Dick Van Dyke, 99, opens up on 46-year age gap relationship and shares secret to lasting marriage
Topics: Celebrity, Sex and Relationships, US News
Gerrard Kaonga
Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Paul Morigi
Topics: Celebrity, Sex and Relationships, US News
Dick Van Dyke reflected on his relationship with his wife, who is 46 years his junior, and how they make it work despite their differences.
Van Dyke is set to turn 100 this December and has opened up about why he and his 54-year-old wife, Arlene Silver, are a good match for one another.
The pair met backstage at the SAG Awards in 2006, where Silver was working as a make-up artist. In 2012, they tied the knot in a private ceremony in Malibu.
The actor recently spoke with People ahead of the release of his book, 100 Rules For Living to 100: An Optimist's Guide to a Happy Life, and revealed his secrets for making his marriage work.
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Van Dyke said: “We thought it might be [a problem] in some regard, to some extent, but it hasn't really. I'm infantile to start with.
“I think I'm about 13, so that's been a problem and she's quite mature for her age, so I don't think we haven't had any problem with age at all.”
The couple have previously spoken to the outlet and insisted that the age gap has also strengthened their relationship and why they got ‘along so well’.
In April, Silver said: “We just care about each other so much.”
“Everybody said it wouldn't work,” Van Dyke chimed in, before Silver added: “Yeah. I mean it's like eerie how well it works. People the same age don't last.”
The Mary Poppins star also noted that his wife helped him feel young despite his age.
In his latest interview, the actor continued: “She's responsible for keeping me in the moment.
"She's kept me happy every day of my life, every day. She's a joy. She can get me singing or dancing and she carries so much responsibility ... I'm just lucky.”
In his upcoming book, Van Dyke goes into more detail about Silva’s influence.
“Arlene is half my age, and she makes me feel somewhere between two-thirds and three-quarters my age, which is still saying a lot,” he revealed.
“Every day she finds a new way to keep me up and moving, bright and hopeful and needed.”
Van Dyke has also attributed his youthful appearance (for his age) and his sprightly feeling to his wife, in addition to having a ‘positive attitude’.
During a 2023 appearance on an episode of The Masked Singer, he was asked about how he stays so young.
Van Dyke told Yahoo: “Genes, I guess, for one thing.”
He added: “Having a beautiful young wife half my age to take care of me - that works!”
So it is clear that if nothing else, Van Dyke is very appreciative of his wife's influence in his life.