Often typecast as a menacing figure, Peter Lorre achieved Hollywood fame during the 1930s, first as a featured player and later as a character actor who trademarked his screen performances with a delicately strung balance between good and evil. To villainous parts he added a touch of dark humor, while he shaded comic roles with sinister overtones. Though he deprecated his art as "face-making," Lorre took his work seriously and lamented Hollywood's use of his tricks but not his talent. His globular eyes and diffident whine have inspired comic impersonations and been widely caricatured in commercials (Kellogg's "Booberry"), cartoons (Ren and Stimpy), and literature (Catcher in the Rye).

Born in Rozsahegy, Hungary, Ladislav Loewenstein moved to Moedling, Austria, in 1912, where he debuted in a primary school production of Snow White. Contrary to reports that he ran away from home to become an actor, after...