James Fogle was the American author of the autobiographical novel Drugstore Cowboy which became the basis for the film of the same name.

Fogle was in prison at the time of the film's release in 1989. A career criminal with a sixth-grade education, Fogle had been in trouble with the law many times starting in his teens and throughout the rest of his life. On May 27, 2010, Fogle was arrested, along with another man, robbing a drugstore in Redmond, Washington. He was held on $500,000 bail as he awaited trial.

Fogle was arrested for robbing a Seattle pharmacy in 2011. On Friday, March 4, 2011, he was sentenced to 15 years and nine months in prison. On August 23, 2012, Fogle died of "probable malignant mesothelioma" at the age of 75 in Monroe, Washington prison.