Peter Lorre (June 26 1904 - March 23 1964), born László Löwenstein, was a Hungarian - Austrian - American actor frequently typecast as a sinister foreigner.
He made an international sensation in 1931 with his portrayal of a serial killer who preys on little girls in the German film M. Later he became a popular featured player in Hollywood crime films and mysteries, notably alongside Humphrey Bogart and Sydney Greenstreet, and as the star of the successful Mr. Moto detective series.
As a youth Peter Lorre ran away from home, worked as a bank clerk, and after stage training in Vienna made his acting debut in Zurich. He remained unknown, traveling for seven years acting in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, until Fritz Lang (I) cast as the psychopathic child killer in M (1931). After several more films in Germany, Lorre left as the Nazis came to power, going to Paris, London and, in 1935, Hollywood. He played Raskolnikov in Crime and Punishment (1935/I) and a series of Mr. Moto movies during the late 1930s. He began his pairing with Sydney Greenstreet as Joel Cairo in Maltese Falcon, The (1941), continued in Casablanca (1942) and seven other films during the early 1940s. In Germany he wrote, directed and starred in Verlorene, Der (1951). After that, somewhat heavier, he played in a string of not-so-stellar efforts, one exception being his role as a clown in Big Circus, The (1959). He died the year he made his last movie, playing a stooge in Jerry Lewis (I)' Patsy, The (1964).
Peter was born in Rózsahegy, Hungary, to Alois and Elvira Löwenstein. He was educated in elementary and secondary schools in Vienna, Austria. He ran away from home when he was 17 and joined an improvised theater. In 1922, he worked as a bank clerk. Did bits with a company in Breslau, then secured a part in Galsworthy's "Society" in Zurich. He played in Vienna for two years before going to Berlin. He adopted the stage name "Lorre" in 1925. In 1928, he appeared in "Pioniere in Ingolstadt". He also appeared in "Spring's Awakening" (date unknown) and then in 1931 appeared in the famous M (1931) directed by Fritz Lang (I).
