James Dennis Carroll (August 1, 1949 – September 11, 2009) was an American author, poet, autobiographer, and punk musician. Carroll was best known for his 1978 autobiographical work The Basketball Diaries; the book inspired a 1995 film of the same title that starred Leonardo DiCaprio as Carroll.\n', '

Carroll was born to a working-class family of Irish descent, and grew up in New York City\'s Lower East Side. When he was about 11 (in the sixth grade) his family moved north to Inwood in Upper Manhattan. He was taught by the LaSalle Christian Brothers, and his brother in the sixth grade noted that he could write and encouraged him to do so. In fall 1963, he entered public school, but was soon awarded a scholarship to the elite Trinity School. He attended Trinity from 1964 to 1968. Carroll was a basketball star in high school, but also developed an addiction to heroin. Carroll became sober in the 1970s.\n', '

He briefly attended Wagner College and Columbia University.\n', '

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