Hollywood Memorial

Beloved character actor, whose style and accent made him popular with his fans. He was a virtual unknown for years playing bit parts in numerous films in Europe when German director Fritz Lang cast him as a psychopathic child killer in ‘M’ (1931). After several more German films, the Nazis came to power, and in 1933, he left for Paris, then Hollywood where he became icon after roles in ‘The Maltese Falcon and ‘Casablanca’ where he became a great friend of Bogart. His daughter Catharine was almost abducted by the Hillside Stranglers, Bianchi & Buono, who let her go when they found out she was Peter Lorre’s daughter. His voice style was often imitated in films and cartoons, most recently as the worm in Tim Buton’s ‘The Corpse Bride.’ He was easily one of the most mimicked and caricatured of all Hollywood stars. Once, while he and Vincent Price went to view Bela Lugosi at Bela’s funeral, and upon seeing Bela dressed in his famous Dracula cape, quipped ‘Do you think we should drive a stake through his heart just in case?’ Cremated and entombed in Hollywood Forever Cemetery not far from Rudolph Valentino.