Peter Lorre

[silver]

I've heard that Peter Lorre was a hero before he became a film star, what did he do to win this accolade?

[charlie]

During the latter part of the 1940's he had to deal with anti-Communist witch-hunts, but dealt with them in true Lorre fashion. When asked by federal agents whether he knew any persons with suspected Communist ties he proceeded to name names ' basically every person he had ever met in his life. After that he was left alone.

[Bossola]

In response to the other answer posted (Charlie) - surely by the late 1940's he was already a film star. ?

[horseman]

I don't think that Lorre was a 'hero' as such before he went to Holllywood. What was the case was that Lorre, who was Swiss, worked in Berlin with director Fritz Lang and was cast in the title role of a murderous paedophile in the film "M". After "M" became an international success, Lorre was appalled to discover that the Nazis used that his image and clips from "M" in Hitler's campaigns against Jews. Not only did it denigrate Jews, but Lorre's own image was associated with the campaign, and as he was Jewish himself, he became a prime target for reprisal. So, with his first wifehe feld to London. "M" is still hailed as a classic and Lorre was once described by Charlie Chaplin as "the greatest actor alive."

[CherylMorris]

Peter Lorre was not Swiss. He was Hungarian, born in Rosenberg. You might be interested in the new biography on Peter -- "The Lost One: A Life of Peter Lorre", by Stephen D. Youngkin. This is the book's official website: http://www.peterlorrebook.com. You can order the book there through several on-line merchants. On this site, you will also find a biographical sketch of Peter, written by Mr. Youngkin, Peter's authorized biographer. Unlike so much of what you'll find on Peter on the internet, this sketch is accurate.