Harold Courlander nasceu o 18 de setembro de 1908 em Indianapolis, Indiana, EUA. Foi casado com Emma Meltzer e Ella Schneiderman. Morreu o 15 de março de 1996 em Bethesda, Maryland, EUA.
He had two children with his second wife, Emma: son, Michael (born in 1951); and daughter, Susan Jean (born in 1955; died in 2002). He also had a daughter, Erika (born in 1940), with his first wife, Ella.