Irwin Shaw was born in New York City, the son of William Shaw, a salesman of hat trimmings, and Rose Tompkins Shaw. When he was very young the family moved to the Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn, where he attended local schools and developed a lifelong love for sports. Some of his best short stories, including "The Eighty-Yard Run"and "March, March on Down the Field," both about football, were drawn from his athletic experience.

At the age of fifteen he graduated from James Madison High School and entered Brooklyn College. During his freshman year he failed calculus and Latin and was expelled from college. He worked at odd jobs for a year and then returned to obtain his B.A. degree. He continued his interest in sports by playing football for four years, contributed pieces to the school newspaper, and wrote plays that were staged by the...