The Pink Panther (1963 film) Mancini, performed by his orchestra. In 2001, the soundtrack album was awarded a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. In 2005, the score was listed at #20 on AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores. The distinctive tenor saxophone of Plas Johnson is heard on the main title theme music. Bibliography The Pink Panther (1963 film) The Pink Panther is a 1963 American comedy film directed by Blake Edwards and co-written by Edwards and Maurice Richlin, starring David Niven, Peter Sellers, Robert Wagner, Capucine and Claudia Cardinale. The film introduced the cartoon character of the same name, in an opening credits sequence
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (theme) film. This instrumental composition plays at the beginning of the film. Largely due to the memorable quality of the main theme, the film's soundtrack peaked at #4 on the "Billboard" 200 album chart, and it stayed on this chart for over a year. Hugo Montenegro was an American composer and orchestra leader who began scoring films in the 1960s. After hearing the music from "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", he decided to create a cover version of the theme. Musician Tommy Morgan is quoted in Wesley Hyatt's "The Billboard Book of#1 Adult Contemporary Hits" as saying that Montenegro's