Dick Van Dyke's 'perfect' birthday celebration
Published in Entertainment News
Dick Van Dyke's 100th birthday celebrations were "perfect".
The Mary Poppins star celebrated his milestone birthday on Saturday (13.12.25) and to mark the occasion, his wife Arlene Silver led a flash mob in dancing to a medley of the actor's songs, and they were joined by family and friends for a party at their Malibu home.
Arlena, 54, told People magazine: "It went so perfect -- just everything.
"And he was so happy. His face, I love to make him have that face.
"This felt so perfect."
The make-up artist admitted she felt "relieved, grateful and so happy" with how the day turned out.
The Diagnosis Murder star recently credited giving up cigarettes and alcohol for his long years.
Speaking at the Vandy High Tea fundraising event - which raised money for theThe Van Dyke Endowment of the Arts and the Dick Van Dyke Museum - at his home, Dick told how he was "probably the last person alive" who got to know and spend time with Walt Disney before the animation legend died of lung cancer in 1966.
According to People magazine, he said: "He was a wonderful guy. He just smoked too much! Doggone."
Dick's son, Barry Van Dyke, 74, noted his dad had "never smoked too much" himself, but the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang star admitted that wasn't the case.
He said: "I smoked a lot, actually!
"I think I was probably in my 50s before it dawned on me that I had an addictive personality. If I liked something, I was going to overdo it.
"So I got rid of booze and cigarettes and all that stuff, which is probably why I'm still here."
Dick recently admitted he feels "lonely" and "frustrated" in his old age because he's outlived most of his best friends and he rarely gets to attend glitzy showbiz events because of his declining health.
He told The Times newspaper: "Though I still do guest spots on TV, and ads and videos, I miss going to the studio every day for a regular series. And every single one of my dearest lifelong friends is gone, which feels just as lonely as it sounds.
"It's frustrating to feel diminished in the world, physically and socially.
"I get invites to events or offers for gigs in New York or Chicago, but that kind of travel takes so much out of me that I have to say no. Almost all of my visiting with folks has to happen at my house."












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