Collins was born on April 30, 1938 in Venice, California. Collins was raised in Biloxi, Mississippi. He studied at Santa Monica City College. He was married to Susan Lechman from 1964 until they divorced in 1967. Then he was married to Mary Ann Mobley from 1967 until his death in 2012. Collins died on the morning of October 13, 2012 in Biloxi, Mississippi from natural causes, aged 74.