Customer Reviews

The Lost One: A Life of Peter Lorre

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I've waited decades for the definitive biography to be written about this unique and talented actor...and finally it's here! This book explores Lorre's public and private life in great detail, with previously unknown or unrevealed facts about this often underappreciated genius. The names of people interviewd for this book are like a who's who of 20th century cinema, many of them long since gone. The personal photographs, are great and help the reader truly understand the man behind the actor who made a career out of "making faces". If you've ever enjoyed seeing this great performer's work, you won't be able to put this book down!

Let me say at once that Peter Lorre could not have wished for a better biographer. Based on more than twenty years' research and invaluable interviews with family and colleagues, this is not hagiography (like Lotte Eisner's biography of Fritz Lang), nor does it "dish the dirt", but it is the sober, honest and - yes - respectful (I think that is the right word) account of a life which should have turned out differently. When reading the book, I don't know how many times I thought "If only - " or "Why didn't he - " or simply "Poor Peter".
The game of "what if Hitler had never happened" is a futile exercise, yet I cannot help wondering if Lorre's career would have been so radically different if he had been able to remain in his homeland. With his small size and looks, Lorre was not cut out to be either suave leading man or swashbuckling hero. He did, however, have a much larger range than that to which Hollywood typecasting for the most condemned him in a criminal waste of this supremely intelligent man's talents. While his studies of tragic outsiders were what brought him to fame, he was also a very talented and funny comedian, as well as a fine actor in more romantic roles.
"The Lost One", the title of Youngkin's biography, is taken from Lorre's own film "Der Verlorene" of which he was co-author, as well as playing the title role and directing. In Germany this bleak story of a man whose life was shattered by the war was met with hostility, and so it remains a one-off - a tantalising glimpse of what Lorre was able to do as actor and director.
When looking at photos taken through Lorre's career, it is amazing to see how the rather chubby young man with the round, soft, innocent child's face eventually matured into that most beautiful and elegant little creature of his Warner Bros. period.
Stephen Youngkin's book is a splendid, intelligent and moving account of a unique life and career, capturing as it does the flaws and virtues that went to make up the engaging human being who was Peter Lorre.

Karen Margrethe Halstroem, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Not only is THE LOST ONE the definitive work on the life and career of Peter Lorre, it is an amazing contribution to film history that will be a popular citation for subsequent writers on a variety of ancillary artists such as Bertolt Brecht and Alfred Hitchcock.

The acknowledged expert on his subject, Youngkin contributed the biography section, as well as critiques of the actor's German films, for Citadel Press' "The Films of Peter Lorre." He appeared on camera for the German television documentary "Das Doppelte Gesicht (The Double Face)", as well as the A&E "Biography" tribute to Lorre. He is also the author of "Peter Lorre: Portrait des Schauspielers auf der Flucht."

Based on decades of research and never-before-published interviews, with rare photos superbly reproduced, THE LOST ONE is a massive work of scholarship that is both an entertaining and an emotionally moving read. As a writer, Youngkin combines the impartiality of an experienced reporter with compassion and admiration for an actor who must be regarded as one of the great stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, a man whose life was blessed by great triumph and plagued by great tragedy.

Major raves for THE LOST ONE - which are already coming from such diverse authorities as "Publishers Weekly" and "Starlog" magazine (the current issue rates the book "a stunning achievement... beyond definitive...") - will continue to raise it to its rightful place in film scholarship, a fitting tribute to a unique performer.

[Vanity compels me to mention that I am the author of "The Complete Films of Vincent Price" (Citadel Press, 1995), which Mr. Youngkin was kind enough to cite in his bibliography.]

Stephen Youngkin spent over thirty years researching The Lost One, his wonderful new biography of Peter Lorre. It's been a long wait for Peter lorre fans, but well worth it.
As a kid in the 1960's, I was aware of Lorre as a Hollywood icon through Warner Bros. cartoons. When I was about ten I saw Arsenic and Old Lace, followed by Lorre's Warner Bros. and Irwin Allen films, finally seeing M as a film major at Emerson College in Boston.
I put Lorre up there with Sellers and Brando, and deplored the fact that no biography had been written. I read about Youngkin's book in Film Comment and immediately bought a copy -- I was sorry to come to the end of it.
I teach Drama at a prep school near Boston, and plan on showing my students the A&E Biography of Lorre in which Youngkin was featured.
Not only is this the definitive biography of Lorre, but certainly one of the best researched and written biographies of the last few years.

This book is perhaps the most comprehensive and best researched biography of a Hollywood actor I have ever read. From the footnotes it appears the author has drawn on interviews he's conducted over the past several decades. Considering that many subjects are no longer living, we should be grateful he took the time to preserve their thoughts and comments.

Prior to reading the book I knew Lorre only from the Mr. Moto films, Maltese Falcon, Arsenic and Old Lace, and some really cheesy 60s horror films. After reading it I gained a greater appreciation of the man behind the actor. His life wasn't pretty, but it does make for facinating reading. The author does a good job covering all phases of his life, including the early years which are covered in great detail.

An thorough appendix covering his professional appearances (including stage and radio work) is also included.

Highly recommended.

Stephen Youngkin's biography of Peter Lorre is a superlative example of what film scholarship and biography should be - thorough, exhaustively researched, and intelligently written. I came to the end too quickly before I realized that I'd been held captive for over 600 pages.

A fan of Lorre's since I was young, I've read other articles and books over the years that touched on the actor's life and career, but nothing compares to Youngkin's book. 'The Lost One: A Life of Peter Lorre', as one review already stated, is the definitive work on the life of this gifted actor.

I'm writing this to follow up on my earlier review written 9 days ago which seems to have gone as "lost" as the title of the book. Youngkin has written the definitive biography of Peter Lorre sparing no time and expense over some thirty-five years to interview people who knew him in Germany such as his first wife Celia Lovsky and Gustav Frohlich (Freder from METROPOLIS), many people from his Hollywood years, as well as exploring numerous valuable archive resources. The book is a first rate example of academic scholarship which should put many supposed competitors to shame. Youngkin sympathetically details the life and work of a person who could have been a great actor had circumstances allowed but instead went on to "make faces" in movies as Lorre often glumly remarked. Historically and artistically informed, THE LOST ONE represents a magnificent labor of love and dedication on the part of its author which can tuly be described as "definitive."

Finally, a full-length biography on the fantastic actor Peter Lorre! I waited eagerly to receive this book and was thankful to be in no way disappointed. Mr Youngkin is a writer after my own heart, as he skilfully combines thorough detail about Lorre's career with illuminating information about the man behind the screen persona. The biography is an excellent combination of obvious respect and admiration for Peter Lorre and a frank look at his fascinating life. Highly recommended.

"He's crazy about me...all the degenerates are." Peter Lorre, speaking of his chimpanzee co-star in "Five Weeks in a Balloon."


From the beginning of his career, Peter Lorre was typecast. The classic German Expressionist drama, "M", set the tone for his entire career. Lorre said that from that point on, in people's eyes he was "forever the murderer". This was allowed to overshadow his incredible talent and his great aptitude for comedy. (His throwaway lines, like the one I quoted above, are priceless!)

His career spanned from experimental theater in pre-Nazi Germany, to classic noir films with Humphrey Bogart, to eminently forgettable films from the Sixties. (How odd that one of his last appearances was in "Muscle Beach Party"!)

Stephen Youngkin does an admirable job of chronicling Lorre's professional life, including the myriad missed opportunities--(of note: Malcolm Lowry's rabid interest in seeing Lorre play "the consul" in "Under the Volcano", and Lorre's own desire to produce a film about Kasper Hauser. Both of those projects, never realized, would have added so much to Lorre's cachet.)

The book overflows with examples of Lorre's humanity, professionalism, and wit. Unfortunately, the actor's personal battles with the demons of drug abuse and poor health, his unluckiness at love, and his profligate nature create an undertow of tragedy which no reader can escape. In the end, this is a deeply saddening and troubling book. Long after you have finished reading it, you will find yourself reflecting on the life of this brilliant and tormented individual, who indeed has a special place in the hearts of all the "outsiders" in the world.

After reading the Alfred Hitchcock documentary and reading about his time with Lorre I just had to get this book. It is the definative Peter Lorre biography including in detail his time in Germany and his rise to becoming one of the most underrated actors in history. The book is very in-depth and I found that in some parts the book did drag and I would have to put it down for a day or so. Otherwise I found the book to be a great read and recommend it to anyone who wants to know the life of this amazing man.