Harry was a childhood friend of Peter Parker and was there for him when his parents died. When Harry was 11, his father shipped him off to a boarding school. For his 16th birthday, his father sent him a bottle of scotch. Events like these, cause Harry to resent Norman. He also began to experience symptoms of his father's illness and discovered that he might be dying, but seemingly did not care, as he felt Norman wasn't wasn't treating him well.