The Pink Panther Theme

Last updated

I told [the animators] that I would give them a tempo they could animate to, so that any time there were striking motions, someone getting hit, I could score to it.

[The animators] finished the sequence and I looked at it. All the accents in the music were timed to actions on the screen.

I had a specific saxophone player in mind—Plas Johnson. I nearly always precast my players and write for them and around them, and Plas had the sound and the style I wanted. [1]

Personnel

Other versions

From 1976 to 1991, the theme served as the think music for Safe Crackers, a pricing game featured on the American game show The Price Is Right .

In the 1978 film Revenge of the Pink Panther , the theme—and much of the soundtrack from this entry in the series—drew heavily from the disco sound of the late 1970s. The theme itself was reworked to include a dancier bassline, electric keyboard, and a guitar solo. A similar treatment was given to 1983's Curse of the Pink Panther , where the music featured considerably more synthesized elements.

The theme was used in John McLaughlin and Al Di Meola's live version of Chick Corea's "Short Tales of the Black Forest", from the 1981 album Friday Night in San Francisco . [3]

In the 1993 film Son of the Pink Panther , the theme was rearranged and performed by Bobby McFerrin in the opening titles, the only version of the theme to be performed in a cappella style. The credits featured the theme in the traditional style, similar to its appearance in Return of the Pink Panther , with an electric keyboard bassline.

Actresses Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu and Cameron Diaz, along with Los Angeles–based entertainers The Pussycat Dolls, danced to the theme in their film Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003).

Christophe Beck rearranged the music for various uses in the 2006 reboot and its sequel, The Pink Panther 2 —DJ Paul Oakenfold remixed the theme song for the 2006 film. Mancini is given a posthumous credit in the opening titles for the theme.

The theme was featured in the film The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004).

A rearranged guitar version of Henry Mancini's "Pink Panther Theme", composed by David Ricard, was used for the short-lived Pink Panther and Pals series in 2010.

Certifications

"The Pink Panther Theme"
The Pink Panther Theme cover.jpg
Single by Henry Mancini
from the album The Pink Panther
Released1963
Recorded1963
Genre Jazz, big band
Length2:40
Label RCA Victor
Composer(s) Henry Mancini
Producer(s) Joe Reisman
Henry Mancini singles chronology
"Charade"
(1963)
"The Pink Panther Theme"
(1963)
"A Shot in the Dark"
(1964)
Audio
"The Pink Panther Theme" on YouTube
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [4]
Mastertone
Gold500,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

The Pink Panther is an American media franchise primarily focusing on a series of comedy-mystery films featuring an inept French police detective, Inspector Jacques Clouseau. The franchise began with the release of the film The Pink Panther in 1963. The role of Clouseau was originated by and is most closely associated with Peter Sellers. Most of the films were written and directed by Blake Edwards, with theme music composed by Henry Mancini. Elements and characters inspired by the films were adapted into other media, including books, comic books, video games and animated series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Mancini</span> American film composer (1924–1994)

Henry Mancini was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flutist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Awards, a Golden Globe, and twenty Grammy Awards, plus a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995.

<i>The Pink Phink</i> 1964 animated short film directed by Friz Freleng

The Pink Phink is a 1964 American animated short comedy film directed by Friz Freleng. It is the first animated short starring the Pink Panther, based on the character created for the opening credits of Blake Edwards' film released a year earlier. The short won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short at the 37th Academy Awards.

<i>The Inspector</i> American animated film series

The Inspector is an American series of 34 theatrical cartoon shorts produced between 1965 and 1969 by DePatie–Freleng Enterprises and released through United Artists. The cartoons are dedicated to an animated version of Inspector Clouseau comically battling against a rogues' gallery of internationally styled villains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Lava</span> American composer (1911–1971)

William "Bill" Benjamin Lava was a composer and arranger who composed and conducted music for feature films as well as Warner Bros.' Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies animated cartoons from 1962 to 1969, replacing the deceased Milt Franklyn, making him the last composer and arranger in the classic era of Warner Bros. Cartoons.

The Pink Panther is a series of films featuring the fictional Inspector Clouseau, played by Peter Sellers, that began in 1963.

<i>Son of the Pink Panther</i> 1993 film by Blake Edwards

Son of the Pink Panther is a 1993 comedy film. It is the ninth and final installment of the original The Pink Panther film series starting from the 1963 film. Directed by Blake Edwards, it stars Roberto Benigni as Inspector Clouseau's illegitimate son. Also in this film are Panther regulars Herbert Lom, Burt Kwouk and Graham Stark and a star of the original 1963 film, Claudia Cardinale. It was the final film for both director Blake Edwards and composer Henry Mancini; Mancini died on June 14, 1994, and Edwards retired from film-making in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David H. DePatie</span> American producer (1929–2021)

David Hudson DePatie was an American film and television producer who was the last and longest lived executive in charge of the original Warner Bros. Cartoons studio. He also formed DePatie–Freleng Enterprises, with Friz Freleng, Hanna-Barbera Productions and was an executive producer at Marvel Productions.

<i>The Music from Peter Gunn</i> 1959 soundtrack album by Henry Mancini

The Music from Peter Gunn is a soundtrack album to the TV series Peter Gunn, composed and conducted by Henry Mancini, and released in January 1959 on RCA Victor. It was the first album ever to win the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1959. The album was followed by More Music from Peter Gunn, released on RCA Victor in July 1959. In 1998 the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

<i>Revenge of the Pink Panther</i> 1978 comedy film directed by Blake Edwards

Revenge of the Pink Panther is a 1978 comedy film. It is the sixth film in The Pink Panther comedy film series. Released in 1978, it is the final on-set performance of Peter Sellers in the role of Inspector Jacques Clouseau. It was also the last installment in the series that was distributed solely by United Artists; the company was absorbed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer three years after the film's release.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pink Panther (character)</span> Fictional animated character

The Pink Panther is a fictional animated character who appears in the opening or closing credit sequences of every film in The Pink Panther series except for A Shot in the Dark and Inspector Clouseau. In the storyline of the original film, the "Pink Panther" is the name of a valuable pink diamond named for a flaw that shows a "figure of a springing panther" when held up to the light in a certain way; in the credits this was translated to an animated pink panther. Only the first Pink Panther film and its third sequel, The Return of the Pink Panther, featured the diamond.

<i>The Pink Panther Show</i> Showcase of animated shorts

The Pink Panther Show is a showcase of animated shorts produced by David H. DePatie and Friz Freleng between 1969 and 1978, starring the animated Pink Panther character from the opening credits of the live-action films. The series was produced by Mirisch Films and DePatie–Freleng Enterprises, and was broadcast Saturday mornings on two American television networks: from September 6, 1969, to September 2, 1978, on NBC; and from September 9, 1978, to September 1, 1979, on ABC.

Plas John Johnson Jr. is an American soul-jazz and hard bop tenor saxophonist, probably most widely known as the tenor saxophone soloist on Henry Mancini’s "The Pink Panther Theme". He also performs on alto and baritone sax as well as various flutes and clarinets.

Walter Greene was a film and television composer who worked on numerous productions for over 30 years.

<i>Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini</i> 1964 studio album by Quincy Jones

Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini is an album by Quincy Jones that contains music composed by Henry Mancini.

"Peter Gunn" is the theme music composed by Henry Mancini for the television show of the same name. The song was the opening track on the original soundtrack album, The Music from Peter Gunn, released by RCA Victor in 1959. Mancini won an Emmy Award and two Grammys for Album of the Year and Best Arrangement. In 2005, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

<i>The Mancini Touch</i> 1960 studio album by Henry Mancini

The Mancini Touch is a 1960 album by American composer and arranger Henry Mancini.

<i>Our Man in Hollywood</i> 1963 studio album by Henry Mancini

Our Man in Hollywood is a 1963 album by American composer and arranger Henry Mancini.

<i>Uniquely Mancini</i> 1963 studio album by Henry Mancini

Uniquely Mancini: The Big Band Sound of Henry Mancini is an album by Henry Mancini and His Orchestra. It was released in 1963 on RCA Victor.

<i>The Pink Panther: Music from the Film Score Composed and Conducted by Henry Mancini</i> 1964 soundtrack album by Henry Mancini

The Pink Panther: Music from the Film Score Composed and Conducted by Henry Mancini is a soundtrack album from the 1963 movie The Pink Panther starring David Niven and Peter Sellers. The music was composed and conducted by Henry Mancini.

References

  1. Did They Mention the Music?, Henry Mancini with Gene Lees, Published by Contemporary Books, Inc., 1989, page 141.
  2. "Henry Mancini – The Pink Panther". Discogs. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  3. Greenberg, Donna (2002-11-18). "John McLaughlin, Al Di Meola, Paco DeLucia: Friday Night in San Francisco". Allaboutjazz.com. Retrieved 2016-09-27.
  4. "American single certifications – Henry Mancini – Pink Panther Theme". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved July 20, 2021.