Richard Council's childhood was spent in Ruskin, Florida, where he was the second son of Buford and Louise Council. He graduated from East Bay High School with the class of 1965, and later earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Florida at Gainesville in 1969.
During the summer of 1970, Council won a grant to perform at the San Diego Shakespeare Festival, which marked a significant milestone in his early career. He then further honed his craft by studying on scholarship at the American Conservatory Theater, and was subsequently made an Equity Journeyman with the ACT Company from 1971 to 1972.
This experience led Council to relocate to New York, where he made his Broadway debut in "The Merchant of Venice" at Lincoln Center in 1974. His subsequent Broadway credits include "Sherlock Holmes" in 1975, "The Royal Family" in 1976, "I'm Not Rappaport" in 1984, "Conversations With My Father" in 1990, "Uncle Vanya" in 1992, and "The Little Foxes" in 1998.
Today, Council is married to actress Melissa Hurst, and together they reside in New York City with their son, Will Council.
