Berne, Eric

Born on May 10, 1910, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, as Leonard Bernstein to Doctor David Hillel Bernstein and to writer as well as editor Sarah Gordon Bernstein, Eric Berne was a prominent figure in the area of psychology (Calcaterra, n. pag). His sister Grace was 5 years younger than Berne and no other brother or sister existed. The Berne’s family immigrated to Canada from Poland and Russia where both David and Sarah Bernstein would later graduate from McGill University in Montreal (n. pag). Being close to his father, Berne spoke affectionately about going with his father on medical runs via horse-pulled toboggan on ice in the frigid Montreal winters.

Sadly, tuberculosis cut David Bernstein life short at age 38. Forced to support the family in a single parent capacity, Sarah Bernstein continued her professional career. She motivated Eric to emulate his father and take up medicine in Montreal where he completed medical degrees at McGill University’s prestigious Medical School in 1935,...