Rick grew up in Kailua, Hawaii. Graduated from San Jose State University and began his writing career while working as a Superior Court Probation Officer. In that capacity, Rick was responsible for interviewing defendants found guilty of felony charges, then preparing an extensive judicial sentencing recommendation for his  team of assigned judges. This honed his writing and research skills immensely.
Rick took these acquired skills and applied them to a booming mortgage banking market. By substituting rap sheets for credit reports, Rick quickly became the 'Dean of Mortgage Banking' in Northern California, successfully convincing mortgage underwriters to 'sentence' his clients to thirty years of financial restitution.  Rick constantly drives himself to improve his writing skills.

He was one of the first to attend Robert McKee's three day seminar on 'Story' during the waning days of the Twentieth Century.  Rick recalls with great fondness the four day Screenwriting EXPO 5 he attended in Los Angeles back in 2006, scurrying between screenwriting classes taught by the likes of Ken Rotcop, Blake Snyder, Karl Iglesias, Michael Hauge, Syd Field, Dave Trottier, Pilar Alessandra, and Richard Walter.

Rick's avocation is the preservation and digitization of vintage films, volunteering his skills to non-profit historical associations throughout Northern California. Toward that goal, Rick's preservation of more than six hours of footage taken by passengers aboard the SS Malolo while on the first leisure cruise of the Pacific in 1929 led him to produce a feature documentary about the voyage billed as "The Millionaires Cruise of 1929".

Rick's extensive knowledge of history propels his screenwriting talents toward biographical interests, as well as the exploration of forgotten moments in time.