Early Life
Charney's father, Morris Charney, is an architect, and his mother, Sylvia Safdie, an artist. Charney is a nephew of architect Moshe Safdie. He attended Choate Rosemary Hall, a private boarding school in Connecticut and St. George's School of Montreal. Charney grew up with, and was influenced heavily by, the culture of Montreal. He briefly attended Tufts University. As a teenager, he "fell in love" with the United States, and drew a sharp contrast between American and Canadian cultures. As a teenager, Charney was an admirer of American-made products. As a teen, he became disillusioned with Quebec nationalism which was widespread during the 1980s.
At an early age Charney showed signs of an entrepreneurial and independent spirit. According to the New York Times his first venture was selling rainwater he had collected in mayonnaise jars to his neighbors. In 1980, The Canadian Jewish News published a story on Charney with a headline that read "11-Year-Old Schoolboy Edits His Own Newspaper.". He sold these newspapers for 20 cents a copy near his school, only to be caught by a teacher and accused of panhandling and suspended from school. As a child he was featured in the documentary 20th-Century Chocolate Cake, in which he discussed the economics of a summer camp he attended.
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