Richard Corliss wurde am 6 März 1944 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA geboren. Er war mit Mary Corliss verheiratet. Er starb am 23 April 2015 in New York City, New York, USA.
In his original review for the film The Crying Game (1992), he subtly gave away the film's famous plot twist; as the first letter of every word that began each paragraph literally spelled it out.