may be gone, but he leaves behind a large legacy of great films that will keep people amused and entertained for many years to come.
Edwards was one of the most influential comedy filmmakers from the late 60's through to the 80's. He's best known for his work directing Peter Sellers in "The Pink Panther" film series, but also helmed films like "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "10," "Victor/Victoria" (for which he scored a Oscar nomination for the screenplay), "Days of Wine and Roses," "The Party," "The Great Race," "S.O.B.," "Skin Deep" and the TV series "Peter Gunn".
Edwards may be gone, but he leaves behind a large legacy of great films that will keep people amused and entertained for many years to come.
- 12/17/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Julie Andrews' husband, "Pink Panther" creator Blake Edwards, has died at the age of 88. The director, writer and producer passed away at St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California on Wednesday night, December 15 after suffering complications from pneumonia. His wife and other family members were by his bedside, according to his longtime publicist, Gene Schwam.
Born William Blake Crump in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Edwards began his career as an actor and screenwriter, penning seven scripts for late actor/filmmaker Richard Quine. He landed his big break on Orson Welles' production of War of the Worlds and went on to create screenplays for detective series "Richard Diamond", "Private Detective" and "Peter Gunn". He later established himself as a director, working with Audrey Hepburn to bring Truman Capote's "Breakfast at Tiffany's" to the big screen in 1961, before taking on "Days of Wine and Roses" in 1962.
But he will perhaps...
Born William Blake Crump in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Edwards began his career as an actor and screenwriter, penning seven scripts for late actor/filmmaker Richard Quine. He landed his big break on Orson Welles' production of War of the Worlds and went on to create screenplays for detective series "Richard Diamond", "Private Detective" and "Peter Gunn". He later established himself as a director, working with Audrey Hepburn to bring Truman Capote's "Breakfast at Tiffany's" to the big screen in 1961, before taking on "Days of Wine and Roses" in 1962.
But he will perhaps...
- 12/17/2010
- by AceShowbiz.com
- Aceshowbiz
Towards the end of his long, prolific career, Blake Edwards films became so wrenchingly autobiographical — like That’s Life, about a man suffering a mid-life crisis — that the director began sharing writing credit with his Hollywood analyst. But, of course, what Edwards, who died Wednesday evening at his home in Santa Monica at age 88, will most be remembered for are his comedies. Nobody had a lighter touch with sex farces (movies like 1979’s 10, or 1982’s Victor Victoria, both of which starred his second wife, now widow, Julie Andrews) or was more at home filming physical comedy (especially when shooting the...
- 12/16/2010
- by Benjamin Svetkey
- EW.com - PopWatch
Filmmaker Blake Edwards succumbed to pneumonia today at the age of 88. A disarmingly prolific and varied filmmaker, Edwards put his signature on everything from zany comedy (the Pink Panther series, "10," The Great Race) to drama (Breakfast at Tiffany's, Days of Wine and Roses) to suspense and action/adventure ("Peter Gunn," Experiment in Terror). Married for over 40 years to actress Julie Andrews, theirs was one of Hollywood's most enduring unions.
Edwards was renowned for being outspoken, and not suffering fools. Of Pink Panther star Peter Sellers, he once said "Peter Sellers became a monster. He just got bored with the part [Inspector Clouseau] and became angry, sullen and unprofessional. He wouldn't show up for work and he began looking for anyone and everyone to blame, never for a moment stopping to see whether or not he should blame himself for his own madness, his own craziness." He was also not above sticking it to the Hollywood brass.
Edwards was renowned for being outspoken, and not suffering fools. Of Pink Panther star Peter Sellers, he once said "Peter Sellers became a monster. He just got bored with the part [Inspector Clouseau] and became angry, sullen and unprofessional. He wouldn't show up for work and he began looking for anyone and everyone to blame, never for a moment stopping to see whether or not he should blame himself for his own madness, his own craziness." He was also not above sticking it to the Hollywood brass.
- 12/16/2010
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
Los Angeles — Blake Edwards, the director and writer known for clever dialogue, poignance and occasional belly-laugh sight gags in "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "10" and the "Pink Panther" farces, is dead at age 88.
Edwards died from complications of pneumonia late Wednesday at St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, said publicist Gene Schwam. Blake's wife, Julie Andrews, and other family members were at his side. He had been hospitalized for about two weeks.
Edwards had knee problems, had undergone unsuccessful procedures and was "pretty much confined to a wheelchair for the last year-and-a-half or two," Schwam said. That may have contributed to his condition, he added.
At the time of his death, Edwards was working on two Broadway musicals, one based on the "Pink Panther" movies. The other, "Big Rosemary," was to be an original comedy set during Prohibition, Schwam said.
"His heart was as big as his talent. He was an...
Edwards died from complications of pneumonia late Wednesday at St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, said publicist Gene Schwam. Blake's wife, Julie Andrews, and other family members were at his side. He had been hospitalized for about two weeks.
Edwards had knee problems, had undergone unsuccessful procedures and was "pretty much confined to a wheelchair for the last year-and-a-half or two," Schwam said. That may have contributed to his condition, he added.
At the time of his death, Edwards was working on two Broadway musicals, one based on the "Pink Panther" movies. The other, "Big Rosemary," was to be an original comedy set during Prohibition, Schwam said.
"His heart was as big as his talent. He was an...
- 12/16/2010
- by AP
- Huffington Post
Blake Edwards, the screenwriter, producer and director best-known for the hugely successful Pink Panther film series in collaboration with the comedian Peter Sellers, died Wednesday evening at St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica of complications from pneumonia; he was 88. Known mostly for the slapstick comedy of the Pink Panther films and other farces ranging from the midlife crisis comedy 10 to the gender-bending Victor/Victoria, Edwards did venture into other genres, most notably with the iconic Breakfast at Tiffany's, starring Audrey Hepburn, and the melodrama Days of Wine and Roses, both filmed in the early 1960s. Edwards was also known for his high-profile marriage to actress Julie Andrews, whom he directed in a number of films, and with whom he adopted two children; Andrews and his family were reportedly at his bedside when he passed.
Born William Blake Crump on July 26, 1922, in Tulsa Oklahoma, Edwards was the son of a stage director and the grandson of prolific silent-film director J. Gordon Edwards. He began his career as an actor and a radio scriptwriter specializing in hard-boiled private detective scripts tinged with humor, a different take from the classic noir gumshoes such as Sam Spade and Phillip Marlowe. Edwards took his talents to the small screen in 1959, creating the TV series Peter Gunn about a private investigator who loved hip jazz and dressed to the nines. Though the series ran for over 100 episodes, Peter Gunn is perhaps best remembered for its theme music, composed by Henry Mancini, who was to become an invaluable contributor to Edwards' career in film.
In the mid 1950s Edward also moved towards film, directing a number of comedies before striking box office gold with the 1959 hit Operation Petticoat, starring Cary Grant and Tony Curtis. Two years later, Edwards turned Truman Capote's novella Breakfast at Tiffany's into a critical and commercial success, propelling Audrey Hepburn's Holly Golightly into the pop culture pantheon as well as Mancini's hit song "Moon River", which won an Oscar (the film received five Oscar nominations total, including Best Actress). The adult-for-its-time comedy, co-starring George Peppard, Patricia Neal and Mickey Rooney (whose jaw-dropping portrayal of a stereotypical Japanese landlord was the film's biggest misstep), erased much of Capote's sexual subtext in favor of a standard Hollywood romance between the two leads, but it nonetheless became one of the favored romantic comedies of all time. He followed up that film with the effective black-and-white thriller Experiment in Terror (1962) , his only turn in the thriller genre, and the alcoholism drama Days of Wine and Roses (also 1962), which featured Academy Award-nominated performances by Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick.
In 1963, beginning with The Pink Panther (1963) and in four subsequent Panther films over two decades, Edwards, in collaboration with Peter Sellers, gave audiences one of the most distinctive comedic characters ever conceived - Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau. With an exaggerated French accent and an incredibly clumsy manner, Clouseau was a uniquely brilliant creation, a completely inept detective who always got his man. Only two films were made in the early 1960s, but the franchise was revived in the mid 1970s with three more films. Though Sellers died in 1980, Edwards made three additional Panther films into the early 1990's, though none came close to capturing the freewheeling and blissfully absurd spirit of the first two Panther comedies, which also included A Shot in the Dark (1964).
First married from 1953-1967 to actress Patricia Walker, with whom he had two children, Edwards met his second wife, Julie Andrews, in the late 1960s as both were coming off big movie hits, she with The Sound of Music and he with the Pink Panther films as well as The Great Race (1965) and The Party (1968). The two, who married in November 1969, attempted to join their creative forces for the World War I musical melodrama Darling Lili, which was an attempt to show Andrews in a more adult light as a Mata Hari-type spy who attempts to use her seductive wiles on American major Rock Hudson, only to fall in love him. One of the most notorious flops of its time, the production was marred by expensive location shooting, expansive yet nonsensical musical numbers, extensive rewrites and constant meddling from Paramount studio to make the film more commercially appealing; the budget skyrocketed as the film drew towards its 1970 release, and was roundly drubbed as a fiasco on all counts.
Darling Lili practically sunk Edwards' career, and the filmmaker suffered from severe depression and retreated to Switzerland to recover. While he made some films in the early 1970s, none were warmly received until The Return of the Pink Panther in 1975. After two more Panther films with Peter Sellers, Edwards was suddenly back on top in 1979 with the comedy 10, which featured Dudley Moore as a man besotted with a younger woman, a corn-rowed Bo Derek, who thanks to the film would become a superstar and cultural icon of the time, due mostly to scenes captured of her running on a Mexican beach in little more than a flesh-colored bikini. The film turned Edwards' career around, and he gleefully skewered the Hollywood that attempted to sink him after Darling Lili with the scathing satire S.O.B. (1981), in which Andrews played a thinly veiled version of herself and finally rid herself of her pristine image by baring her breasts.
Andrews received an Oscar nomination, as did Edwards for screenwriting, for the cross-dressing musical hit Victor/Victoria (1982), the story of a British female singer pretending to be a gay Polish female impersonator in pre-World War II France. The racy comedy, which dealt frankly with cross-dressing and homosexuality in an era when both evoked titters and general discomfort with mainstream audiences, also starred James Garner and Oscar nominees Robert Preston and Lesley Ann Warren. The film, featuring numerous musical numbers and Edwards' patented brand of slapstick, was a huge hit, and would inspire a Broadway musical adaptation in the mid-1990s, also directed by Edwards and starring Andrews; lightning, however, did not strike twice, and though commercially successful, it was less than warmly received by critics.
Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Edwards made more comedies, including Micki & Maude (1984), A Fine Mess (1986), Blind Date (1987), and Switch (1991); his most notable film post-Victor/Victoria was the autobiographical That's Life! (1986), starring Jack Lemmon as an Edwards-style protagonist suffering from depression, Julie Andrews as his wife, and one of Edwards' children, and one of Andrews' children as part of the main character's large family.
After the Broadway adaptation of Victor/Victoria, Edwards essentially retired from filmmaking; in 2004 he received an Honorary Oscar "In recognition of his writing, directing and producing an extraordinary body of work for the screen". The presentation of the award, by Jim Carrey, was notable for including a patented Edwards sight gag, in which the director, ensconced in a wheelchair, crashed through a wall in an attempt to accept the statuette.
Edwards is survived by Andrews and his four children.
Born William Blake Crump on July 26, 1922, in Tulsa Oklahoma, Edwards was the son of a stage director and the grandson of prolific silent-film director J. Gordon Edwards. He began his career as an actor and a radio scriptwriter specializing in hard-boiled private detective scripts tinged with humor, a different take from the classic noir gumshoes such as Sam Spade and Phillip Marlowe. Edwards took his talents to the small screen in 1959, creating the TV series Peter Gunn about a private investigator who loved hip jazz and dressed to the nines. Though the series ran for over 100 episodes, Peter Gunn is perhaps best remembered for its theme music, composed by Henry Mancini, who was to become an invaluable contributor to Edwards' career in film.
In the mid 1950s Edward also moved towards film, directing a number of comedies before striking box office gold with the 1959 hit Operation Petticoat, starring Cary Grant and Tony Curtis. Two years later, Edwards turned Truman Capote's novella Breakfast at Tiffany's into a critical and commercial success, propelling Audrey Hepburn's Holly Golightly into the pop culture pantheon as well as Mancini's hit song "Moon River", which won an Oscar (the film received five Oscar nominations total, including Best Actress). The adult-for-its-time comedy, co-starring George Peppard, Patricia Neal and Mickey Rooney (whose jaw-dropping portrayal of a stereotypical Japanese landlord was the film's biggest misstep), erased much of Capote's sexual subtext in favor of a standard Hollywood romance between the two leads, but it nonetheless became one of the favored romantic comedies of all time. He followed up that film with the effective black-and-white thriller Experiment in Terror (1962) , his only turn in the thriller genre, and the alcoholism drama Days of Wine and Roses (also 1962), which featured Academy Award-nominated performances by Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick.
In 1963, beginning with The Pink Panther (1963) and in four subsequent Panther films over two decades, Edwards, in collaboration with Peter Sellers, gave audiences one of the most distinctive comedic characters ever conceived - Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau. With an exaggerated French accent and an incredibly clumsy manner, Clouseau was a uniquely brilliant creation, a completely inept detective who always got his man. Only two films were made in the early 1960s, but the franchise was revived in the mid 1970s with three more films. Though Sellers died in 1980, Edwards made three additional Panther films into the early 1990's, though none came close to capturing the freewheeling and blissfully absurd spirit of the first two Panther comedies, which also included A Shot in the Dark (1964).
First married from 1953-1967 to actress Patricia Walker, with whom he had two children, Edwards met his second wife, Julie Andrews, in the late 1960s as both were coming off big movie hits, she with The Sound of Music and he with the Pink Panther films as well as The Great Race (1965) and The Party (1968). The two, who married in November 1969, attempted to join their creative forces for the World War I musical melodrama Darling Lili, which was an attempt to show Andrews in a more adult light as a Mata Hari-type spy who attempts to use her seductive wiles on American major Rock Hudson, only to fall in love him. One of the most notorious flops of its time, the production was marred by expensive location shooting, expansive yet nonsensical musical numbers, extensive rewrites and constant meddling from Paramount studio to make the film more commercially appealing; the budget skyrocketed as the film drew towards its 1970 release, and was roundly drubbed as a fiasco on all counts.
Darling Lili practically sunk Edwards' career, and the filmmaker suffered from severe depression and retreated to Switzerland to recover. While he made some films in the early 1970s, none were warmly received until The Return of the Pink Panther in 1975. After two more Panther films with Peter Sellers, Edwards was suddenly back on top in 1979 with the comedy 10, which featured Dudley Moore as a man besotted with a younger woman, a corn-rowed Bo Derek, who thanks to the film would become a superstar and cultural icon of the time, due mostly to scenes captured of her running on a Mexican beach in little more than a flesh-colored bikini. The film turned Edwards' career around, and he gleefully skewered the Hollywood that attempted to sink him after Darling Lili with the scathing satire S.O.B. (1981), in which Andrews played a thinly veiled version of herself and finally rid herself of her pristine image by baring her breasts.
Andrews received an Oscar nomination, as did Edwards for screenwriting, for the cross-dressing musical hit Victor/Victoria (1982), the story of a British female singer pretending to be a gay Polish female impersonator in pre-World War II France. The racy comedy, which dealt frankly with cross-dressing and homosexuality in an era when both evoked titters and general discomfort with mainstream audiences, also starred James Garner and Oscar nominees Robert Preston and Lesley Ann Warren. The film, featuring numerous musical numbers and Edwards' patented brand of slapstick, was a huge hit, and would inspire a Broadway musical adaptation in the mid-1990s, also directed by Edwards and starring Andrews; lightning, however, did not strike twice, and though commercially successful, it was less than warmly received by critics.
Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Edwards made more comedies, including Micki & Maude (1984), A Fine Mess (1986), Blind Date (1987), and Switch (1991); his most notable film post-Victor/Victoria was the autobiographical That's Life! (1986), starring Jack Lemmon as an Edwards-style protagonist suffering from depression, Julie Andrews as his wife, and one of Edwards' children, and one of Andrews' children as part of the main character's large family.
After the Broadway adaptation of Victor/Victoria, Edwards essentially retired from filmmaking; in 2004 he received an Honorary Oscar "In recognition of his writing, directing and producing an extraordinary body of work for the screen". The presentation of the award, by Jim Carrey, was notable for including a patented Edwards sight gag, in which the director, ensconced in a wheelchair, crashed through a wall in an attempt to accept the statuette.
Edwards is survived by Andrews and his four children.
- 12/16/2010
- by Mark Englehart
- IMDb News
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