James Richard Start was born in Whitelaw, Kansas, on July 29, 1895. He attended the Fort Hays Normal School Academy from 1910 to 1914 and received a life certificate from the Fort Hays Kansas State Normal School in 1916. In 1917, he received his diploma from Northwestern University. He served in the U.S. Navy for two years before returning to Fort Hays to complete his Bachelor's of Science in Education degree in 1919. After graduating, he stayed at Fort Hays to teach courses in Speech and English. He took a one-year leave of absence from 1926 to 1927 to complete his master's degree at Columbia University.

As a faculty member at Fort Hays Kansas State Normal School (later Kansas State Teachers College of Hays, later Fort Hays Kansas State College), Start served as the debate coach and was instriumental in bring the first honors society at Fort Hays with the chartering of the local chapter of Phi Kappa Delta in 1924. Start also served as the drama coach and helped produce dozens of plays staged at Picken Hall. In 1925, he served as president of the Kansas Association of Teachers of English. In 1933, he served as governor of the Kansas Province of Phi Kappa Delta. He was a charter member of the Hays chapter of Phi Kappa Phi and involved in various local and national organizations. was a member of the Speech Association of America, the Hays Rotary Club, and St. Joseph Catholic Church.

Start retired in 1965. That same year, Fort Hays President M. C. Cunningham named the Felten-Start Theatre in Malloy Hall in honor of his contributions to speech and drama. In 1972, the James R. and Ruth Start Scholarship was established to honor Start. The award is given each year to students majoring in English. James R. Start died on January 30, 1972.