Dick Van Dyke, 97, Visits Disneyland in Rare Outing With Wife Arlene Silver
Van Dyke appeared to be in good spirits as he waved to fans.
Actor Dick Van Dyke, 97, and his wife Arlene Silver, 51, were spotted enjoying Anaheim, California's Disneyland on Monday, Oct. 2. As shown in pictures and videos taken by other park visitors, the couple appeared to be enjoying a performance by the Dapper Dans, a barbershop quartet whose performances are often seen on Main Street U.S.A.
Disney travel planner Phili Chavez captured a video of the star waving to fans from a balcony that appeared to be on the Disneyland Railroad as he smiled and waved to the adoring crowd. Van Dyke, who played the charming chimney sweep Bert in Disney's Mary Poppins in 1964, was wearing a blue sweater and a white beard, while Silver, who played Mary Poppins' mother, wore all-black clothing.
At nearly 100, the Dick Van Dyke Show star continues to defy the aging process. In an interview with Yahoo, he spoke out about the things that help him remain young at heart. Despite his advancing years, Van Dyke believes the reason he feels fabulous at his age is due to his good genes.
Secondly, he said that his wife, Arlene Silver, had played a vital role in making him feel as young as possible. "Having a beautiful young wife half my age to take care of me [helps]," he said of his spouse of 11 years. According to Van Dyke, keeping healthy requires a "positive attitude," asserting: "I get that from my wife."
As part of an interview with Closer, Van Dyke also discussed the development of his relationship with Silver, whom he first met at the 2007 Screen Actors Guild Awards when he was 81 and she was 35 years old. Initially, they were friends before their relationship progressed into something more romantic.
As the star said, he feared that people would refer to her as a "gold digger" since she married an "old man," but "no one ever took that attitude." "We share an attitude," Van Dyke said cooingly of his wife. "She can go with the flow. She loves to sing and dance, which we do almost every day. She's just delightful."
As for Van Dyke, Silver described him as "the most perfect human being. I've never met anyone so happy, so genuine, so amazing. He's just like a happy pill." Prior to meeting Silver, Van Dyke was in a long-term relationship with Michelle Triola for 30 years before she died of cancer in 2009.