Harry Frankfurt was born on May 29, 1929 in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, USA. He was married to Joan Gilbert and Marilyn Rothman. He died on July 16, 2023 in Santa Monica, California, USA.
He grew up in Brooklyn and Baltimore, and attended Johns Hopkins University, where he received a bachelor's degree and a PhD, both in philosophy.
Was born at a home for unwed mothers and never knew his biological parents. He was adopted and given a new name, Harry Gordon Frankfurt, by Bertha (Gordon) Frankfurt, a piano teacher, and Nathan Frankfurt, a bookkeeper.