Dick Van Dyke has admitted he feels 'diminished' both physically and socially as he approaches his 100th birthday on December 13. In a health diary for The Times, the actor credited his wife Arlene, 54, for keeping him young, but confessed that 'every single one of my dearest lifelong friends is gone, which feels just as lonely as it sounds'.
Van Dyke, who married makeup artist Arlene Silver in 2012, said their romance is 'the most important reason I have not withered away into a hermetic grouch'. He added: '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.'
Despite his wife's support, Van Dyke said he can no longer travel long distances and has had to decline event invitations and job opportunities outside his California home. 'That kind of travel takes so much out of me that I have to say no,' he wrote.
The actor also reflected on the impact of recent wildfires and the political climate. 'I just lived through two Southern California wildfires in less than a month... Daily, I spiral into anguish over the mayhem and cruelty being inflicted on the entire world by those in power,' he said, adding that at times he becomes 'the grumpy old man who yells at the TV'.
Van Dyke met Silver at a Screen Actors Guild awards dinner in 2006. They remained friends for years before beginning a romantic relationship after she helped him mourn his late partner, Michelle Triola. Steve Boettcher, director of the upcoming film Dick Van Dyke: 100th Celebration, told People that Silver is 'a key force in keeping him so vibrant and alive today'.
