Zimmerman was trained as a child in classical music, but quickly abandoned his studies to pursue his love for ragtime when his magic teacher played a record by "one of the great American composers,
Scott Joplin." In 1956 he enrolled at
Stanford University where he received degrees in civil and mechanical engineering. Zimmerman later went on to design games for
Mattel, Inc. As a freshman, a classmate introduced him to the rags of
Scott Joplin. But it wasn’t until 1973, when the movie
The Sting began the revival of ragtime with a musical score by
Marvin Hamlisch, which adapted the original rags of Scott Joplin, that Zimmerman turned his attention to performing and recording. In 1974, he released the five-LP collection ‘’Scott Joplin: His Complete Works’’ on the
Murray Hill Records label. The collection was later issued as a 4-CD set on the Bescol label (BSCD 4/4). In 1967 Zimmerman, along with Dave Bourne, Albert Huerta, Chuck McClure, and Bill Mitchell, founded the ‘’Maple Leaf Club’’, for which he edited its newsletter,
"The Rag Times". In 1998 the ‘’Maple Leaf Club’’ merged with the ‘’Rose Leaf Club’’. As a producer, Zimmerman created the ragtime concert series ‘’Where It Was!’’ in Los Angeles. The venue featured ragtime stars from both the past and present, including such legends as pianist and composer
Eubie Blake, who once said of Zimmerman: "[Dick] is a real ragtime pianist, and he knows more about its history than I do!" Zimmerman has appeared in concert and at music festivals throughout the United States and Canada. He has appeared on
The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, PBS, BBC-TV, BBC World Service Radio, as well as the Canadian Broadcasting Co. and Australia Broadcasting. He has performed in concert at the
Montreal International Jazz Festival in Canada and the
Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. He has also served as long-time musical director of the "Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival in Sedalia, Missouri". He was the recipient of the Scott Joplin Foundation Achievement Award in 1991. Today, Zimmerman runs
"American Ragtime Co.", recording and publishing ragtime classics and the works of early 20th century blues composers. ==Magic career==