My Geisha

My Geisha is a 1962 American comedy film directed by Jack Cardiff, starring Yves Montand, Shirley MacLaine, and Edward G. Robinson, and released by Paramount Pictures. The film was produced by MacLaines thenhusband Steve Parker, and written by Norman Krasna, based on Krasnas story of the same name.

Paul Robaix Montand, a famous director, wants to shoot a film in Japan inspired by Madama Butterfly. His wife, an actress named Lucy Dell MacLaine, has been the leading lady in all of his greatest films, and she is more famous. He feels that she overshadows him and he would like to achieve success independent of her. By choosing to film Madame Butterfly, he can select a different leading lady without hurting her feelings, because she, as a blue eyed, red headed woman, would not be suitable to play a Japanese woman. As a surprise, she visits him in Japan while hes searching for a leading lady. To surprise him further, she disguises herself as a geisha at a dinner party, planning to unveil her identity during the meal.But she is delighted to discover that everyone at the dinner party, including her husband, believes her to be a Japanese woman. When she learns that the studio has decided to only give her husband enough funds to film the movie in black and white because there are no big stars in the film, she decides that she will audition for the role of Butterfly, without telling her husband, but that the studio will know and therefore give him the budget he needs to make the film he wants. ........

Source: Wikipedia