Emigrated from Romania with his family in 1903 and settled on New York's Lower East Side
Made his Broadway debut in 1915 in the play Under Fire and his (uncredited) film debut a year later in Arms and the Woman
Achieved stardom as a "tough guy" in the 1931 gangster drama Little Caesar
Made five films with Humphrey Bogart, most notably Key Largo
Significant films include Dr
Ehrlich's Magic Bullet (1940), Double Indemnity (1944) and The Ten Commandments (1956) Threatened with blacklisting during the McCarthy era, he cooperated with the House Un-American Activities Committee and was cleared of any ties to Communist organizations
Awarded an honorary Oscar in 1973, but died two months before the ceremonies
Finished his final film, Soylent Green, less than two weeks before his death from cancer