Grappling with the harsh reality that, for the first time, he had no companion looking out for him, Dick Van Dyke met someone nearly half a century younger who, he says, he wouldn\u2019t even be here without. Meet the mystery woman who gave the Hollywood icon a third chance at love.<\/p>\n
Dick Van Dyke, born Richard Wayne Van Dyke in West Plains, Missouri, rose to fame as one of the most cherished entertainers of his generation. Known for his versatility, Van Dyke\u2019s career skyrocketed with his Tony-winning performance in \u201cBye Bye Birdie\u201d in 1960, later reprised in the 1963 film adaptation.
\nHis charm lit up the screen in classics like \u201cMary Poppins\u201d and \u201cChitty Chitty Bang Bang,\u201d earning him acclaim as both a comedic and dramatic actor. Over the years, he became a television icon, winning four Emmy Awards and leaving an indelible mark on Hollywood.<\/p>\n
However, before the fame, as a young man in Danville, Illinois, he met Margie Willett, the woman who would become his first wife. \u201cWhen I was 20, I began dating a local girl I had known for years growing up in Danville, Illinois \u2013 Margie Willett,\u201d Van Dyke recalled.<\/p>\n
Their love story began modestly, but their wedding in 1948 was anything but ordinary. Too broke to afford a proper ceremony, a radio producer offered to foot the bill for the wedding and their honeymoon if they agreed to say \u201cI do\u201d on a live radio show.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, in 1948 we exchanged our vows in front of a minister and two radio microphones while 15 million people listened!\u201d the actor said.Willett, described by her ex-husband as \u201cearthy and artistic,\u201d was not drawn to Hollywood glamor. \u201cShe wore her hair short and eschewed makeup, and we were often mistaken for brother and sister,\u201d Van Dyke shared.<\/p>\n
Instead, she focused on their growing family, even as her husband\u2019s star rose. However, their marriage was not without heartbreak. She suffered a miscarriage early on, but the couple went on to have four children together.Van Dyke expressed pride in their family, saying, \u201cMargie miscarried twins, but went on to have four children who turned out to be truly admirable. Margie did the work, but I will take some credit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAs the father of four, the grandfather of seven and a great-grandfather four times over, why not?\u201d he added. Despite their joys, the couple faced their fair share of challenges, including Van Dyke\u2019s 25-year battle with alcoholism.<\/p>\n
He openly acknowledged the impact this had on his family, admitting, \u201cI tried to be a good role model to my children, but I was an alcoholic for 25 years, which inevitably impacted on family life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I went into therapy, I realized I was repeating my father\u2019s mistakes,\u201d the actor continued. Seeking help, he entered rehab, only to discover that Willett was struggling with her own addiction to antidepressants.\u201dWhen I pledged to quit and entered a rehab clinic, Margie checked in as I checked out. I thought she\u2019d come to pick me up, but it turned out she was hooked on antidepressants. I had no idea. What a pair. Our addictions were symptomatic of deeper problems in our relationship and we were drifting apart,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Amid this turmoil, Van Dyke met Michelle Triola, a former actress and legal secretary. Unlike Willett, Triola understood the demands of show business, and the two quickly developed a bond.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was feisty, smart and, unlike Margie, knew the showbiz world inside out,\u201d the \u201cMary Poppins\u201d star admitted. Their relationship began as an affair but evolved into a committed partnership after Van Dyke and Willett divorced in 1984.<\/p>\n
Reflecting on this chapter, Van Dyke said, \u201cMargie and I divorced, and Michelle and I went on to have 35 very happy years together. We talked about marrying, but I could never get her to put a date in the diary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tragedy struck in 2008 when Willett passed away from pancreatic cancer. Despite their divorce, Van Dyke was deeply affected, revealing, \u201cI was deeply affected, even though we were long divorced. With her death, I lost a part of myself.\u201dThen, Triola was diagnosed with lung cancer. \u201cA year later, more heartbreaking news \u2014 Michelle\u2019s doctor found a spot on her lung. She spent her last week in a coma. Her doctor said she could still hear, so I sang and talked to her until the hospice nurses told me she was gone,\u201d Van Dyke shared.<\/p>\n
Her passing at their shared Malibu home in 2009 marked the end of another significant chapter in his life. Van Dyke recalled her final moments, saying, \u201cWhen she asked if she was going to die, I pretended I didn\u2019t know \u2013 the hardest acting I have ever done. After she passed, I realized I had never been without a companion looking out for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Little did the actor, who was in his darkest hour, know he would find a companion again. In 2006, Van Dyke met Arlene Silver, a makeup artist 46 years his junior, at the SAG Awards. Struck by her beauty, he did something uncharacteristic \u2014 he introduced himself.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never approached a strange woman in my life,\u201d he admitted. \u201cAnd she walked by and I jumped and said, \u2018Hi, I\u2019m Dick.\u2019 I had no idea she was half my age. Beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n
Their first encounter marked the beginning of a friendship that blossomed into romance after Triola\u2019s death. By 2011, Silver had moved in with him, and the couple married in 2012.<\/p>\n
Their marriage drew attention for its significant age gap, but Van Dyke dismissed the concerns. \u201cWe don\u2019t feel the age gap,\u201d he explained. \u201cI\u2019m emotionally immature, and Arlene is very wise for her age, so we meet in the middle.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silver echoed his sentiments, saying, \u201cWe were friends for so long that when I told people that I know, they were happy about [our relationship], and I was scared. I mean, the facts, our age difference. But it\u2019s so irrelevant. I think when you see us together, it\u2019s like you don\u2019t think about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Their bond was evident to those around them, as the actor shared, \u201cMy oldest child, Christian, was the only one in the family who had doubts, but after we exchanged our vows in 2012, he said, \u2018Dad, I get it.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Dyke credited Silver with bringing new energy and joy into his life, saying, \u201c[\u2026] I don\u2019t think I\u2019d even be here, to tell you that truth. She keeps me in shape, feeds me, and I love her more every day. We\u2019re just getting closer and closer.\u201dSilver, in turn, described Van Dyke as a transformative influence. \u201cI mean, he\u2019s really made me a better person. I was very cynical, I think, when I first met him,\u201d she shared.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s such a great human being and he\u2019s so pure in his thoughts and his heart, that it\u2019s rubbed off on me. Just all the wholesome things of life \u2014 that\u2019s what he has and he\u2019s just made me a better person,\u201d she added.Their shared passions extended to the arts, with Silver even convincing Van Dyke to perform with her on a public platform. In 2022, she directed a Valentine\u2019s Day video of the couple singing and dancing to \u201cEverybody Loves a Lover,\u201d showcasing Van Dyke\u2019s enduring talent and vitality at 96.<\/p>\n
The couple\u2019s physical activity has played a key role in Van Dyke\u2019s longevity over the years. He remained committed to regular exercise, often going to the gym with Silver for light-weight training.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Grappling with the harsh reality that, for the first time, he had no companion looking out for him, Dick Van Dyke met someone nearly half a century younger who, he says, he wouldn\u2019t even be here without. Meet the mystery woman who gave the Hollywood icon a third chance at love. Dick Van Dyke, born […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1689,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1688"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1688\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1690,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1688\/revisions\/1690"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1689"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnews06.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}