Dick Van Dyke turned 100 today. Photo / Getty Images
Dick Van Dyke turned 100 today. Photo / Getty Images
Iconic American comedy actor Dick Van Dyke has turned 100 years old today.
Appearing on Good Morning America ahead of the milestone, the acting legend seemed to be in high spirits about becoming a centenarian, reflecting on how his perspective on aging has changed.
“You know, I played old mena lot. And I always played ‘em as angry and cantankerous,” he said.
“It’s not really that way. I don’t know any other 100-year-olds, but I can speak for myself.”
The entertainer chalked his long life up to a playful and positive attitude, writing in his recent book 100 Rules for Living to 100: An Optimist’s Guide to a Happy Life that anger “eats up a person’s insides”.
Best known for the popular musicals Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the actor has over 80 acting credits spanning nearly as many years, the Associated Press reported.
Dick Van Dyke (left) starred opposite Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins. Photo / Getty Images
His groundbreaking sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show has been ranked as one of the greatest shows of all time, solidifying he and co-star Mary Tyler Moore’s status as icons of the genre.
Van Dyke was nominated for 10 Emmy Awards across his lengthy career, winning six, and was recognised with a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2013.
He has continued to act in small supporting roles well into his twilight years, including 2018’s Mary Poppins Returns, and even had a turn on celebrity competition show The Masked Singer.
In his 2011 memoir My Lucky Life In And Out Of Show Business, the oldest-living Disney legend explained why he hasn’t completely retired.
“My life has been a magnificent indulgence. I’ve been able to do what I love and share it with the world. Who would want to quit?”
Dick Van Dyke (right) won three Emmy Awards for his self-titled sitcom The Dick Van Dyke show, in which he starred alongside Mary Tyler Moore. Photo / CBS via Getty Images
Van Dyke’s wife Arlene Silver told People her husband had no major plans for his 100th birthday beyond watching Jeopardy! together.
The pair married in 2012 after meeting at the Screen Actors Guild awards six years earlier.
The 54-year-old said Van Dyke had remained humble about all the fanfare around his celebrated career.
“He’s like, ‘Oh. I’ve been around a long time’. It’s beyond that. It’s not just that you’ve been around a long time. You’re in people’s blood. In people’s hearts and souls. How many people can say that?”
