John Fante (April 8, 1909 – May 8, 1983) was an American novelist, short story writer and screenwriter of Italian descent. He is perhaps best known for his work, Ask the Dust, a semi-autobiograpical novel about life in and around Los Angeles, California, which was the third in a series of four novels, published between 1938 and 1985, that are now collectively called, "The Bandini Quartet". That book was made into a movie by the same name in 2006. He also wrote several other books, stories, and screenplays, including the 1957 film, Full of Life, based on his 1952 novel by that name. Other noted screenplays Fante co-wrote include the 1962 films Walk on the Wild Side and The Reluctant Saint, and 1968's made-for-television movie, Something for a Lonely Man, as well as several others.

Fante was born in Denver, Colorado in 1909 to his father, Nicola Fante and his mother, Mary Capolungo. He attended various Boulder, Colorado Catholic schools before briefly enrolling at the University of Colorado. He dropped out of college in 1929 and moved to Southern California to focus on his writing. He wrote about writing, and the people and places where he lived and worked, which included Wilmington, Long Beach, Manhattan Beach, the Bunker Hill district of downtown Los Angeles, California, as well as various homes in Hollywood, Echo Park, and Malibu. Diabetes cost him his eyesight and led to the amputation of both legs. He died in 1983.

Dan Fante (born 1944 in Los Angeles, California) is an American author and playwright.

Chump Change, Mooch,"86'd" and Spitting Off Tall Buildings comprise a trilogy, based around Fante's hard living alter-ego Bruno Dante. Chump Change found publication in France originally, before being published in the US by Sun Dog Press. The trilogy was then published by UK publisher Canongate. Short Dog is a collection of short stories, based around Fante's life as a cab driver in LA.

Fante is the son of acclaimed novelist John Fante whose writing came back into vogue after Charles Bukowski declared him "my God", and wrote the introduction to the reprint of Fante's seminal novel about life in Los Angeles, Ask the Dust.

As well as novels and short stories, Fante is the author of two plays - "The Closer / The Boiler Room" described by the Los Angeles Times as "Ferociously Profane", and "Don Giovanni", about which 3:AM Magazine said: "For those who want to know what is REALLY going on in post-modern American literature right now, Don Giovanni should be essential reading." Both plays are published in book form by Long Beach publisher Burning Shore Press. He is also the author of A Gin-Pissing-Raw-Meat-Dual-Carburetor-V8-Son-Of-A-Bitch From Los Angeles, a volume of poetry on Wrecking Ball Press.