biography
Born Laszlo Lowenstein on June 26, 1904 in Rozsahegy, Hungary, actor Peter Lorre grew up in Vienna, Austria. As a teenager, he studied
drama and worked as a bank clerk. In the 1920s, he relocated to Switzerland and later Germany in search of stage work, where he quickly
rose to prominence as a respected actor. In the late 1920s, Lorre was cast in German films, and he came to international attention upon
the release of Fritz Lang's M (1931), in which Lorre portrayed a serial child killer. Of the Jewish faith, Lorre continued working
in German cinema until the Nazis rose to power in 1933. Fearing for his safety, he eventually left Germany for France, Britain and, later,
the U.S., where he continued his career with great success. His first English language film was Alfred Hitchcock's first version of The
Man Who Knew Too Much (1934; with Leslie Banks). At the time, Lorre's command of the English language was poor, so he learned his
lines phonetically while studying the language. He then went to the U.S., where his first film was the low-budget MGM horror film Mad
Love (1935; with Frances Drake and Colin Clive). He later returned to Britain to star in another Hitchcock film, Secret Agent
(1936; with John Gielgud, Madeleine Carroll, and Robert Young). That same year, he signed a contract with 20th Century Fox and embarked
on the studio's successful Mr. Moto series, in which Lorre portrayed Japanese sleuth Kentaro Moto in a eight films.
Due to his unusual physical characteristics, Lorre was often cast in horror films and mysteries, but by 1940 he became a fixture in
film noir thrillers such as The Maltese Falcon (1941; with Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor) and Confidential Agent (1945;
with Charles Boyer and Lauren Bacall). In the films he made for Warner Bros., he was often cast with character actor Sidney Greenstreet.
He also acted in a number of horror-based comedies, including You'll Find Out (1940; with Bela Lugosi
and Boris Karloff) and the classic Arsenic and Old Lace (1944; with Cary Grant and Raymond Massey).
However, Lorre's career began to soften in the years following World War II, and by the late 1940s, his film career stalled. In 1950,
he returned to Germany to begin his own production company, but the lone result of that company, Der Verlorene (1951) in which
Lorre also directed and starred, was a critical and commercial failure. After he returned to the U.S., the rising popularity of television
in the early 1950s helped breathe new life into his career. |
the films of peter lorreM (1931)
Lorre first rose to prominence as child killer Hans Beckert in Fritz Lang's German thriller MCrack-Up (1936)
With Brian Donlevy in the 20th Century Fox spy drama Crack-UpLancer Spy (1936)
From the 20th Century Fox drama Lancer Spy with Dolores del Rio and George SandersSecret Agent (1936)
From the British mystery Secret Agent, directed by Alfred HitchcockThink Fast, Mr. Moto (1937)
With Sig Ruman in the first of 20th Century Fox's Mr. Moto mysteries Think Fast, Mr. MotoIsland of Doomed Men (1940)
With Robert Wilcox in the low-budget thriller Island of Doomed Men, released by ColumbiaYou'll Find Out (1940)
With Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff in the RKO comedy You'll Find OutStrange Cargo (1940)
With Joan Crawford in MGM's drama Strange CargoThe Maltese Falcon (1941)
From the Warner Bros. film noir classic The Maltese Falcon. Now a classic, at the time it was a quickly shot B flickThe Boogie Man Will Get You (1942)
From the backlot Columbia comedy The Boogie Man Will Get You with Maxie Rosenbloom, Boris Karloff, Jeff Donnell, and Larry ParksCasablanca (1943)
With Humphrey Bogart in the Warner Bros. classic Casablanca. Although this film is highly regarded, in actuality many of the principal actors didn't want to do the filmBackground to Danger (1943)
From the Warner Bros. war thriller Background to Danger with Brenda MarshallArsenic and Old Lace (1944)
From the hilarious Warner Bros. comedy Arsenic and Old Lace with Raymond Massey, Cary Grant, and Jack CarsonThe Beast with Five Fingers (1946)
From the Warner Bros. horror film The Beast with Five Fingers with Robert Alda, Andrea King, Victor Francen, and William EdmundsBlack Angel (1946)
With Dan Duryea in the Universal film noir thriller Black AngelThe Chase (1946)
From the independently produced film noir flick The Chase, released by United Artists. Pictured are Michele Morgan, Peter Lorre, and Steve CochranThree Strangers (1946)
With Sidney Greenstreet and Geraldine Fitzgerald in the Warner Bros. film noir thriller Three StrangersMy Favorite Brunette (1947)
From the Paramount comedy My Favorite Brunette with Bob Hope and Lon Chaney Jr.Congo Crossing (1956)
With Virginia Mayo and George Nader in the Universal-International adventure Congo CrossingThe Buster Keaton Story (1957)
With Donald O'Connor in the Paramount drama The Buster Keaton StoryHell Ship Mutiny (1957) 
Actor Jon Hall produced this low-budget adventure, titled Hell Ship Mutiny. Lorre is pictured here with Jon HallVoyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961)
From the 20th Century Fox adventure Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea with Barbara Eden, Joan Fontaine, and Walter PidgeonFive Weeks in a Balloon (1962)
With Barbara Eden and Red Buttons in the 20th Century Fox adventure Five Weeks in a BalloonThe Comedy of Terrors (1963)
Campy promotional shot from American International's comedy/horror flick The Comedy of Terrors. Pictured are Basil Rathbone, Boris Karloff, Lorre, and Vincent Pricelater yearsPeter Lorre was married three times; his first was to actress Celia Lovsky, whom he met when both were stage actors in Vienna. When this marriage ended in divorce in 1945, he married a much younger German actress, Kaaren Verne, but this union ended in divorce in 1950. His third marriage to wife Annemarie produced his only child, daughter Cathy.With the increasing popularity of television in the early 1950s, Lorre found his acting career reinvigorated on such anthology series as Climax!, Playhouse 90, and Studio 57, as well as the comedy series The Red Skelton Hour. In addition, Lorre continued acting in films, everything from big-budget adventures such as Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1961; with Walter Pidgeon and Joan Fontaine) to such low-budget flicks as Hell Ship Mutiny (1957; with Jon Hall) and The Raven (1963; with Vincent Price and Boris Karloff). Sadly, Peter Lorre was found dead on March 23, 1964, just two days before Muscle Beach Party (1964; with Frankie Avalon and Luciana Paluzzi) premiered, in which he had a cameo. His final film was the comedy The Patsy (1964; with Jerry Lewis and Phil Harris). He was survived by his estranged third wife, Annemarie (1922-1971), and daughter Cathy (1953-1985). |
filmographyFILM
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This page premiered October 8, 2010.
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