Grew up on Long Island, one of four sons of the late Gene Klavan, popular New York radio deejay, news columnist and host on American Movie Classics cable network.Graduate of University of California at Berkeley, but dropped out of school for awhile to work in local radio news. Met his wife, Ellen, at UC Berkeley; they have two children, Faith and Spencer. While writing first novels, worked as a reporter on a small Putnam County, NY newspaper, also as a reader for Columbia Pictures and a news-writer for both WOR Radio and ABC Radio Network. Lived in London with his family for seven years, before moving to Santa Barbara, California.Klaven's brother, Ross Klavan, is also a writer, who co-authored Tigerland (2000).