bˈɔːɹn ɪn mɪlwˈɔːkiː, wɪskˈɑːnsɪn, ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd twˈɛnti fˈaɪv, mˈækəl sˈɜːvd ɪnðə juːnˈaɪɾᵻd stˈeɪts mɚɹˈiːn kˈɔːɹ dˈʊɹɹɪŋ wˈɜːld wˈɔːɹ ɹˌoʊmən tˈuː bᵻfˌoːɹ ɐtˈɛndɪŋ ðə jˌuːnɪvˈɜːsᵻɾi ʌv ʃᵻkˈɑːɡoʊ, wˌɛɹ hiː ɹᵻsˈiːvd hɪz bˈiː.ˈɛs. ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd fˈoːɹɾi nˈaɪn ænd hɪz pˌiːˈeɪtʃ.dˈiː ˌʌndɚ ðə dᵻɹˈɛkʃən ʌv lˈɔɪd kˈɑːzlɔf.
Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1925, Mackal served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II before attending the University of Chicago, where he received his B.S. in 1949 and his Ph.D under the direction of Lloyd Kozloff.