Carlton Cuse - Early Life

Early Life

Carlton Cuse was born in Mexico City, Mexico on March 22, 1959. His father was American, working in Mexico for his grandfather, who had a machine tool manufacturing business. After a few years in Mexico City, his parents moved to Boston, where as a boy, he instantly bonded with the Boston Red Sox and began a lifelong love for the team. A few years after the move to Boston, his dad took a job in Tustin, California. Cuse was raised a Roman Catholic.

Cuse went off to boarding school in 10th grade to The Putney School in Putney, Vermont. The school was on a working dairy farm, and placed a strong emphasis on an education in the arts, music and the outdoors. It was at The Putney School, Cuse said, that he realized he wanted to be a writer.

Cuse attended Harvard University (Class of '81) and was recruited at freshmen registration by the freshman crew coach, Ted Washburn, and became part of the rowing team. In his words, he became "a hardcore athlete." Cuse's original plan was to attend medical school but he instead majored in American history.

During his junior year at Harvard, Cuse organized a test screening for the makers of the Paramount film Airplane!. The producers wanted to record the audience reaction to time the final cut of the jokes in the movie. Cuse said that was when he started thinking about a career in film.