He lived through all the wildest times of 1960s Hollywood, and survived some of the harshest personal trials that life can dish out, so it’s no wonder Dick Van Dyke is thrilled to still be here – and loving life – at the ripe old age of 100.
The legendary star celebrates his grand centenary this week, a milestone that even he can’t believe he’s set to make.
Showing his trademark sense of humour, Dick recently joked “it’d be funny if I didn’t make it” to the big day. But he’s made it, in style. That’s something he puts down to sheer luck, as well as the love of his wife of 13 years, Arlene Silver, 54.
“I brag sometimes about how I made it to a hundred and the truth is, if I had known I was going to live this long, I would’ve taken better care of myself,” he told People magazine at the Vandy
High Tea event in California. “And it is frustrating because I don’t know what I did right. Other than her [Arlene], I didn’t do anything right.”
But Dick showed that his lust for life, and an enduring love of fun, might just be the magic ingredients, when he got up to sing some of the songs that helped define his career – Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, as well as the theme tune to The Dick Van Dyke Show.
NOT SLOWING DOWN
Never one to shy away from life, Dick regularly hits the gym, and still has a strong desire to work. Just last year he became the oldest person to win an Emmy, for his role as Timothy Robicheaux in Days Of Our Lives.
But Dick’s life hasn’t been all roses. Born in West Plains, Missouri, back in 1925, he began his long climb to the top with work in radio at age 16, followed by nightclub gigs and a stint in the military.
His big breakthrough finally happened in 1961 with groundbreaking sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show, alongside fellow emerging superstar Mary Tyler Moore.
His big-screen success began with Bye Bye Birdie (1963) and was followed by Mary Poppins (1964), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) and The Comic (1969).
Dick’s career momentum never stopped, with later notable work including TV favourite Diagnosis: Murder and a recent headline-grabbing role in Coldplay’s All My Love video.
But one sad consequence for Dick of getting older has been seeing so many of his actor friends pass on, including Ed Asner, who was lined up to remake The Odd Couple with the star before he sadly passed in 2021, aged 91.
“That would’ve been such fun, and we lost it,” Dick told The Independent. “I’ve lost a lot of friends.”
But despite it all, he refuses to lose his positivity.
“Well, life’s been good to me,” he explains. “I can’t complain.”
Dick’s upbeat mentality is all the more admirable considering the fact that his life hasn’t always been an easy one. His marriage to Margie Willett (1948–1984) produced four children – Christian, 75, Barry, 74, Stacy, 70, and Carrie Beth, 64 –but it sadly crumbled, partly under the pressures of his battle for sobriety.
LUCK OR SOMETHING LIKE IT
He finally got on top of his drinking in the 1970s, after he entered rehab. But further heartbreak intruded with the 2009 death of his long-time partner Michelle Triola Marvin from lung cancer, which left him devastated.
Other challenges included a 2013 car fire and a 2023 crash, and a very scary experience during the recent Pacific Palisades fires, but nothing managed to extinguish his optimism.
Now as he celebrates his 100th birthday, he’s determined to leave the right mark, with a new book, 100 Rules For Living To 100, and a documentary film, Dick Van Dyke 100th Celebration.
“It’s wonderful, a total surprise for me,” Dick told AAP of his landmark birthday. “If you don’t think luck has a lot to do with it, then you’re mistaken.”
