Early Life
Richards was born in Culver City, California, the son of Phyllis (née Nardozzi), a medical records librarian, and William Richards, an electrical engineer. He was drafted during the Vietnam War, served in the U.S. Army for two years, and was stationed in West Germany as one of the co-directors of the V Corps Training Road Show.
He attended the California Institute of the Arts, and received a BA degree in drama from The Evergreen State College in 1975. He also had a short-lived improv act with Ed Begley, Jr. during this period. Enrolled at Los Angeles Valley College, he continued to appear in student productions. He later said: "I am grateful that the public schools introduced me to the performing arts." He also spent a few years "finding himself" at a commune in the Santa Cruz Mountains. In 1979 he drove a bus and also developed his own nightclub act.
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