Paul Detlefsen was born in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1899. He studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois. Upon completing his education he moved to Hollywood, California and worked as an artist for the film industry creating backdrops for movies. He worked for Warner Brothers Studios for 20 years. In 1944, he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for the film The Adventures of Mark Twain.

Paul was also a prolific and successful commercial artist creating finely detailed landscapes and joyful images of people in classic American scenes. His paintings were published as lithographs, calendars, playing cards, and jigsaw puzzles.

Paul Detlefsen died in Encinitas, California in 1986.