By Stephen D. Youngkin, 2005
Youngkin delivers an extremely detailed biography of the always-great character actor Peter Lorre.
His life is traced from his early days to his theater work with Bertolt Brecht to M. Lorre escaped the Nazis and did two films with Alfred Hitchcock before settling in America, where he quickly found work and got fame as Mr. Moto. He moved to Warner Brothers and got parts in The Maltese Falcon and Casablanca among others... and later found parts in noir films and late in his career... in films like 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.
Lorre was known for playing menacing characters on the screen.. but was a prankster and a true artist (as well as a drug addict) in real life. This book delves into both his on-screen and off-screen lives equally.
The book is exquisitely detailed. Most of his films are covered in detail... even the most forgettable. Seemingly anyone he worked with who offered an opinion about Lorre in the press or in interviews with the author is featured.
An extensive (150+ pages) appendix is included detailing his stage/film/television credits, a bibliography, notes, list of interviews and an index. Dozens of rare photos are also featured.
This is clearly something that took the author decades to put together and it comes across as a labor of love.
If you're a fan of Peter Lorre or want to know more about the golden age of Hollywood... I recommend this heartily.
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