Legendary actor and entertainer Dick Van Dyke got his start in the entertainment business in the 1940s as a DJ.
And his career is still going strong some 80 years later.
But Dick Van Dyke had one piece of advice about longevity that shocked his fans to their very core.
Dick Van Dyke still acting at nearly 100 years old
Actor Dick Van Dyke made his debut on network TV in 1954 on the talent show, Chance of Lifetime.
He then became a household name playing comedy writer Rob Petrie on the wildly popular CBS sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show, which ran from 1961 to 1966.
And he went on to star in classic movies like Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Bye Bye Birdie, and many others.
He returned to TV later in life to star in Diagnosis Murder and made multiple appearances on a long list of shows.
Van Dyke is still entertaining audiences today at 98 years old.
He even appeared as one of the contestants on the Fox reality show The Masked Singer last year.
And this year he became the oldest actor to ever win a Daytime Emmy Award for his guest role on the long-running NBC soap opera, Days of Our Lives.
Van Dyke recently talked with Entertainment Tonight about what he says is the secret to his longevity as he approaches a century on this earth.
“Attitude about life I think has a lot to do with it,” Van Dyke said. “I’ve always looked at the good side, I guess, and expected good things to happen.”
Van Dyke is currently married to makeup artist Arlene Silver who is 46 years younger than him.
And the famed actor pointed to the one thing that he thought helped him with aging.
“I’ve often tried to think what did I do to live this long?” Van Dyke asked. “And I can’t figure out – I’ve always exercised. We still go to the gym three days a week. And I can still, you know, move pretty well.”
Then he shocked his fans with one comment that has the entertainment world talking.
“I don’t really watch my diet or anything,” Van Dyke added. “Stayed skinny, that helps.”
Van Dyke recommended that everyone try to go to the gym.
And he also credited his work in entertainment, which he says he’s been having fun at for nearly 70 years.
“It isn’t work, it’s play” Van Dyke stated. “Actors are so lucky. I’ve had such a good time.”
Having a beautiful, young wife helps
Van Dyke has also credited “having a beautiful young wife half my age to take care of me” as a key to aging successfully.
Silver said that the age difference hasn’t been an issue in their strong relationship.
“We were friends for so long that when I told people that I know [about our relationship], they were happy,” Silver told Entertainment Tonight. “I was scared. I mean, the facts are our age difference. But it’s so irrelevant. I think, when you see us together, it’s like you don’t even think about it. We don’t think about it.”
Van Dyke joked, “I was fortunate that I didn’t grow up.”
The couple first met at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards in 2011.
“I’d never met anybody like him,” Silver said. “He was always happy and just positive. Always singing. He’s just the most joyful person. He influences everybody else to be more joyful, playful.”
Dick Van Dyke has become an institution in entertainment with a career that’s spanned seven decades.
And he shows no signs of slowing down.