John Singer was born in New York on 6 January 1931. He was a member of the Mormon Church who was later excommunicated for his fundamentalist beliefs, including the practice of polygamy. Singer gained public notoriety because of his stand against what he felt was the immorality of the school system.

Singer was born to German immigrants. Singer's father, Hans, was part of the Nazi movement, and as Hitler and the Nazi movement rose in power, he moved his family back to Dresden in 1932. Singer's mother's religious preference was Mormon; therefore, his childhood was filled with conflict because his father forbade his mother to practice or teach her religious beliefs. Singer and his brother *Harold were part of the Hitler Youth. Singer's father was drafted in 1940 and, before leaving, enrolled his sons in a school run by the Schutz Staffeln (SS). The brothers were expelled for being rebellious, and Singer's hatred for authoritarianism developed from this experience. His parents divorced in 1945 and Singer emigrated to the United States.