Arno Mayer was born on June 19, 1926 in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. He was married to Nancy Grant. He died on December 17, 2023 in Princeton, New Jersey, USA.
After teaching for nearly ten years at Wesleyan, Brandeis, and Harvard, he moved to Princeton University in 1961 where he taught until his retirement.
In 1944 he obtained American citizenship and enlisted in the United States Army where he was stationed to Fort Ritchie, Maryland due to his linguist skills. There he interrogated high-ranking German POWs.
Received a Ph.D in history from Yale University.
Earned his master's degree from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Switzerland.