I just finished Julie Andrews' memoir of her Hollywood years, a testament to why movie stars should not marry other Hollywood stars. What a total cluster their family life becomes when both parents are constantly working; then to try and set up full-time residence in Gstaad (for tax reasons) while working in America and the UK? I learned a lot about Blake Edwards, and I want to see more of his movies, but the closing chapters of Andrews' memoir reveal the depths of Edwards narcissism and megalomania: when Andrews' mother is on her deathbed, Edwards falls ill with what may be a serious gallstone attack. Andrews is persuaded by his doctors to leave her mother's side to go to her husband. Does it count as hypochondria if you're only "sick" because your wife isn't paying attention to you? Turns out he wasn't sick at all, and she was gone when her mother died.
I watched about half of The Pink Panther, the movie Peter Sellers easily steals from David Niven. I don't see the appeal of Niven? He's polite and sophisticated, but also bald, old, and unattractive.
While there are many 1960s movies made to the standards of modern cinema, I am continually baffled and disappointed by the willingness to overdub all the dialog of principal characters. The Bond movies are filled with non-English speaking actors whose entire part is overdubbed. Blake Edwards wanted Audrey Hepburn for the Princess role. Hepburn declined, but recommended her Italian model friend Claudia Cardinale. Cardinale is truly gorgeous, but she doesn't speak English! At what point does a director decide "this actress doesn't need to actually say her lines to get the part"?
Return of the Pink Panther is better, if you can ignore the rampant casual racism. 