The story is told by William Henry Devereaux Jr., the somewhat reluctant interim chair of the college’s English department. Russo has described “Straight Man” as a story filled with “town and gown” tensions at a fictional Pennsylvania college located in a hardscrabble railroad town. Russo quit teaching in the mid-90s to write full time.

Many of his books are set at least partly in gritty factory towns based on Gloversville, including “Mohawk,” “The Risk Pool,” “Nobody’s Fool” and “The Bridge of Sighs.” He says “Empire Falls” is also based on his hometown, though he set it in Maine. Russo, a native of Gloversville, New York, first came to Maine more than 30 years ago to teach English at Colby College in Waterville. “Empire Falls” was set in a fictional Maine mill town and was shot in Maine, with extensive filming in the Waterville and Skowhegan areas. “Nobody’s Fool” was made into a 1994 film starring Paul Newman, and Russo’s 2002 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “Empire Falls” was made into a two-episode miniseries for HBO, also starring Paul Newman, in 2005.

“Straight Man” would be the first of Russo’s novels to be made into a full-length TV series. Russo said he is not involved in the writing of the show being developed but is listed as an executive producer by AMC. The show is a prequel to the series “Breaking Bad,” which centered on a high school chemistry teacher with a terminal illness who starts making and selling crystal meth. “Better Call Saul” centers on a crooked criminal defense lawyer mixed up in the illegal drug trade.

The straight man richard russo