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Richard Lewis Neuberger was born in Portland, Oregon on December 26, 1912 to Isaac and Ruth Neuberger. In 1928, he began writing articles for various newspapers and magazines. He attended the University of Oregon in Eugene as an undergraduate and during that time he published his first article in the New York Times. Neuberger attended classes at the University of Oregon Law School in the 1930's. In time Neuberger became a regular correspondent for the Pacific Northwest. By 1940, Neuberger's name was well known to the readers of The New Republic, Harper's Magazine, Collier's, The Christian Century, Forum, Current History, American Magazine, and Reader's Digest. In his lifetime, Richard Neuberger wrote a total of six books and over 300 articles for various newspapers and magazines. In 1940, he was elected as representative to the Oregon Legislative Assembly. He resigned in 1942 to fight in World War II, where he earned the rank of captain.

Richard Neuberger married Maurine Brown on December 20, 1945. In 1946 he was asked to run for governor of Oregon. He declined but instead ran for the state senate and was defeated. He continued writing articles until 1948 when he again ran for state senate, and was this time elected. In 1950, Maurine Neuberger was elected to the state House of Representatives. They were the only husband and wife pair in American history to hold political positions at the same time.

In 1954, Richard Neuberger ran for the United States Senate and became the first Democratic senator from Oregon since 1914. He held the position of U.S. Senator until his death in 1960, when his wife was chosen to complete his term.