Blake Edwards

Blake Edwards Born July 26, 1922 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA Died December 15, 2010 in Santa Monica, California, USA (complications from pneumonia) Birth Name William Blake Crump Nickname Blackie Height 5' 10" (1.78 m) Blake Edwards' stepfather's father J. Gordon Edwards was a silent screen director, and his stepfather Jack McEdward was a stage director and movie production manager. Blake acted in a number films, beginning with Ten Gentlemen from West Point (1942) and wrote a number of others, beginning with Panhandle (1948) and including six for director Richard Quine. He created the popular TV series Peter Gunn (1958), Mr. Lucky (1959) and Dante (1960). He directed a diverse body of films, from comedies to dramas to war films to westerns, including such pictures as Operation Petticoat (1959), Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Experiment in Terror (1962), Days of Wine and Roses (1962), The Pink Panther (1963) and A Shot in the Dark (1964). After The Great Race (1965) he began fighting with studios. In England he surfaced again with The Return of the Pink Panther (1975), then went back to Hollywood and a real hit, 10 (1979). Victor Victoria (1982) won him French and Italian awards for Best Foreign Film. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Ed Stephan Spouse (2) Julie Andrews (12 November 1969 - 15 December 2010) ( his death) ( 2 children) Patricia Edwards (1953 - 1967) ( divorced) ( 2 children) Trade Mark (2) Scores by Henry Mancini Frequently worked with Peter Sellers Trivia (30) Father of Jennifer Edwards and Geoffrey Edwards. Suffered from CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). Former roommate of Mickey Rooney. He adopted two children from Vietnam with Julie Andrews, Amy Edwards (b. 1974) and Joanna Edwards (b. 1975). Stepson of stage director and movie production manager Jack McEdward. Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume Two, 1945-1985." Pages 302-310. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1988. Stepfather of Emma Walton Hamilton. Grandfather of Hannah Schneider and Kayti Schneider. Grandson of silent screen director J. Gordon Edwards. Was the original writer and director on City Heat (1984). He stepped aside as director after creative differences with star Clint Eastwood. When asked, "If you could work with one actor for the rest of your career, who would it be?" he answered, in a heartbeat, "Jack Lemmon.". Met actor David Niven, when Edwards was writing and directing films for Four Star Television, a production company partly owned by Niven. The Honorary Oscar Award that he received in 2004 was presented to him by personal fan Jim Carrey. Met wife-to-be Julie Andrews after she'd heard that he once described her as being, "...so sweet she probably has violets between her legs." Andrews was so entertained by the remark she sent Edwards a bunch of violets accompanied by a note. They began dating and later married. As of 2007, he is one of six directors who has directed his wife to a Best Actress Oscar nomination (Julie Andrews in Victor Victoria (1982)). The other five are Joel Coen directing Frances McDormand in Fargo (1996), John Cassavetes directing Gena Rowlands in A Woman Under the Influence (1974) & Gloria (1980), Richard Brooks directing Jean Simmons in The Happy Ending (1969), Paul Czinner directing Elisabeth Bergner in Escape Me Never (1935) and Paul Newman directing Joanne Woodward in Rachel, Rachel (1968). Jules Dassin also directed his future wife Melina Mercouri in an Oscar-nominated performance (Never on Sunday (1960)), but they weren't married yet at the time of the nomination. He has two great-grandchildren, Shaely and Kaden, from granddaughter Kayti. Daughter, Amy Edwards, married rock musician Lauren Scheff on October 24, 2004. They are now divorced. His grandchildren are: Kayti and Hannah Schneider, from daughter Jennifer Edwards; Isabelle and Hank, from son Geoffrey Edwards; Max Scheff, from daughter Amy Edwards; and Sam and Hope, from stepdaughter Emma Walton Hamilton. His son, Geoffrey Edwards, was once married to Denise Crosby, Bing Crosby's granddaughter. Was one of the first directors to employ video playback of shot film footage on set. He did this with The Party (1968). Directed 6 actors in Oscar nominated performances: Audrey Hepburn, Jack Lemmon, Lee Remick, Julie Andrews, Robert Preston, and Lesley Ann Warren. Had originally signed to direct The Shadow on the Window (1957). Father-in-law of Sarah Haskins. Ex-father-in-law of Denise Crosby, Genevieve Tyrrell and Lauren Scheff. His longtime friend (40 years) and publicist is Gene Schwam. Stepfather-in-law of Steve Hamilton. Named the inaugural distinguished fellow in film writing directing and producing at Arizona State University's film school, August, 2005. [August 2005] Still an active writer and producer with several projects in various stages of development for film, stage, and television. [May 2007] Was a student of Bruce Lee's. In the 2006 short documentary Breakfast at Tiffany's: The Making of a Classic, Blake Edwards said that when he directed Breakfast at Tiffany's, he didn't think about the implications of casting a white actor, Mickey Rooney, in a role as a Japanese person, but "looking back, I wish I had never done it... and I would give anything to be able to recast it.". Personal Quotes (3) Make 'em redecorate your office. That's primary, to let them know where you stand. Then, when you're shooting interior sequences, use your own interior decorator and set dresser. That way everything on the set will fit your house when you're finished. Peter Sellers became a monster. He just got bored with the part [Inspector Clouseau] and became angry, sullen and unprofessional. He wouldn't show up for work and he began looking for anyone and everyone to blame, never for a moment stopping to see whether or not he should blame himself for his own madness, his own craziness. [on Julie Andrews] It's marvelous to direct her. She's enormously professional and understands that in the final analysis the last word is mine. Actually, working with Julie on a film is a whole lot easier than working with many people that I'm not married to!