William Jefferson Blythe III was born on August 19, 1946, in Hope, Arkansas. His father was a traveling salesman who died in a car accident three months before William was born. His mother, Virginia Dell Cassidy, remarried to Roger Clinton when her son was four years old. The future president took the Clinton name in high school. He excelled in school and became an accomplished saxophonist. Clinton decided to become a politician after an inspiring visit to the Kennedy White House as a Boys Nation delegate.

Clinton distinguished himself at Georgetown University where he earned his Bachelor's degree in foreign service. He received a Rhodes Scholarship to attend Oxford University and then went to Yale Law School where he graduated in 1973.