The actor and comedian headed to the gym sporting a grey sweatshirt reading "Spoonful of Sugar," a tribute to his role in "Mary Poppins."
Editor's note: This article was originally published on May 20, 2022. It has since been updated.
Actor Dick Van Dyke was spotted outdoors for the first time in almost a year, while taking a walk with his wife Arlene Silver in Malibu.
The actor donned a grey sweatshirt reading "Spoonful of Sugar," a tribute to his role in Mary Poppins. Van Dyke, who takes great care of his health, headed to the gym before going to a restaurant to have lunch with Silver. The TV and radio icon was known for his roles in The Dick Van Dyke Show, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and Bye Bye Byrdie, among others, reported Fox News in 2022. The couple were all smiles as they walked the streets. They got married in 2012 and there's a 46-year gap between them.
Silver recalled meeting the four-time Emmy winner. "He said, ‘Hi, I’m Dick,’" Silver told Closer Weekly. "The first thing I asked him was, ‘Weren’t you in Mary Poppins?' We got along immediately as friends, so it didn’t feel like he was so much older than me." The pair decided to get married six years after they met in 2012. Van Dyke was concerned there would be a public backlash against them but there wasn't any noise about it. "We share an attitude," said Van Dyke. "She can go with the flow. She loves to sing and dance, which we do almost every day. She’s just delightful." This is Van Dyke's second marriage after divorcing his first wife and mother of his four children, Margie Willett, in 1984 after 36 years of marriage. He was then in a relationship with actress Michelle Triola for over 30 years before she passed away in 2009.
Earlier this year, Van Dyke featured in a music video directed by his wife to celebrate Valentine's Day. The actor was his goofy self in the music video which also featured the group, The Vantastix. The music video was set to Doris Day’s 1950s hit song, Everybody Loves A Lover. Silver sang Day's part while Van Dyke joined her with some of his own moves. He winks at the camera and can be seen messing with nude statues on the set in the video. Silver and Van Dyke end the video with a cuddle on a loveseat and a sweet kiss.
Van Dyke works out regularly and often posts videos of him working out on Instagram. The actor might be 96 but is fit as a fiddle and looking forward to reaching 100. "I'm looking forward to 100," he said. The key, he says, is to stay active. “Keep moving is the main thing,” Van Dyke told NPR. “I think I reiterate three or four times in the book, ‘Do not start going down the stairs sideways.’ It feels good on your knees but it throws the hips out and the back starts to go out, the next thing you know, you’ve fallen down and broken your hip. So even if it hurts a little, go down the stars front-ways.”
“It’s more in my nature to be optimistic, I think,” he said. “I’m one of those people who gets up on the right side of the bed in the morning. I get up and have a cup of coffee and go to the gym because I talk myself out of it because I will as anybody will.”
Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews in a publicity still for Mary Poppins (1964) pic.twitter.com/BUx8JtDSrL
— Old Hollywood (@TheOldHollywood) May 15, 2022
The comedian has been dealing with arthritis, COPD, and Spinal Stenosis but it appears nothing can stop him. Last year, Van Dyke was honored at the 43rd Annual Kennedy Center Honors ceremony in Washington, D.C. "I'm just happy to be anywhere," he said. "If I'd known I was going to live this long I would've taken better care of myself. ...How I got here, I don't know, and I'm not going to ask," he added.
References:
https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/dick-van-dyke-spoonful-sugar-younger-wife
https://www.npr.org/2015/10/11/447591736/dance-sing-just-keep-moving-dick-van-dyke-tells-seniors
Cover image source: Getty Images | Photo by Paul Morigi
