He asks Simone to keep George out of trouble & away from Dala, lest he ruins their careful plans. Charles believes George is naive & studious (actually George left the US as he was $40,000 in debt).

On the Phantom's trail is French police inspector Jacques Clouseau (Peter Sellers) of the Sûreté-who doesn't know his wife Simone (Capucine) is the paramour of Charles and helper in the Phantom's crimes. The same night Charles realizes that George has also come over from the US & staying in his room. He manages to get Dala to come to his hotel room and seduces her. As such, he gains a dinner invitation from Dala & starts to get close to her. Charles orchestrates the kidnapping of Dala's dog & then appears at the right time to be the savior & become a hero. His unwitting American playboy nephew George (Robert Wagner) follows his uncle to the resort, also hoping to steal the jewel.and blame it on the Phantom. Also staying is a noted English playboy, Sir Charles Lytton (David Niven)-who leads a secret life as a jewel thief called 'The Phantom'-and has his eyes on the Pink Panther. Several years later, Dala (Claudia Cardinale) relaxes on holiday at an exclusive ski resort in Cortina d'Ampezzo.

(As the camera moves in, this image comes to life and participates in the opening credits.) When Dala is a young woman, rebels seize power in Lugash and then demand possession of the jewel, but the exiled princess refuses to hand it over. This huge pink gem has an unusual flaw: looking deeply into the stone, one perceives a tiny discoloration resembling a leaping panther. As a child, Princess Dala receives a gift from her father, the Shah of Lugash-'the Pink Panther,' the largest diamond in the world.

The official pink panther