Screenwriter/novelist Ross LaManna was born in Jersey City, New Jersey. He attended Parsippany Hills High School, where he developed an interest in motion pictures and the dramatic arts. He attended USC School of Film and Television, graduating cum laude with a degree in Screenwriting.
His first novel, ACID TEST (Ballantine Books), is a geo-political thriller which Anthony Award-winning author Lee Child calls "thrill-a-minute writing ... like Tom Clancy on speed." USAF General (ret'd) Chuck Horner, Desert Storm's supreme air commander says: "I couldn't put it down. ACID TEST combines the best of high-tech thriller, intrigue, science fiction and suspense. LaManna writes with passion."
Advance reviews call ACID TEST "a superior, highly entertaining thriller ... an excellent debut, " Deadly Pleasures; and Publishers Weekly praises "sizzling an acid trail around the globe as it speeds towards a high-stakes conclusion."
Beginning his motion picture career in Embassy Pictures' international business affairs department, he left to pursue a full time writing career. He landed a term deal at United Artists, where he wrote Chrome Soldiers, a USA Network movie starring Gary Busey, and Yaphet Kotto, which first aired in 1993.
He worked on several projects for Carolco Pictures, including Universal Soldier, (1992) (uncredited) starring Dolph Lungren and Jean-Claude Van Damme, directed by Roland Emmerich; and Cliffhanger, (1993) starring Sylvester Stallone, directed by Renny Harlan.
LaManna's original screenplay, Arctic Blue, became an HBO World Premiere Movie (1995) starring Rutger Hauer and directed by