After more than seven decades of career, Dick Van Dyke is still just following his passions.
The legendary actor, who turns 99 in December, attributes his famous work – which continues today – to fate.
“It was just a matter of enjoying it,” he told Deadline of his illustrious career. “I always loved what I did. If it was like a job, I probably would have stopped doing it a long time ago.”
Van Dyke said he “just loved” the projects he was involved in, starting with his career-launching role in Bye Bye Birdie on Broadway to return to his roots in the Mary Poppins is back and even spin on Masked singer. But he doesn’t talk about his career in the traditional way.
“I call it my game,” he told the newspaper, referring to his work.
Jane Seymour says Dick Van Dyke turned her local shop into ‘his stage’ to break into ‘Song and Dance’
The actor’s career was celebrated in honor of his 98th birthday last year, with a special surprise appearance at the CBS studios that Van Dyke never expected.
He walked into Television City expecting a press day, but instead was treated to a two-hour tribute featuring archival footage and live performances of some of the biggest hits from his career. Afterwards, he told PEOPLE, “It’s hard to say how I felt.”
“I came home and said, ‘You know what? It’s going to be a few days before this really sinks in that it happened.’ I never expected such recognition,” he said. “My whole life passed before me. I didn’t know I did so many things while I was 75 years in show business.”
Dick Van Dyke in ‘Mary Poppins’ (1964).
Disney/Kobal/Shutterstock
In recent years, he has crossed even more things off his list while competing Masked singer 2023 after being asked and thinking the show “looked like a lot of fun.”
“I was sure he wouldn’t be able to guess who I was. And I was right!” the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang the star told PEOPLE after his elimination, noting that he was pretty pleased with himself because the judges had mistaken him for Tony Bennett. – I was flattered.
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This year, Van Dyke continued his history-making streak by becoming the oldest person to earn an Emmy nomination for his guest role on Days of our lives. He was nominated for Outstanding Guest Performer in a Daytime Drama Series for his portrayal of Timothy Robicheaux on the soap opera, marking his first foray into that side of television.
“Some of the people have been doing it for 20 years. That’s all I can do – watch one and see how they do it,” he told Access how he prepared for the role.
His longtime friend and All My Children alum Carol Burnett also gave him some advice. “Make sure you know all your lines, because they don’t repeat themselves,” she told Van Dyke in the video.
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Source: HIS Education