Henry Winkler

 Henry Franklin Winkler was a New Yorker, born in Manhattan on the 30th of October 1945. Harry Irving Winkler and Ilse Anna Maria (Hadra) His parents, were German Jewish immigrants from Germany who left Germany during the Holocaust and moved to America in 1939. His father was the director of a lumber company with international ties while his mother worked alongside his father. Winkler is a relative of Richard Belzer. Winkler was brought up with a low self-esteem. He had a difficult time with his academics in elementary and high school. He later identified this as dyslexia. His parents hoped that he would eventually to work for them in the lumber company. However, he had other plans as he saw roles in the stage as the key to his fulfillment. In the eighth grade, Winkler played the part of Billy Budd in the school's play. Winkler was a graduate of McBurney High School in 1967. He was able to incorporate his learning disabilities into higher education. He received a Bachelor's degree from Emerson College in 1967 and an MA in Fine Arts degree from the Yale School of Drama in 1970. Emerson College awarded him an honorary PhD degree in Hebrew Literature in 1978.