My dad had this rock hard body and would work 12- to 13-hour days. The guys he worked with were scrap-iron guys. Nobody on that road crew had read a book in 10 years, but there was something about the way they lived I really admired.

Early life and education
Russo was born in Johnstown New York and raised in nearby Gloversville. Russo wrote the teleplay for the HBO adaptation of Empire Falls the screenplay for the 2005 film Ice Harvest and the screenplay for the 2005 Niall Johnson film Keeping Mum which starred Rowan Atkinson. The couple have two daughters Kate and Emily.