In Hollywood, he frequently played slightly unctuous, sleazy, foreign villains--perhaps most notably in The Maltese Falcon and in Casablanca. He was one of the first villains in a James Bond movie.
After the War, he directed a film called Der Verlorene [The Lost One, 1951] in Germany.
Here he is, sending up himself a bit, in the trailer for Mad Love. Lorre's persona was easy to spoof and there are lots of cartoon versions of him.
About 48 seconds in, the scene of Lorre, with wide eyes, claiming "I have conquered science" struck me. Replications of that scene, using the same style of voice and everything, can be seen in almost every mad-scientist sort of film these days. I can see why his persona was easy to spoof. Something about him even reminded me of a character rfom Bugs Bunny, but I can't remember exactly which one.
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