Howard Buten is an American author living in France. He is also a psychologist, a clown, and a violin player. He is the author of five novels, the first of which, entitled When I Was Five I Killed Myself, was published in 1981 and turned into a film under its French title Quand j'avais cinq ans je m'ai tu� in 1994. As a young man Howard Buten encountered a child with autism and this sparked a lifelong interest in the disease. He has worked on autism as a researcher, clinical psychologist, therapist, and founder of a clinic for the autistic in Paris, France. He is also a theatrical clown with the stage name Buffo, who is quite well known in France. He got his start in acting at a very young age, re-enacting scenes from his favorite stories, along with his childhood friends/neighbors. Buten's first and best known novel, When I Was Five I Killed Myself, is largely unknown in his home country, but has sold more than a million copies in France. He was made Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, a prominent literary honor, in 1991. 

January 1st, 1950 in Detroit (Age 74)