WILLIAM H. BERNSTEIN: The Late
Bloomer
William H. was the oldest of four sons, arriving three
minutes before his fraternal twin, Robert. The two
younger brothers, Steven and David, also twins, were born
four years later.
Among four boys growing up in Brooklyn, life was
competitive, which posed a challenge to William Bernstein
(Billy, as he was known) because he was such a late
bloomer physically.
"At his bar mitzvah, he was a foot shorter than his
twin," said his brother Steven Bernstein. But he did fill
out later, becoming about a 6-foot-2, 220-pound adult,
devoted to bodybuilding and karate.
William Bernstein, 44, a mortgage bond broker at
Cantor Fitzgerald, was closest to Robert. "Same grade
schools," the latter said in a memorial service, "same
camps, same high school, same college, Syracuse
University, living in the same co-op building, working in
the same neighborhood, downtown Manhattan."
Yet they were not carbon copies. Robert Bernstein is
known as meticulous in his habits, while William was more
laid back, though he took great care in his appearance.
Robert said his brother was more reserved, too, but once
people got to know him, "they could see the genuineness,
the kindness."
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