Lester was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. He graduated from Perry Meridian High School and began an acting career while at DePauw University.^{[citation needed]}

He starred in the 1976 children's series Ark II, followed by roles in Airport 1975 and the 1978 Kiss movie Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park.^{[citation needed]}

Lester's big break came when he joined CBS daytime soap The Young and the Restless in 1980. He originated the role of Jack Abbott, a scoundrel who never met a woman (including his own father's wife) he didn't want to take to bed. Lester was so popular that The Young and the Restless creator William J. Bell wrote an entire family for him. The series was going through a transition period, and many fans believed his star quality helped the show build more viewership rising to #1 in daytime soap ratings.^{[citation needed]}

In spite of his popularity, by the end of the decade Lester felt his role on the show was steadily declining. In 1989, he not only quit but also went to the daytime press and blamed Bill Bell's young daughter, Lauralee Bell (who played Christine Blair), for his dwindling role. He felt the excess airtime given to her came at the expense of both himself and other actors. Lester switched to NBC to take over the role of Mason Capwell on Santa Barbara for a year. In November 1992, he joined As the World Turns to play the charming Royce Keller, who was soon revealed to be suffering from multiple personalities which caused him to kill his own sister in the series. The role was complex, causing raves for Lester, but the headwriter behind the story, Douglas Marland, died suddenly in 1993, and Lester once again found his screentime diminishing. He left the series on May 5, 1994.

The remainder of his professional life consisted of appearances in primetime shows such as Walker, Texas Ranger and Star Trek: Voyager along with various tours in musicals and plays.

• Eulogy/tribute from co-stars at the Wayback Machine (archived December 28, 2003)
• Terry Lester at IMDb