Henry Winkler

 Henry Franklin Winkler was born on October 30, 1945 in Manhattan, New York. His parents, Ilse Anna Maria (Hadra) and Harry Irving Winkler, were German Jewish immigrants who escaped the Holocaust by relocating to the US in 1939. His father was head of a multinational lumber company while his mother worked alongside his father. Winkler is a cousin of Richard Belzer. Winkler was brought up with a low self-esteem. In elementary school and high school, he had a difficult time with his academics. Then he realized that he had dyslexia. His parents hoped that he would eventually to join them in the lumber industry. But, he had other plans , as he saw roles in the stage as the main source of his satisfaction. In eighth grade Winkler played the role as Billy Budd in the school's production. Winkler graduated from McBurney High School in 1967. He was able to integrate his learning disability into higher education. He received a Bachelor's degree from Emerson College in 1967 and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Yale School of Drama in 1970. He received an honorary PhD in Hebrew Literature in 1978 from Emerson College.