About Larry
Larry Kahn successfully negotiated the fast-paced world of domestic and international mergers and acquisitions for twenty years, first at a major New York law firm and then at an Atlanta Fortune 500 company. He penned The Jinx while on sabbatical in 1999 and retired in 2006 to write fiction full time (although many of his more cynical legal clients and associates had accused him of writing fiction full time for many years prior to retirement). He resides in Atlanta with his wife, Ellie, and their sons are pursuing professional careers.
Larry developed a keen interest in social issues while attending Yale Law School, an idealistic spirit that continues to infuse his novels and fuel his progressive views. The vision of a colorblind America in his political thriller The Jinx led to endorsements by leaders of the ACLU, National Urban League and Artists Against Racism. And as the Baby Boomer generation scatters about the country, King of Paine envisions a renewed emphasis on family and tradition in which Americans create for their venerable elders, and ultimately themselves, a peaceful place to die.
In 2010, life threw Larry a curveball with a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. As a Babe Ruth League baseball player in high school, the first two curveballs Larry ever saw knocked him on his backside. He hit the third one through the box for a single and has never backed away from a curveball since. For the moment, a great idea for a third novel is on the shelf while Larry has turned his attention to Parkinson’s advocacy. While many other good people are leading the charge for a cure, Larry has focused on helping newly diagnosed people with Parkinson’s learn how to live better with the disease. He has become a vocal advocate for vigorous exercise as a primary therapy for PD. He and Ellie were the co-founders of PD Gladiators, Inc., a Georgia nonprofit corporation, the mission of which was to educate the public, people with Parkinson’s disease, and the medical community about the role of exercise in slowing the progression of PD and to make community-based exercise programs available to people with PD and their caregivers. After growing the PD Gladiators Fitness Network to offer over 60 weekly classes adapted for people with PD serving almost 25,000 participant visits a year, PD Gladiators’ operations were transferred to the Parkinson’s Foundation on August 1, 2018.
Larry and Ellie served as the President and Secretary, respectively, of the Parkinson’s Foundation Georgia Advisory Board for another year. They retired from the Board in October 2019, and are focused on relearning how to have fun. Strangely, Larry finds real-life problem solving challenging and maybe even entertaining, if not “fun,” and has devoted some of his time to brainstorming ideas to improve the quality of life for people with Parkinson’s disease as well as other social issues that have polarized the nation.
Dear Readers,
Thank you for visiting. I hope you enjoy my site and decide to spend some of your valuable leisure time reading my thoughts on Parkinson’s care and other current social issues–and maybe taking a glance at my novels. Like many other thriller/suspense authors, especially those trained as attorneys, I craft intricate, well-researched plots, engage my characters in thought-provoking social drama and spice their lives with alluring romantic entanglements. Less common–and not for everyone–is my willingness to take readers to the brink of reality to imagine a more perfect world. My heroes may be ordinary (Ben Kravner, a young lawyer, in The Jinx) or larger than life (Frank Paine, an ex-Hollywood action star-turned-FBI agent, in King of Paine), but they and much of their supporting cast are intelligent, passionate men and women who grapple with personal flaws and unusual obstacles to ultimately improve their world. They curse and crack wise, make terrible mistakes that cost themselves and others dearly, yet their idealism shines through. Like me, they dare to dream.
Like my characters, Ellie and I have beaten some pretty long odds by achieving a great result for the Parkinson’s community by getting the Parkinson’s Foundation to provide hope to tens of thousands of Parkinson’s patients by focusing on the delivery of adapted exercise as a primary treatment for PD.
So, fellow dreamers, I invite you to explore my thoughts on contemporary social/political issues (including improving Parkinson’s care) for a heavy dose of reality or my novels to escape for a spell. I hope you find it all thought-provoking and entertaining. Please comment freely on this site, or drop me a note at lkahn22 <at> gmail <dot> com. I will respond to all inquiries.
Larry Kahn
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Larry Kahn Trivia
Hometown: Mahopac, NY
Adopted Hometown: Dunwoody, GA (featured prominently in King of Paine)
Writing Influences: Frederick Forsyth, John Grisham, Greg Iles, Ayn Rand
Favorite Books: Atlas Shrugged, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo¸ Pillars of the Earth; The Pelican Brief, The Odessa File, 24 Hours
Favorite Quote: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” — Margaret Mead
Favorite Movies: Almost Famous, Field of Dreams, The American President, Chariots of Fire, Driving Miss Daisy, Remember The Titans, As Good As It Gets, Secondhand Lions, Any Given Sunday, Gladiator, The Contender, Local Hero
Favorite Musical Artists: Tom Petty, REM, The Rolling Stones, U2, The Eagles, John Lennon