The Pink Panther The Pink Panther is a 60’s Children’s TV cartoon that has its roots in the cinema, where he first appeared in 1964. But he didn't appear as a standalone cartoon, and instead appeared in the title sequences for the live action comedy - The Pink Panther. This movie starred Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau the bumbling buffoon of a French detective. In the Movie, the Pink Panther was in fact the name of a diamond, which was stolen by a jewel thief, who the inspector was trying to catch.   The writer/director of the movie, Blake Edwards, wanted it to have an animated title sequence, that would play on the name of the movie - a pink panther. The animation talents of David H. DePathie and Friz Freleng were called upon to conjure up this panther. Between them all, they wanted him to be cool and sophisticated and they drew on inspiration from some of the actors of that time (Cary Grant and James Dean). In the end, the final look of the Pink Panther was chosen by Blake Edwards from over 100 panther sketches. He chose one by Hawley Pratt.   The Pink Panther didn't speak in the title sequence and instead acted out scenes with the Henry Mancini theme tune in the background. The music was used to great effect and was synced to actions on screen, which gave it a natural flow. He was a hit and people wanted more and they got it. A standalone Pink Panther was made, to complement another movie. It was called Pink Phink and I have to say it is still very funny today, but when it was made in the 1960's, it became a massive hit with audiences and even went on to win an Academy Award for Best Animated Short.   So from this success a total of 124 Original Pink Panther cartoons were made, a total of 3 series. These episodes eventually made it to TV in 1969 and over the years they were shown in various formats. One format that I remember is The Pink Panther Show. It sticks in most peoples minds because of the theme tune and the cool pink hot rod that a little boy drives. He drives it to Mans Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, where the car opens and lets out the cartoon versions of the Pink Panther and Inspector Clouseau (who also shared the slot with his own cartoon). Here's the theme tune:   ‘Think of all the animals you ever heard about, like rhinoceros and tigers, cats and mink, there are lots of funny animals in all this world, but have you ever seen a panther that is pink? Think!  A panther that is positively pink? Well here he is, The Pink Panther, The Pink Panther, everybody loves a panther that's pink. He really is a groovy cat, and he's a gentleman, a scholar, he's an-acrobat. He's in the pink, the Pink Panther, the rinky-dink Pink Panther and it's as plain as your nose. That he's the one and only truly original, Panther pink from head to toe. Yes he's the one and only truly original, Panther Pink Panther from head to toe!’   Over the years a number of cartoons shared the billing with the Pink Panther, such as Ant and the Aardvark, the Texas Toads and the Dogfather. Later on, another series appeared called The New Pink Panther Show, but it has lost some of its charm as the Pink Panther spoke in every episode. This seems to be a mistake that the TV/Movie studios seem to do all the time. Just look at the terrible things they have done to Tom and Jerry in later years.     Story  In the Pink Panther, you follow a loner (and probably last of his kind) through a number of adventures. He is a cool panther, who is pink. He struts along and oozes cool. In the early days, he followed the trend of smoking, but seemed to give up when it became less fashionable. The Pink Panther doesn't talk much (well...in the original series he didn't), which added to his mystery, but that didn't stop others doing most of the talking. One thing that did surprise me is that he's English!   I couldn't believe my ears when he started speaking in a posh English accent! (I could be mistaken?). He was always thinking one step ahead of his opposition, such as the poor janitor, who was trying to paint the inside of his house blue. Little did he know that the Pink Panther was painting everything back to pink. The painter couldn't work out what was happening as the Pink Panther just about stayed out of his view (which he seems to do a lot).   Not everything goes the Pink Panther's way. One of the things he could never get the hang of was electrical items. They always seemed to have a life of their own and attack him, and chase him around. I suppose they kept him fit, with all of that exercise. Another thorn in his side was insects. They seemed to bug him a lot. Just when he's going to sleep, a fly would go by. So what would he do? Well, swat it. The trouble is that fly's round his way are vindictive and can throw things at him, and they even know karate!   The Pink Panther T-Shirts - NONE The Pink Panther DVDs Region 2 (Europe) - Pink Panther DVDs Region 1 (USA) - Pink Panther DVDs The Pink Panther Video The Pink Panther Episodes Series 1 (1964)  1. The Pink Phink  2. Pink Pajamas  3. We Give Pink Stamps  4. Dial 'P' For Pink  5. Sink Pink  6. Pickled Pink  7. Shocking Pink  8. Pinkfinger  9. Pink Ice  10. The Pink Tail Fly  11. Pink Panzer  12. An Ounce of Pink  13. Reel Pink  14. Bully For Pink  15. Pink Punch  16. Pink Pistons  17. Vitamin Pink  18. The Pink Blue Print  19. Pink, Plunk, Plink  20. Smile Pretty, Say Pink  21. Pink-A-Boo  22. Genie With The Light Pink Fur  23. Super Pink  24. Rock-a-Bye Pinky  25. Pinknic  26. Pink Panic  27. Pink Posies  28. Pink Of The Litter  29. In the Pink  30. Jet Pink   Series 2 (1967)  1. Pink Paradise  2. Pinto Pink  3. Congratulations! It's Pink  4. Prefabricated Pink  5. The Hand Is Pinker Than The Eye  6. Pink Outs  7. Sky Blue Pink  8. Pinkadilly Circus  9. Psychedelic Pink  10. Come On In, The Water's Pink  11. Put-Put Pink  12. G.I. Pink  13. Lucky Pink  14. The Pink Quarterback  15. Twinkle, Twinkle Little Pink  16. Pink Valiant  17. The Pink Pill  18. Prehistoric Pink  19. Pink In The Clink  20. Little Beaux Pink  21. Tickled Pink  22. The Pink Sphinx  23. Pink Is A Many Splintered Thing  24. The Pink Package Plot  25. Pink-Come Tax  26. Pink-A-Rella  27. Pink Pest Control  28. Think Before You Pink  29. Slink Pink  30. In The Pink Of Night   Series 3 (1969)   1. Pink On The Cob  2. Extinct Pink  3. A Fly In The Pink  4. Pink Blue Plate  5. Pink Tuba-Dore  6. Pink Pranks  7. Psst Pink  8. The Pink Flea  9. Pink-In  10. Gong With The Pink  11. Pink 8 Ball  12. Pink Aye  13. Trail Of The Lonesome Pink  14. Pink DaVinci  15. Pink Streaker  16. Salmon Pink  17. Pink Plasma  18. Forty Pink Winks  19. Pink Elephant  20. Keep Our Forests Pink  21. Pink Campaign  22. Bobolink Pink  23. It's Pink But Is It Mink?  24. The Scarlet Pinkernel  25. Mystic Pink  26. The Pink Of Arabee  27. The Pink Pro  28. Pink Piper  29. Pinky Doodle  30. Sherlock Pink  31. Rocky Pink  32. Therapuetic Pink The Pink Panther Images (click to enlarge) Pink Panther Merchandise Toys (Europe) - Pink Panther Toys Toys (USA) - Pink Panther Toys © JedisParadise.com Toys & Gifts T-Shirts Bargain DVDs