Image: Wikimedia CommonsBlake Edwards
American film director, screenwriter and producer (1922-2010)
- Born July 26, 1922
- 14 movies
Blake Edwards (26 July 1922 to 15 December 2010) was an American director, writer and producer, born William Blake Crump in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He began as an actor in the 1940s, moved into radio and screenwriting, then created television's Peter Gunn before becoming one of Hollywood's busiest comedy directors. His films include Breakfast at Tiffany's, Days of Wine and Roses, The Great Race, 10 and Victor/Victoria, and he directed most of the Pink Panther series with Peter Sellers. He later worked in theatre and received an Honorary Academy Award for his body of work.
Blake Edwards appears in 14 films in The Rerun, from 1945 to 1987. That includes 11 titles as director. Most of that work is in comedy, romance and crime. Frequent collaborators in The Rerun: Peter Sellers (4), Julie Andrews (2), Herbert Lom (2), Burt Kwouk (2), Gavin MacLeod (2).
Known for
- Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), Director. Listed first among his best-known films.
- Days of Wine and Roses (1962), Director. A drama listed among his best-known films.
- The Pink Panther (1963), Director. The start of the hugely successful series with Peter Sellers.
- A Shot in the Dark (1964), Director. A Pink Panther film with Peter Sellers.
- The Great Race (1965), Director. A 1965 film listed among his best-known work.
- Victor/Victoria (1982), Director. A 1982 film listed among his best-known work.
Career
Edwards first directed for television in 1952 and made his name with private-eye shows, writing Richard Diamond, Private Detective and creating Peter Gunn (1958 to 1961), which began his long partnership with the composer Henry Mancini. In film, the Cary Grant submarine comedy Operation Petticoat (1959) became a major hit for Universal, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) and the unsparing alcoholism drama Days of Wine and Roses (1962) established him as a serious director.
His most profitable work came with Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther (1963), A Shot in the Dark (1964) and three sequels in the 1970s. The costly musical Darling Lili (1970), starring Julie Andrews, failed at the box office, but he rebounded with 10 (1979) and the gender-swapping musical comedy Victor/Victoria (1982).
Where to start
- Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961): the Capote adaptation that made his reputation.
- A Shot in the Dark (1964): Sellers and Edwards at their slapstick peak.
- Days of Wine and Roses (1962): proof he could do devastating drama as well as farce.
- Victor/Victoria (1982): a witty late-career musical built around Julie Andrews.
- Operation Petticoat (1959): the big-studio comedy that put him on the map.
Movies
Quick answers
- What movies and TV shows has Blake Edwards been in?
- Blake Edwards appears in Blind Date (1987), Victor/Victoria (1982), 10 (1979), The Return of the Pink Panther (1975), The Party (1968), The Great Race (1965), A Shot in the Dark (1964), The Pink Panther (1963), Days of Wine and Roses (1962), Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), Operation Petticoat (1959) and The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) on The Remote.
- When was Blake Edwards born?
- Blake Edwards was born on 26 July 1922.
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