Ka cika wannan jumla: An haifi Heller a ranar 1 ga Mayu, 1923 a Coney Island a Brooklyn, New York, ɗan matalauta Yahudawa, Lena da Isaac Donald Heller, daga Rasha. Ko da a matsayin yaro, ya son rubuta; a matsayin matashi, ya rubuta wani labari game da
Rasha mamayewa na Finland da kuma aika shi zuwa ga New York "Daily News", wanda ya ƙi shi. Bayan kammala karatunsa daga Makarantar Sakandaren Abraham Lincoln a 1941, Heller ya shafe shekara mai zuwa yana aiki a matsayin mai koyon aikin maƙerin ƙarfe, ɗan saƙo, da kuma ma'aikacin fayil.