Early Life and Influences
Parkinson's early life was affected by the Great Depression and the Second World War. Growing up in San Francisco as the son of a master-plumber union leader who was blacklisted during the General Strike of the late 1930s, Parkinson developed a respect for labor and a sensitivity to social injustice. He attended Lowell High School and some junior college, where he was inspired by gifted teachers. When WWII began, Parkinson enlisted in the Army, but was eventually discharged because he was too tall. In the years that followed, Parkinson worked a motley series of jobs, as an insurance agent, a ship's outfitter, and a lumberjack. And he continued to read widely and deeply. He eventually returned to UC Berkeley, where he completed his Bachelor's degree in three years.
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