 He was born Gerschon Lichtenstein in Łódź, Congress Poland into a Jewish family.He sailed from the Port of Hamburg, Germany, as a steerage passenger on board the S/S "President Grant", which arrived at the Port of New York on May 29, 1913; at Ellis Island, he passed federal immigrant inspection with his two sisters and a brother.As an actor, Stone's slight build and very expressive face first attracted attention in the 1927 silent-film "7th Heaven", where he played the local street thug The Sewer Rat.