James Arnold Hodges was born on September 18, 1931 in Kansas City, Missouri. James married Zora on April 22, 1951 and they had four children: James Arnold III, Catherine, Jeffery Cooper, and Jonathan Blake.

Hodges was enlisted in the United States Army under Military Occupation Specialty 1805 in Korea from 1952 to 1954.

Hodges is affiliated with the Nevada Test Site as a photo engineer for Edgerton, Germeshausen, and Grier, Inc.(EG&G) from 1956 to 1971.