Blake Edwards

Blake Edwards is a film director, writer, and producer who has also tried his hand at acting. He is best known as the creator of the Pink Panther movies.

William Blake “Blackie” Crump was born on July 26, 1922, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His name was changed when his mother, Lillian, founder of the Screen Smart Set, married film director Jack McEdwards, son of the highly successful silent film director Gordon J Edwards who had made Theda Bara a star in Cleopatra. With such a background, it was not surprising that the young

Edwards took an interest in the movie business himself. He spent his schooldays in Beverly Hills, and as he got older served in the U.S. Coastguard during the Second World War. After Edwards finished in the service, he began trying to make a go of life as an actor, sharing an apartment with fellow hopeful Mickey Rooney.

Edwards appeared in several films as an extra and had small roles in features including Marshal of Reno, with Bill Elliot and Alice Fleming; Strangler of the Swamp, with Rosemary La Planche and Robert Barrat; and Tokyo Rose, with Byron Barr. When the big roles failed to come, he decided to try writing, co-scripting the westerns Panhandle and Stampede in which he also starred. He also wrote for radio, creating the successful series Richard Diamond: Private Detective and contributing episodes to Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, both of which starred Dick Powell.

It was Edwards' radio work as much as his films that won him studio support, and he made his début as a film director in 1955 with Bring Your Smile Along, a musical starring Frankie Laine. The following year Edwards directed Tony Curtis in Mister Cory, which marked a turning point in both their careers. Edwards went on to direct the classics Operation Petticoat, with Tony Curtis and Cary Grant; Breakfast at Tiffany's, with Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard; and Days of Wine and Roses, with Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick.

Yet it was 1963's The Pink Panther (since re-made with Steve Martin), with its infectious Henry Mancini score, which really made his name. He developed a firm friendship with star Peter Sellers, which lasted throughout their lives. After his death, Sellers' widow, Lynne Frederick, intended to sue Edwards for damaging her husband's reputation by releasing a collection of out-takes from the film and its sequels.

Edwards has been married twice. His first wife was Patricia Walker, who starred in 1953's All Ashore with Mickey Rooney. They had two children, Heidi star Jennifer Edwards and director Geoffrey Edwards. After they divorced, Edwards married Mary Poppins star Julie Andrews and adopted her daughter Emma Walton, who went on to appear in several of his films and whose own daughter, Hannah Schneider, is now making a career as an actress and dancer. Together, Edwards and Andrews had two more children, Amy Edwards, who appeared alongside her mother and Anne Hathaway in The Princess Diaries II: Royal Engagement, and Joanna.

Edwards famously shocked audiences by revealing Andrews’ breasts onscreen in his 1981 film S.O.B. Much of Edwards’ recent work has been dedicated to showcasing her talents and attempting to resuscitate her career.

Edwards has been portrayed on film by John Lithgow in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers. He continues to cameo in films as himself.

YUDDY