Born László Löwenstein on 26 June 1904, Lorre was of Hungarian descent and first acted at the age of 17 on stage in Vienna. He became a star after playing the role of a child-killer in Fritz Lang's M (1931). As a result of his Jewish name and heritage, he fled Germany during the rise of the Nazi regime and landed in Hollywood to continue his acting career.
Lorre played in over 100 movies and genre fans remember him in films such as MAD LOVE (1935), THE FACE BEHIND THE MASK (1941), THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS (1946), and his trio of Roger Corman Poe horror comedies, TALES OF TERROR (1962), THE RAVEN (1963) and THE COMEDY OF TERRORS (1963).
But it was his mainstream films such as THE MALTESE FALCON (1941), CASABLANCA (1942), and THE MASK OF DIMITRIOS (1944) that gained him international recognition. He was also popular as the Japanese detective Mr. Moto in a string of eight films from 1937-1939.
Lorre was awarded a star on the esteemed Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. He died from a stroke on 23 March 1964.
With an unforgettable face and singularly unique voice, Peter Lorre is assured a significant place in cinema history.
View the many faces of Boris Karloff HERE.
Peter Lorre in "M" by director Fritz Lang is mesmerizing as a child murderer. That movie drags you in and at times puts in a rather uncomfortable place by identifying with the villain. "Mad Love" is another favorite with a the cackling madman. He's a Batman villain - strange and deadly.
ReplyDelete"M" was indeed an unsettling movie. Lang did a terrific job on this film. And yes, I think Dr. Gogol would fit in well as a Batman bad guy, if there was room for another cackling madman.
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