{
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  "@id": "https://www.screensearch.co.uk/person/235652/howard-buten",
  "name": "Howard Buten",
  "url": "https://www.screensearch.co.uk/person/235652/howard-buten",
  "knownForDepartment": "Writing",
  "description": "Howard Buten (born 1950, Detroit, Michigan) is an American author living in France. He is also a psychologist, a clown, and a violin player. He is the author of five novels, the first of which, entitled When I Was Five I Killed Myself, was published in 1981 and turned into a film under its French title Quand j'avais cinq ans je m'ai tué in 1994.\n\nAs a young man Howard Buten encountered a child with autism and this sparked a lifelong interest in the disorder. He has worked on autism as a researcher, clinical psychologist, therapist, and founder of a clinic for the autistic in Paris, France.\n\nHe is also a theatrical clown (graduate of Ringling Bros) with the stage name Buffo, who is quite well known in France. He got his start in acting at a very young age, re-enacting scenes from his favorite stories, along with his childhood friends/neighbors.\n\nButen's first and best known novel, When I Was Five I Killed Myself, is largely unknown in his home country, but has sold more than a million copies in France. He was made Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, a prominent literary honor, in 1991.\n\nSource: Article \"Howard Buten\" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.",
  "birthDate": "1950-07-28",
  "birthPlace": "Detroit, Michigan, USA",
  "alternateName": [
    "Buffo the Clown"
  ],
  "image": "https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w500/jSdrrD4ohobOWvgGm279dIJTPjt.jpg",
  "sameAs": [
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  "lastVerified": "14 May 2026",
  "filmography": [
    {
      "mediaType": "tv",
      "tmdbId": 46188,
      "title": "Vivement dimanche",
      "year": "1998",
      "role": "as Self",
      "roleKind": "cast",
      "voteAverage": 3.625,
      "posterUrl": "https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w500/nRrrsDkH1kYgjvTpirkwMqZFjc5.jpg",
      "screenSearchUrl": "https://www.screensearch.co.uk/watch/tv/46188/vivement-dimanche-1998"
    },
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      "mediaType": "tv",
      "tmdbId": 30243,
      "title": "Apostrophes",
      "year": "1975",
      "role": "as Self",
      "roleKind": "cast",
      "voteAverage": 8.5,
      "posterUrl": "https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w500/8sAKVFRZDoZa51a60BO24Pf6jnb.jpg",
      "screenSearchUrl": "https://www.screensearch.co.uk/watch/tv/30243/apostrophes-1975"
    },
    {
      "mediaType": "movie",
      "tmdbId": 62639,
      "title": "When I Was 5, I Killed Myself",
      "year": "1994",
      "role": "Writer",
      "roleKind": "crew",
      "voteAverage": 8.167,
      "posterUrl": "https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w500/4hSP21ZO1qdJklxP9bB4L6Ir03n.jpg",
      "screenSearchUrl": "https://www.screensearch.co.uk/watch/movie/62639/when-i-was-5-i-killed-myself-1994"
    },
    {
      "mediaType": "movie",
      "tmdbId": 32553,
      "title": "End Game",
      "year": "2009",
      "role": "as Buffo",
      "roleKind": "cast",
      "voteAverage": 3.3,
      "posterUrl": "https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w500/3A6xd85lvDJEoB25FTHQXu5ZhPC.jpg",
      "screenSearchUrl": "https://www.screensearch.co.uk/watch/movie/32553/end-game-2009"
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}