Editing The Pink Panther (section)

===Original series===
====''The Pink Panther'' (1963)====
{{Main|The Pink Panther (1963 film)}}
''The Pink Panther'' (1963), the original film of the series, centered on the Phantom/Sir Charles Lytton, portrayed by [[David Niven]]. It is set in the ski resort of [[Cortina d'Ampezzo]]. Peter Sellers's performance was so popular that the resulting series was built on the Clouseau character rather than the Phantom character. Niven and Sellers's co-stars included [[Capucine]], [[Robert Wagner]], and [[Claudia Cardinale]].

====''A Shot in the Dark'' (1964)====
{{Main|A Shot in the Dark (1964 film)}}
''A Shot in the Dark'' (1964) was released less than a year after ''The Pink Panther'', and was the first to feature the Clouseau character as the protagonist of the film, investigating a murder set in a mansion in Paris. This film marked the first appearance of many of the tropes and supporting characters long associated with the series, including Commissioner Dreyfus (portrayed by [[Herbert Lom]]), his assistant François (portrayed by [[André Maranne]]), and Clouseau's manservant, Cato (portrayed by [[Burt Kwouk]]). [[Elke Sommer]], [[George Sanders]], [[Graham Stark]], [[Tracy Reed (English actress)|Tracy Reed]] and [[Douglas Wilmer]] also appeared in the film.

====''Inspector Clouseau'' (1968)====
{{Main|Inspector Clouseau (film)}}
The 1968 film ''Inspector Clouseau'' stars [[Alan Arkin]] as Clouseau, and does not feature any other recurring characters from the rest of the series. Although it was produced by the Mirisch Corporation (who owned the rights to the Pink Panther and Clouseau characters), key people associated with the earlier films, such as Peter Sellers, Blake Edwards, and Henry Mancini, were not involved in the making of this film.

====''The Return of the Pink Panther'' (1975)====
{{Main|The Return of the Pink Panther}}
More than a decade after his previous portrayal, Peter Sellers returned as Clouseau in 1975's ''The Return of the Pink Panther''. The film marked the return of the famous "Pink Panther" diamond as well as most of the creative team associated with the prior films, including director [[Blake Edwards]], composer [[Henry Mancini]], [[Herbert Lom]] as Dreyfus, [[Burt Kwouk]] as Cato and [[André Maranne]] as François. David Niven did not reprise the role of Sir Charles Lytton, who is portrayed in the film by [[Christopher Plummer]] instead. The film also co-starred [[Catherine Schell]], [[Peter Arne]], and [[Graham Stark]].

====''The Pink Panther Strikes Again'' (1976)====
{{Main|The Pink Panther Strikes Again}}
In ''The Pink Panther Strikes Again'' (1976), Dreyfus' insanity reached its zenith, as he tried to blackmail the rest of the world into killing Clouseau. It co-starred [[Leonard Rossiter]], [[Lesley-Anne Down]], [[Michael Robbins]], [[Colin Blakely]], and featured an uncredited cameo by [[Omar Sharif]].

====''Revenge of the Pink Panther'' (1978)====
{{Main|Revenge of the Pink Panther}}
''Revenge of the Pink Panther'' (1978) pitted Clouseau against the [[French Connection]]. It is the last in which Sellers played Clouseau. It co-starred [[Dyan Cannon]], [[Robert Webber]], [[Robert Loggia]] and [[Graham Stark]].

====''Trail of the Pink Panther'' (1982)====
{{Main|Trail of the Pink Panther}}
''Trail of the Pink Panther'' (1982) was the first Pink Panther film made after Peter Sellers' death in 1980. Sellers' role is created by using scenes cut from ''Strikes Again'', as well as flashbacks from the previous ''Pink Panther'' films. This movie was intended as a tribute to Sellers, but after its release, Sellers' widow [[Lynne Frederick]] successfully sued Edwards and [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] for tarnishing her late husband's memory. David Niven and [[Capucine]] reprise their original roles from the first Pink Panther film. ''Trail'' was a critical and commercial failure.

====''Curse of the Pink Panther'' (1983)====
{{Main|Curse of the Pink Panther}}
1983's ''Curse of the Pink Panther'' is the first to feature a different lead character, blundering American detective Sgt. Clifton Sleigh, portrayed by [[Ted Wass]]. Inspector Clouseau and the Pink Panther diamond, both of which had disappeared in ''Trail'', are pursued by Sleigh. Clouseau returns, after having plastic surgery to disguise his identity, in a cameo appearance by [[Roger Moore]] (who is credited as "Turk Thrust II"). Although intended to spawn a new series of misadventures for the inept Sergeant Sleigh, the film's dismal box-office performance and critical drubbing, along with a complicated series of lawsuits between Edwards and [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]], led to a decade-long hiatus of the series. The lawsuit was eventually settled out of court in 1988, around the time Edwards came up with one final film idea that would ultimately become the unofficial series finale.

====''Son of the Pink Panther'' (1993)====
{{Main|Son of the Pink Panther}}
In ''Son of the Pink Panther'' (1993), Blake Edwards made one final attempt to revive the ''Pink Panther'' series, this time by casting Italian actor [[Roberto Benigni]] as Gendarme Jacques Gambrelli, Inspector Clouseau's illegitimate son by Maria Gambrelli, the murder suspect from ''A Shot in the Dark'' (1964). Once again, regular ''Panther'' co-stars return – [[Herbert Lom]], [[Burt Kwouk]], and [[Graham Stark]], and a star of the original 1963 film, [[Claudia Cardinale]]. Although intended to relaunch the series with the blundering Jacques as a lead, ''Son'' failed both critically and commercially and became the final installment in the original Pink Panther series. It was also the final film for both retiring director Blake Edwards and composer Henry Mancini, who died in 1994.