Rick began his career as a radio DJ while he was still at high school which led to him writing, producing and being on air in his own show. He joined the Canadian TV series SCTV (1976) winning an Emmy for writing and portraying the character Bob McKenzie which became the basis for the film _Strange Brew_ which he co-wrote, co-directed and made his film acting debut. The character he played in Ghostbusters (1984) was based on a similar character he played on SCTV (1976)_.