Winona Ryder (born Winona Laura Horowitz) is an American actress born on October 29, 1971 in Winona, Minnesota to Michael and Cindy Horowitz. She was named after her birthplace. Notable family friends included her godfather Timothy Leary and Beat poet Allen Ginsberg.

When she was 7 years old she and her family resided at a commune in Elk, California, where they lived with 7 other families on a 300 acre (1.2 km˛) plot of land. As the area had no electricity Ryder took to reading, particularly appreciating the novel Catcher in the Rye ... (read more )