Henry Miller was born to German American parents on December 26, 1891. His father, Heinrich, worked as a tailor; Henry had a sister with intellectual disabilities named Lauretta Anna. Despite his working-class background, Miller had a strong proclivity for reading and literature, and excelled academically. He briefly attended City College of New York before leaving after just two months. Afterward, he drifted through various jobs, including working at a cement company, his father's tailor shop, and a post office. He married Beatrice Sylvas Wickens, an amateur pianist, in 1917, and they had a child together.
Miller's first substantial job was at the Western Union Telegraph Company, which...
