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00:02can it be that they are mad themselves who call me mad if you only knew what was going on
00:11in this
00:11head of man you'd really know when Peter Lorre was in a film you'd know you were going to be
00:17frightened nice work neat very neat I thought he was one of the greatest actors I'd ever seen
00:27I am not a liar but you you are a coward you don't want to hear the truth you'll always
00:32remember the
00:33eyes they used to look at you as much as say I'm going right into your soul he's one of
00:43the best
00:43character actors who ever worked in Hollywood or anywhere else
00:55his bulging eyes nasal voice and convincing renderings of tormented characters forever
01:02branded Peter Lorre as the master of menace the Sultan of sinister in reality he was a kind
01:12sensitive cultured man who spent most of his life trying to escape from the shadow of his macabre
01:19portrayals Peter Lorre was born Ladislav Loewenstein on June 26th 1904 in Rosa hey Hungary the eldest of
01:30five children he learned early in life how to deal with adversity Peter's father Alois was a staunch
01:36monarchist with a military background he worked as a manager of a textile concern in Hungary Peter's
01:43mother Elvira from whom he inherited his expressive eyes unfortunately died when Peter was four she
01:50died of blood poisoning now raising four children alone Alois soon remarried and moved his family to
01:56Vienna Austria just as war broke out in the Balkans in 1913 although disinterested in academics
02:04Ladislav loved to paint and read stories about America school did however offer him and his
02:11younger brother Francis their first stage experience my father and he were in some sort of
02:18snow white and the seven dwarves or something when they were still in primary schools obviously showed
02:24his talents early upon graduation the young actor finally made public what he had known privately for
02:29years that he wanted to become an actor unhappy with his son's choice Ladislav's conservative father
02:37pleaded with him to learn a trade one that could earn him a decent living striking a deal Ladislav agreed
02:43to work as a bank teller by day and pursue his acting at night but the double life soon exhausted
02:50the
02:50frustrated actor and he was fired from the bank realizing the depth of his son's commitment Alois finally
02:57gave his blessing and allowed Ladislav to immerse himself in the bohemian lifestyle of the early 1920s he
03:06basically lived from cafe to cafe where he could scrounge a cup of coffee read a newspaper talk shop now
03:1220 the
03:13struggling actor joined an experimental theater group whose inspiration came from the teachings of Vienna's
03:19leading psychiatrist Sigmund Freud in their performances the troop explored the psychotherapeutic
03:26effects of drama concepts that suited the introspective and analytical Loewenstein perfectly using his large
03:34expressive eyes to project every kind of emotion Ladislav was immediately respected as a gifted and
03:42believable actor and in one performance Laurie played a murderer a knife-wielding murderer who chased a
03:47prostitute around the stage well he was so convincing that the people in the audience started yelling at
03:53him to stop it stop it early success encouraged the young actor to seek out bigger and brighter
03:59opportunities in 1925 at the suggestion of a friend 21 year old Ladislav Loewenstein moved to Berlin and
04:08he took the stage name Peter Lorre
04:16rising from the ashes of post-war Germany Berlin had become an artistic mecca here the decadent the dazzling and
04:24the deviant were all equally at home
04:27so too was Peter Lorre
04:30Lorre came of age theatrically in in Germany during the 1920s where expressionism had a tremendous impact on on all
04:40the art forms especially in the theater and one of the hallmarks of expressionism is the externalization of interior mental
04:49states it's it's very it's analytical
04:52Lorre often said that he thought acting was a science what was akin to psychology and that a good actor
05:00was a psychologist
05:01a leading proponent of the expressionist movement was one of Berlin's most controversial playwrights
05:07Berthold Brecht after auditioning Lori for a play Brecht praised the young actor's distinctive looks and intense style
05:16he offered Lori the chance to play more complex characters in more substantial roles
05:22in 1929 Lori captivated theater goers in a Brecht directed social drama called Pioniere in Ingolstadt
05:32one critic described him as a new face a terrifying face
05:38at 25 Peter Lorre had become a celebrity one who was widely admired by his fellow actors
05:46one such admirer was actress Celia Lovsky
05:50she saw him eating at a restaurant she sat down with him and and complimented him and on his performance
05:57he walked her home and on the way home he told her that he loved her and she laughed in
06:02his face
06:04and which prompted him to scream back
06:06un tear or monster which thereafter became his affectionate name for her for the rest of his life
06:12the two became inseparable and soon moved in together
06:16but Peter's relative happiness was short-lived
06:19he had some a major operation that went wrong in Switzerland for some unknown reason
06:24now it could have been an appendix it could have been a gallbladder I'm not sure
06:28but obviously there was an infection and they actually didn't expect him to live
06:31and for about three or four days it was touch and go and they started giving him morphine
06:39which was the usual habit in those days
06:42although still in pain and despite a growing dependency on morphine
06:47Lori returned to work
06:49once again his intense performances drew the attention of other artists
06:54among them was Germany's leading filmmaker Fritz Lang
06:58who after seeing his work cast him as the lead in his next film
07:16in M Lori played a pathological child murderer
07:20one whose crimes are so repellent that Berlin's criminal underworld agrees to help track him down
07:28in the film's climactic scene he pleads with a kangaroo court for his life
07:57I thought he was one of the greatest actors I'd ever seen
08:00because he portrayed this man who was a child molester and murderer
08:06and yet he became very sympathetic and he was sorry for him
08:13and he captured the quality of a man who was a tortured soul
08:23he succeeded perhaps not consciously in creating a portrait of the ordinariness of evil in pre-nazi Germany
08:34there's just there's nothing melodramatic about Lori's character
08:40he's absolutely ordinary he fits in everywhere
08:44and yet he is the carrier of a tremendous evil
08:49the international press hailed Lori as the world's greatest actor
08:53and the intensity of his horrifying performance had made him a star
08:57but just ahead were real-life horrors
09:01that would change the 27-year-old actor's life and the world forever
09:13by 1933 Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party had gained control of Germany
09:19and began the systematic and deliberate destruction of anything and anyone perceived to be in their way
09:26in addition to Jews Hitler's enemies included academics liberals and artists
09:32those who had frustrated his own creative ambitions
09:37the expressionist movement was discredited as promoting decadence and obscenity
09:42many actors, playwrights and philosophers were being imprisoned and executed
09:47others like Peter Lorre were too well known and were simply told to leave
09:52it was actually Goebbels who later became the propaganda minister
09:58who in those days was very much interested in theatre and artists generally
10:04but to consider himself as their protector so to speak
10:09and he apparently was the one who warned Peter to get out
10:12fleeing Germany in the spring of 1933 Peter and Celia settled in Paris
10:18but despite his prior success the actor had difficulty getting work
10:23after a frustrating year with only one cameo appearance
10:27he got a call from a British director who requested a meeting in London
10:31the director was Alfred Hitchcock
10:34he was terrified because he knew just a smattering of English
10:38which he had used in his job as a bank teller
10:41well he knew that Hitchcock loved to tell stories
10:44so he let Hitchcock become a raconteur
10:48and he simply reacted with laughter
10:52and Hitchcock got the idea that he understood
10:55was following the story and he obviously spoke English
10:58Laurie was cast in his first English speaking role
11:02as a sadistic spy in the man who knew too much
11:05and tell Mrs. Lawrence
11:09her little Betty and her husband are very well
11:12anything else?
11:14tell her they may soon be leaving us
11:17leaving us for a long long journey
11:20how is it that Shakespeare says
11:24from which no traveller returns
11:28Laurie later referred to himself as the man who didn't know too much English
11:32he stayed up late night drinking black coffee
11:36at first parroting his lines
11:39but later learning their meaning
11:41and infusing them with nuances that told people
11:44that he had a real grasp on the role
11:59sorry
12:01please forgive me
12:02Laurie's performance was well received
12:04and his career was back on track
12:07offered a contract at a thousand dollars a week
12:10with Columbia Pictures in Hollywood
12:12Peter eagerly accepted
12:13in July 1934 Peter married Celia
12:17and brought his bride to America
12:19the land of his childhood dreams
12:30the warm sunshine and glamorous lifestyle of Hollywood
12:34was a welcome change from the dark nightmare
12:37that had engulfed Europe
12:38the studios were brimming with creative energy
12:42much of it provided by actors, directors and technicians
12:46who like Laurie were fleeing Hitler's reign of terror
12:49but Peter's movie contract was not all it appeared to be
12:53the performances that had made him famous had typed him
12:57and producers were unwilling to cast the star of M
13:00in other kinds of roles
13:02M stamped Laurie's fate
13:04afterwards he was inundated with countless offers
13:07to play murderers and psychopaths
13:10women on the street when they saw him
13:12would clutch their children to their breast
13:14and flee from this actor
13:15whose portrayal had been just a little too convincing
13:18after a year of waiting in vain for a part
13:21the desperate actor approached Columbia chief Harry Cohn
13:25with the idea of filming Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment
13:30Cohn agreed with one condition
13:32first he would be loaned out to MGM to star in Mad Love
13:38it had everything
13:39it had sadism and necrophilia and mad science
13:44and mutilation
13:48it's a story of an obsessed doctor
13:51who grafts the hands of a murderer
13:53onto a concert pianist who's been maimed in a train wreck
13:57and of course the hands take on a life of their own
14:00fresh on the heels of Bela Lugosi's Dracula
14:03and Boris Karloff's Frankenstein
14:05film goers embraced Laurie as Hollywood's newest horror star
14:10honoring his promise Cohn cast Laurie as Raskolnikov
14:15in Crime and Punishment
14:16although Laurie gave what he believed to be
14:19one of the best performances of his career
14:21the film was a box office disappointment
14:23and while it wasn't a bad film
14:26and it was a fairly good adaptation of the Dostoevsky novel
14:33audiences were just not ready to accept Peter as a leading man unfortunately
14:39and so the picture didn't it was not successful
14:42after only two years and just one film Laurie left Columbia
14:47at issue was the 32 year old actor's unwillingness to be typecast
14:52in what he felt were one dimensional horror roles
14:56signing on at the newly formed 20th Century Fox in 1936
15:01Laurie was cast by Studio Chief Daryl Zanuck
15:04as an undercover spy in Crack Up
15:07you know a man sees nothing because he's wise
15:11or afraid or stupid
15:14which are you?
15:16wise as an owl
15:17an owl?
15:19you know an owl in daytime she can't see like this
15:24and in nighttime she can
15:28his performance as a ruthless spy posing as a harmless eccentric
15:33gave the actor the chance to play both comedy and drama
15:36a challenge he welcomed
15:38a similar challenge was provided when the Hungarian actor appeared
15:42as the Japanese detective Mr. Moto
15:45in Fox's follow-up to their enormously successful Charlie Chan series
15:53look out!
15:59why it's Moto, are you hurt?
16:02no thank you, only a slight miss eh?
16:04gee I thought sure we were going to kill somebody
16:06Mr. Moto is a very difficult fellow to kill
16:08the film was an instant hit
16:11and in less than two years
16:13Laurie would appear in eight more Mr. Moto films
16:24what happened?
16:26Mr. Wong is quite dead
16:27when Laurie later spoke of the Mr. Moto series
16:31he said I ran away from home to become an actor
16:35not to become Mr. Moto
16:36on the other hand it gave him great exposure to American audiences
16:40he became a household word
16:42he had to balance those things
16:44between films
16:45between films
16:46Laurie occupied himself
16:47by reading voraciously
16:48he educated himself
16:50about art
16:51science
16:51and philosophy
16:53but the actor's appetite
16:55was not limited to intellectual pursuits
16:58Leon Ames
16:59who was a co-worker on the Mr. Moto series
17:02said that
17:02Peter was on the make for every woman on the lot
17:05and that his typical line was
17:07he'd sidle up to a woman and say
17:09do you think you could get used to my body?
17:22despite his success as Mr. Moto
17:24the actor became frustrated and depressed
17:27over what he perceived to be the repetitive
17:30and inconsequential nature of his films
17:32more and more the actor turned to morphine
17:36as a means of numbing his emotional pain
17:38Laurie never hid his drug use
17:41from his friends and family
17:43but he did a terrific job of keeping it from his co-workers
17:47because they'll tell you how precise
17:50how professional he was
17:52how he did this
17:54with this intermittent drug problem
17:57is probably the greatest testament to his acting ability
17:59I suppose you've got a good reason for sticking your nose into this
18:03oh yes sir
18:04very good reason
18:05Mr. Riggs and I have promised the district attorney
18:08to arrest the murderer
18:13compounding Laurie's emotional deterioration
18:16and professional dissatisfaction
18:17were growing concerns about the war in Eastern Europe
18:21Laurie had a real low point during the making of the Moto pictures
18:25he was sitting in his dressing room
18:27and listened to Hitler rant and rave on the radio
18:30against the Jews
18:32and one morning Norman Foster knocked on his door
18:34and said Peter were ready to shoot
18:35and Peter screamed
18:39the whole world's falling apart
18:41and you want me to make a picture
18:42safe in the comfort and luxury of Hollywood
18:45Laurie felt he had abandoned his family in Europe
18:48to assuage his guilt
18:49he participated in the war effort by any means possible
18:53Peter was making anti-Nazi speeches
18:57over the shortwave radio
18:58somehow the Gestapo managed to track down my family
19:01and my grandfather was dragged up to the Gestapo
19:04and was interrogated
19:06but because of his age
19:07even then
19:08I think they finally released him
19:10my aunt was dragged off
19:13ostensibly to one of the camps
19:17but she was very sick
19:18and they threw her off the train
19:20and left to die at the side of the road
19:22it was a pretty horrific time for us
19:25feeling isolated from his family and his country
19:28Laurie was ever more insistent
19:30on playing better characters in stronger films
19:33at times
19:35Zanuck complied
19:38service
19:39Casson
19:40Casson
19:40service please
19:45I thought I told you to stay out of here
19:47oh yes monsieur
19:48but I wish to order a very expensive breakfast
19:51you do eh?
19:53and what would you like?
19:55oh some wine ordinaire
19:56and for one thousand francs
19:59lobsters with thermidor
20:01in I'll give a million
20:02Laurie's naive hobo
20:04was hailed by the press
20:05as a superbly comic performance
20:08but despite positive reviews
20:10movie goers wanted more of their beloved
20:13Mr. Moto
20:14you really are Moto then?
20:17that is my one permanent characteristic
20:20frustrated by what he perceived as Zanuck's failure
20:23to acknowledge his diverse talents
20:25in July of 1939
20:27the actor obtained a release from Fox
20:29leaving Mr. Moto behind
20:32at 35 he was once again unemployed
20:36and on his own
20:44in 1940 Peter Laurie gave in to Hollywood typecasting
20:47and appeared alongside Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff
20:51in the critically disappointing comedy thriller
20:53you'll find out
20:56small roles in obscure films followed
20:59but the 35 year old actor
21:01who had previously proven his range and stature
21:04was about to receive a badly needed career boost
21:08we were talking about a lot more money than this
21:10there are more of us to be taken care of now
21:12that may be but I've got the falcon
21:14you may have the falcon
21:16but we certainly have you
21:30as the obsequious scoundrel Joel Cairo
21:34in John Huston's film of the Maltese Falcon
21:36Laurie received universal praise
21:39and the film became a box office blockbuster
21:43so potent in fact was the chemistry of Laurie Bogart
21:47and screen heavy Sidney Greenstreet
21:49that the trio were quickly re-teamed
21:51in the now classic Casablanca
21:54I was willing to shoot Captain Reno
21:56and I'm willing to shoot you
21:57alright Major you asked for it
22:12what do you want for Sam?
22:13I don't buy and sell human beings
22:15it's too bad as Casablanca's leading commodity
22:19Rick help me
22:20be a fool you can't get away
22:21Rick hide me
22:22do something
22:23you must help me
22:24Rick!
22:35Now under contract at Warner Brothers
22:37Laurie was again making quality films
22:39and working steadily
22:41often paired with Greenstreet or Bogart
22:44he enjoyed the kind of professional camaraderie
22:47he had not experienced since leaving Germany
22:50they liked each other very much
22:52but they became very good friends
22:53you know
22:55Peter was very easy to like
22:57he was a charming guy
22:58and Bogart
23:02Bogie was a very intelligent guy too
23:04when Bogart considered marrying a woman
23:07I think 22 or 3 years his junior
23:09he was very concerned
23:10and came to Laurie for advice
23:12Laurie counseled him
23:14it's better to have 5, 10, 15 years
23:17happy years than none at all
23:19for Peter and his wife Celia
23:21the happiness of their 10 year marriage
23:23was behind them
23:24they had gone from being lovers
23:26to friends
23:28while filming all through the night
23:30Laurie met and became smitten with
23:32his younger co-star
23:33a German actress named Karen Verne
23:36I noticed that he would begin to dress up
23:40a little better you know
23:42and I knew that they would go away for a weekend
23:45and he would very nicely dress
23:49he sort of seemed to
23:52I think he was trying to win her affections
23:54on May 25, 1945
23:57two months after his divorce from Celia
23:59Peter and Karen were married
24:01to keep pace with his younger
24:04and more athletic wife
24:05the 41 year old took up tennis
24:07and soon became lean and muscular
24:10for now he was happy
24:12and his good spirits made him famous
24:14for playing practical jokes
24:16on his Warner Brothers co-stars
24:19I'll never forget
24:20one day Judith Anderson came to me and said
24:23what goes on
24:25every time Peter leaves my dressing room
24:27there's a big laugh from everybody
24:30and I went over to watch it once
24:33to see what was going on
24:34he would come out of her dressing room
24:36where he'd been visiting her
24:37and he'd zip up his fly
24:40and of course nothing was happening
24:41you know
24:42but he just did that for fun
24:45and when she found out
24:47she ran after him with a hair brush
24:50he used to love to bug Errol Flynn
24:53he'd go to wardrobe
24:55and put on these incredible costumes
24:57say he'd wear the Mutiny on the Bounty
25:01Charles Lawton costume
25:02and right in the middle of a take on Errol's set
25:06as Errol would be speaking
25:07he would let out
25:08here we go
25:10mutiny
25:11or something like that
25:12and Errol would say
25:13oh god
25:14it's Laurie again
25:15will you get him off the stage
25:17and I have a feeling that he was just
25:20we felt that one day
25:22he would give anything
25:24to be able to be
25:25at least
25:26some kind of a leading man
25:28in one part or another
25:30despite the lack of offers
25:32for leading roles
25:33Laurie appeared in more than
25:34two dozen films
25:36over the next three years
25:37he was making good money
25:39and living well
25:43but ironically
25:44the end of World War II
25:46meant the end of the kinds of roles
25:48in which Laurie specialized
25:51westerns and comedies
25:52soon replaced mysteries and thrillers
25:55within a year
25:56he was back to playing
25:57the kind of one-dimensional boogeyman
25:59he despised
26:01I heard what they said in the garden
26:02I couldn't help but hear
26:03that's a lie
26:04you're lying
26:04I'm not a liar
26:05but you, you are a coward
26:07you don't want to hear the truth
26:10the glory days at Warner's had ended
26:13instead of co-starring
26:14with Humphrey Bogart
26:15Laurie played opposite
26:16a disembodied hand
26:19but as always
26:20Peter remained a professional
26:23I've never seen a more serious actor
26:25he was always prompt
26:27always knew exactly
26:29every word that he felt was right
26:32he often had great suggestions
26:35because he was so talented
26:37the director would immediately accept
26:40but he knew everything
26:42his lines
26:43his character
26:44the depth of
26:47everything that he did
26:49was a very serious thing
26:50when that camera rolled
26:52Hillary!
26:53listen!
26:54listen!
26:55can you hear it?
26:56the piano
26:57it's the hand playing
26:58it's the hand
26:58you were right all the time
26:59it was Ingram's hand
27:00that committed murder
27:02the beast with five fingers
27:04the beast with five fingers
27:04was Laurie's last film
27:06with Warner Brothers
27:07in 1946
27:08after 16 films in five years
27:11his option was not renewed
27:13and around this time
27:15Sam Stiefel
27:16a business manager
27:18who also represented
27:19Mickey Rooney
27:19convinced him
27:20that if he went independent
27:21he would make more money
27:23and could produce direct act
27:25in his own films
27:26well this appealed to Laurie
27:27to finally take charge
27:28of his career
27:29and direct it away
27:31from typecasting roles
27:33Peter formed his own company
27:35Laurie Incorporated
27:37but like many actors
27:38of his day
27:39he was not a savvy businessman
27:41eager to get on
27:43with finding interesting projects
27:45he gave Stiefel
27:46complete control
27:47over his legal
27:48and business affairs
28:04from the beginning
28:05business was bad
28:07and lofty aspirations
28:09soon gave way
28:10to financial necessity
28:11as Laurie was forced
28:13to accept the few film roles
28:14he was offered
28:16fortunately films
28:17were not the actors
28:18only creative outlet
28:20radio mysteries
28:22were thriving
28:23and Laurie's unique
28:24and expressive voice
28:26placed him in great demand
28:27the way you talk
28:29anybody think
28:29you don't even like
28:30the poor cat
28:31like it?
28:31like it?
28:33I hate it
28:34I hate it
28:36I tell you
28:36I hate it
28:37I hate it
28:39I hate it
28:39I hate it
28:43he threw himself
28:45in the performances
28:45as if he were giving live
28:46performances
28:47before a camera
28:48or before hundreds of people
28:51at one particular speech
28:52he became so wrapped up
28:55in the characterization
28:56in the plot
28:58that his false teeth
28:59flew out
28:59he caught them in mid-air
29:01put them back in
29:02and kept right on going
29:03without a break
29:04take your hands off
29:06take your hands off
29:07take your hands off
29:07can you hear me?
29:10I don't like to be pushed around
29:13I just don't
29:15I got it
29:16unfortunately
29:16Peter's experience
29:18with Laurie Incorporated
29:19was not so stimulating
29:20his constant struggle
29:22to find quality material
29:24seemed even more fruitless
29:26when he discovered
29:26that his company
29:27had been badly mismanaged
29:29one day at lunch
29:33it was kind of sad
29:34but I was
29:36I was happy
29:37that he thought enough of me
29:38to say something about it
29:40and he said
29:41Barbara
29:41whatever you do
29:43if you stay in this business
29:45and you make a success of it
29:47don't let anyone else
29:49sign your checks
29:52and I said
29:53no I don't think I would do that
29:54he said you say that now
29:55you get busy
29:56and you're going to hand it to someone
29:58and have them take care of it
29:59and he said
30:00I shouldn't have to be working now
30:04he said
30:04but I have to
30:05because I was wiped out
30:06in May 1949
30:08the 44 year old actor
30:10filed for bankruptcy
30:12after only three years
30:14his attempt at independence
30:15had failed miserably
30:17broke and bitter
30:19he decided to leave Hollywood
30:21and return to Europe
30:22but what he would find there
30:24was not the homeland
30:25he had left 15 years before
30:31in June of 1949
30:33Peter and his wife Karen
30:34flew to England
30:35where he was to give
30:36live readings of poetry
30:38and literature
30:39but four years
30:40of professional
30:41and financial problems
30:43had seriously damaged
30:44the lorry's
30:45already difficult marriage
30:46within weeks
30:48of arriving in London
30:49Karen decided to go home
30:51to California
30:52Peter continued to Germany
30:54alone
30:56gone was the bohemian Berlin
30:58of lorry's youth
30:59in its place were bombed out buildings
31:02and refugee camps
31:03here lorry saw the destruction
31:05of the human spirit
31:07reflected in the eyes
31:08of the survivors
31:09overwhelmed by their plight
31:11in his own private pain
31:12he again sought refuge in morphine
31:15checking himself into a German sanitarium
31:18the now divorced actor
31:20met a fellow patient
31:21named Anne-Marie Brenning
31:22despite their 18 year age difference
31:26the two began a serious relationship
31:28in 1950 lorry resolved to make a film
31:32addressing Germany's post-war plight
31:34bolstered by Anne-Marie's emotional support
31:37he decided to write, produce, direct and star
31:41in Der Verlorn
31:42or The Lost One
31:45but the ambitious production
31:46was plagued with problems
31:48the original cut of the film
31:50was lost in a fire
31:51and lorry was forced to re-edit
31:53the entire project
31:55also unanticipated
31:57was the German reaction to the film
31:59after experiencing the war first-hand
32:02audiences weren't interested
32:04in a Hollywood star's rehashing
32:06of their grim story
32:08by the time it was released
32:10in September 1951
32:11what small response
32:13the project received
32:14ranged from apathy
32:16to hostility
32:17Peter took the rejection badly
32:20believing that his own countrymen
32:22were condemning him
32:23and his masterpiece
32:26now broke
32:27and with no prospects
32:28in 1952
32:30the 47 year old lorry
32:32returned to America
32:33it didn't help
32:35that Anne-Marie was pregnant
32:36and had decided to remain in Germany
32:39depressed
32:40and dejected
32:41the actor spent nearly a year
32:43without work
32:44until he received a call
32:46from an old friend
32:47John Huston
32:48knew where lorry had been
32:50that he had nowhere to go
32:52and he stepped in
32:54and saved him
32:57by casting him
32:58as a rogue
32:59a comic figure
33:01in Beat the Devil
33:02a child
33:04a child
33:04six years old
33:05is older in his heart
33:07than you'll be
33:08at 60
33:10it smokes
33:11it drinks
33:11it philosophizes
33:12at this rate
33:13I'll be 60
33:14before you get to the point
33:16for lorry this meant
33:17more than he could ever say
33:18it was a chance to be
33:19together with Bogart again
33:20and with Houston
33:21and to turn the clock back
33:22to happier days
33:23to the times of camaraderie
33:25and practical jokes
33:26and uh
33:26and real nuts and bolts
33:28professionalism
33:29for those who hadn't seen him
33:31since his last Hollywood film
33:32the harsh toll
33:34lorry's hardships had taken
33:35was jarring
33:36I was shocked
33:38to see
33:39how he had deteriorated physically
33:42he was bloated
33:44and
33:45big stomach out to here
33:47and he'd gone very much downhill
33:49and it was very sad
33:51because uh
33:52he was a great talent
33:54what's our wide-eyed Irish leprechaun
33:56doing outside my door?
33:58why do you always make jokes
33:59about my name, huh?
34:01in Chile
34:01the name of O'Hara
34:02is
34:03is a tip-top name
34:04many Germans in Chile
34:05have become to be called O'Hara
34:08completing the film
34:09he flew back to Germany
34:10to meet his baby daughter
34:12Catherine
34:13he and Anne-Marie were married
34:15on July 21st 1953
34:18for now
34:19his future looked hopeful
34:21he was very very pleased
34:23and very happy
34:24he was absolutely besotted with her
34:26and she looked like him
34:28her temperate looks
34:29was very much like him
34:31she was also very creative
34:32and very artistic
34:33later that summer
34:35Peter moved his family
34:36to Beverly Hills
34:37where new challenges
34:38were offered him
34:39in the rapidly developing
34:40medium of television
34:41here the stage trained actor
34:44could enjoy a broader range
34:46of roles
34:47look Mr. Bond
34:49as you should know
34:49by now
34:50I'm quite without mercy
34:52and
34:53if you continue
34:54to be that obstinate
34:55I
34:57I'll have to torture
34:58you will be tortured
34:59to the edge of madness
35:01believe me
35:01you have no hope whatsoever
35:03you hear?
35:04none
35:05nor has she
35:07you're an ugly little man
35:09why don't you stop talking?
35:11as the very first
35:13James Bond supervillain
35:14in a televised adaptation
35:16of Ian Fleming's
35:17Casino Royale
35:19Peter Lorre brought
35:20an intensity
35:21and perversity
35:22unusual
35:23for the time
35:24very lucky you're
35:26Mr. Bond
35:26yes
35:27and very handsome
35:30tell me
35:31has he changed much
35:32since the dates
35:33when you two were
35:34he looks just the same
35:35uh huh
35:36you want me to talk
35:37with him now?
35:39plenty of time
35:39I tell you when
35:41during his latter years
35:42Laurie often referred
35:43to film and television work
35:45that he didn't want to do
35:46as latrine duty
35:46which was really unfair
35:48um
35:49because
35:51many of Laurie's
35:52film roles at this time
35:52for dramas such as
35:53Playhouse 90 and Climax
35:55gave him far more
35:56substantive parts
35:57than the filmmakers
35:59were ever doing
36:00larger and more substantive
36:10unlike his TV appearances
36:12Laurie's film roles
36:13were mostly limited
36:14to parodies
36:15of his earlier
36:16screen persona
36:17sure we're friends
36:19go ahead
36:20hit me
36:22hit me
36:23you mean that
36:24sure go ahead
36:24you can't miss it
36:30now we're friends
36:31the former star of
36:33Germany's expressionist
36:34movement
36:35had become a caricature
36:37the man who had
36:38terrified adult audiences
36:40in M
36:41and Mad Love
36:42was now
36:43delighting children
36:44in the story of mankind
36:46and five weeks
36:48in a balloon
36:49climb aboard
36:51and enjoy
36:52the wildest
36:53wackiest
36:53air safari
36:54of all time
36:55I think what happened
36:57to Peter
36:58the sad thing that happened
36:59to Peter was
36:59but he began
37:01to mock himself
37:02in a way
37:03and I think he gave up
37:05trying to do serious work
37:07as an actor
37:08and
37:10he saw Hollywood
37:12as a place to make money
37:13and as he often said to me
37:15make faces
37:21you are there
37:23with a cast as exciting
37:24as the wonders they encounter
37:26Walter Pigeon
37:27Joan Fontaine
37:28Peter Lorre
37:29Barbara Eden
37:34where's Lee?
37:35come on
37:36we have no time to move
37:37we must find him
37:38he was indomitable
37:41he never seemed sad
37:43or resigned
37:44he did not demean
37:45what he was working on
37:46at the moment
37:47ever
37:48it is to his credit
37:49that he didn't let it
37:50get in his way
38:03in 1962
38:04Laurie appeared in the first of a series of modestly budgeted horror comedies
38:09true terror
38:11is the
38:11soft
38:13cold
38:13caress
38:14of
38:15the raven's wings
38:17directed by Roger Corman
38:19these loosely based adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe's stories
38:24co-starred veteran shock masters Boris Karloff, Basil Rathbone and Vincent Price
38:31playing his roles with more mirth than menace
38:34Peter Lorre enjoyed his work for the first time in many years
38:38he became very active
38:40from relatively
38:43very little business so to speak
38:45he was making movies right and left
38:49and being paid for them
38:51and he loved
38:52he loved to work
38:53he loved to make the movies
38:54he loved the money
38:56Laurie looked on these
38:57as
38:58as a time to have fun
38:59to escape
38:59and basically
39:00to earn some much needed money
39:02for his daughter
39:03because obviously Laurie anticipated
39:04that he wouldn't live that much longer
39:06his health was very very poor
39:08he was sick at the time
39:09very sick
39:10but
39:11the moment the camera started to roll
39:13there was no sign of
39:14being ill
39:16and I did feel that
39:18he was enjoying every moment
39:20of playing comedy
39:21I felt it was like
39:22oh
39:23another window had opened up for him
39:25you know
39:25and
39:27he did
39:28that was a joyous thing
39:29the whole film was a joy for him
39:31critics praised the on-screen chemistry
39:34of Filmland's most famous monsters
39:38after years of personal and professional disappointment
39:41it appeared that Peter Lorre could finally enjoy
39:44a secure and happy future
39:47but once again
39:48fate had a different plan
40:03starring Vincent Price
40:05who inspired by a seductive woman
40:09is overpowered with lust
40:10to kill
40:12Peter Lorre
40:13too sensitive for both the life he lives
40:16and the lives he takes
40:19hmm
40:20butterfingers
40:22now in his late 50s
40:24Peter Lorre was making one film a year
40:26on the set his love of acting kept him motivated
40:30but off the set he fought chronic fatigue
40:33weakness and depression
40:35problems at home added to his unhappiness
40:38his marriage to Anna Marie was not a happy one
40:40she grated on his nerves
40:43when she went to restaurants
40:44she announced herself as Mrs. Peter Lorre
40:47to secure the best table
40:48and made a production of the fact that she was the wife of a celebrity
40:52and Peter at this time preferred to keep a very low key
40:55and not advertise his presence
40:58ironically the actor got along much better with his two ex-wives
41:02he called second wife Karen often
41:04and saw his first wife Celia almost daily
41:07I would always have thought that Celia was the second mother to him
41:11and I think that Celia was the person who stood by him
41:15and being the older figure
41:17being a very down-to-earth sort of person
41:21and a very kind person
41:22in 1962 Peter and Ann Marie decided to end their 12-year relationship
41:35the lovable gullible innocent
41:37who becomes the mark for six wily characters
41:40in search of their bread and butter
41:42if Lorre had been critical of his earlier Hollywood films
41:46he was downright hostile toward the Patsy
41:48in which he appeared with Jerry Lewis
41:52he didn't want to be in the film
41:55he walked through the role
41:56he complained to co-workers which was unusual to him
41:59usually he closeted his regrets about whatever film he was doing
42:02in this case he was more outspoken
42:04and Kathy Lorre his daughter
42:06felt that this film had a hand in killing him
42:10because he was so unhappy about it
42:11he said I don't want to see it when it comes out
42:13on March 23rd 1964
42:16just four days after completing the Patsy
42:19Peter Lorre died of a heart attack
42:21he was 59 years old
42:26after a 34 year career that included 79 films
42:31and dozens of theatrical radio and television performances
42:35Lorre's death meant the loss of a gifted and generous artist
42:40and the passing of one of the screen's true originals
42:44tragic, you know, his career I think
42:50in the end
42:52just tragic, it shouldn't have been that way
42:54in a different world, in a different society
42:56we would have had greater appreciation of his talent and his ability
43:02it never ceases to amaze me that to this day he is still remembered
43:06there was something about him on film
43:08this sort of creative spirit
43:12I think of Peter Lorre as warm, giggling, mischievous, a fabulous actor to work with
43:25Peter Lorre's legacy is perhaps best demonstrated by the fact that people who have never seen one of his films
43:31know who he is
43:32they know what that voice is, they know what that voice means
43:35they know what he looks like
43:38I miss him terribly
43:44and there's no one else like him
43:47there are many people who can be replaced in this town
43:50but nobody can replace Peter
43:58living for a while
43:58there's no one else like him
44:18London
44:18Nico
44:22editedID