- Says that his most memorable role is that of Bert the chimney-sweep in Mary Poppins (1964).
- His attempt at a Cockney accent in Mary Poppins (1964) is so notorious that a "Dick Van Dyke accent" is an accepted slang term for an American's unsuccessful attempt at any British accent. Despite that, he is quite popular in the United Kingdom.
- Overcame alcoholism in the 1970s.
- Helped his ex-The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) co-star, Mary Tyler Moore get her own sitcom, in the 1970s.
- He and his wife Margie married on the radio show "Bride and Groom" because the show paid for the wedding rings, a honeymoon and household appliances. After their wedding, the Van Dykes were so poor that they had to live in their car for a while.
- Received a lemon cake every Christmas from Charles Bronson, who resided nearby in Malibu, for 16 years.
- When The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) started, he actually had a crush on Mary Tyler Moore, who played his wife on the series.
- Buster Keaton and Stan Laurel were two of his comedy idols. Both became fans of Dick's classic television series.
- Although highly praised for his dancing in Mary Poppins (1964) and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), Van Dyke was never trained as a dancer and did not begin dancing until he was in his thirties.
- He enlisted to be a pilot in the Army Air Corps during World War II, but initially did not make the cut because he did not meet the weight requirement, as he was underweight. He tried three times to enlist, before barely making the cut. He actually served as a radio announcer during the war, and he did not leave the United States.
- Was rescued from his Jaguar, as it was burning on the Ventura Freeway in Los Angeles, California on August 19, 2013.
- His comic inspiration was Stan Laurel. He says he was able to find him by looking up his name in the phone book in Santa Monica, California, where Laurel resided. He called and Laurel invited him over. The two became good friends. When Laurel passed away, Van Dyke delivered his eulogy at the funeral.
- By the late 1980s, it seemed that Van Dyke's career was over. However, his acclaimed performance as the District Attorney in Dick Tracy (1990) led to Diagnosis Murder (1993), which proved to be a big television comeback for the 67-year-old star.
- Beat out Johnny Carson for the role of Rob Petrie on what later became The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961).
- He played Lionel Jeffries' son in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) even though Jeffries was actually six months his junior.
- Although Van Dyke is now a committed non-smoker, he admits that he used to smoke 20-40 cigarettes a day.
- Did not begin dancing until he was age 34, and did not appear in his first movie until he was age 36.
- Was a heavy smoker for fifty years, smoking up to two packs of cigarettes a day. He finally managed to quit using gum and patches. He claimed that quitting smoking was much harder than quitting drinking.
- Rob Petrie, Van Dyke's role on The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961), was ranked #22 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [20 June 2004 issue].
- Before being an actor and comedian, he was also a Sunday School teacher and an elder at a Presbyterian church, who ministered every Sunday.
- Guest-starred on the second episode of Matlock (1986)'s first season, with his old friend Andy Griffith. Eleven years later, Griffith would return the favor by appearing in a two part episode of Diagnosis Murder (1993), reprising his role of Ben Matlock.
- According to his book "Those Funny Kids: A Treasury of Classroom Laughter", he had grown to 6' 1" by age 11.
- Made a comeback to television, for the first time in 27 years, with Diagnosis Murder (1993).
- Created most of his own comedy routines and physical schticks on The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961).
- Van Dyke was guest on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (2005) and claimed that "years ago", he had fallen asleep on a surfboard and drifted out to sea so far that could not see land and that he had been rescued by a pod of porpoises that had pushed him all the way back to shore. (November 2010)
- Made his acting debut playing the baby Jesus in a church Christmas pageant. Was told he cried all the way through this.
- Almost graduated from Danville High School in Danville, Illinois (1944). He received his high school diploma when he was age 78 (2004).
- Before he was a successful actor and comedian, he did everything from working in an advertising agency to becoming a disc jockey.
- Before he was a successful actor and comedian, his first job was that of a radio announcer at a Danville, Illinois radio station at age 16. He did the news as well as spun records.
- Son Barry Van Dyke and grandson Carey Van Dyke also worked on Diagnosis Murder (1993) with him. Sons Barry and Christian Van Dyke also appeared in The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) episode, The Talented Neighborhood (1962).
- Had a brief stint as a television weatherman in New Orleans, Louisiana.
- Often hosted game shows when he was a struggling actor. He hosted Mother's Day (1958) and Laugh Line (1959) but turned down The Price Is Right (1956).
- He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on February 25, 1993. But when the star was unveiled, his name was misspelled on the star as "VANDYKE". Being a good sport, he laughed, took a pen and drew a slash between "VAN" and "DYKE". The star was corrected soon after.
- Older brother of entertainer Jerry Van Dyke.
- His mother, Hazel McCord Van Dyke, passed away in 1994 at age 95.
- Dabbled in computer animation since the 1980s. Using Newtek's Lightwave 3D from home, he created and animated a CG version of himself that he danced with on The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited (2004).
- Was close friends with his The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) co-star Mary Tyler Moore.
- His favorite The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) episode is Where Did I Come From? (1962).
- His hobbies include golfing, sailing, spending time with his family, dancing, traveling, comedy, playing piano, using the computer, Bible, praying and singing.
- At the beginning of the third season, The New Dick Van Dyke Show (1971) had moved production from Phoenix to Hollywood, where the change made a big improvement in the ratings, but was canceled because he no longer enjoyed working away from his home and did not want to continue the show without Carl Reiner.
- His Diagnosis Murder (1993) co-star, Charlie Schlatter, would reprise his role on an episode of The Sopranos (1999), in 2000.
- In July 1999, he was made an honorary life member of The Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America (SPEBSQSA), Inc. at their annual International Convention in Anaheim, California. He has sung in an a cappella quartet called "The Vantastix" since 2000. The group released a children's album in 2008.
- Won Broadway's 1961 Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Musical) for "Bye, Bye Birdie" and a Grammy Award for the Mary Poppins (1964) soundtrack.
- Met makeup artist, Arlene Silver, at the SAG Awards in 2006, where he was bowled over by her beauty. Six years later, he married her.
- Received a phone call from his son and future Diagnosis Murder (1993) co-star, Barry Van Dyke, who asked him to play Dr. Mark Sloan, which he accepted after guest-starring on an episode of Jake and the Fatman (1987).
- Was born just six months after his parents wedding that same year. Van Dyke was 18 years old when he found out he was born in December 1925 and not March 1926, as he had been previously told. At first, his mother informed him that he had been born prematurely. Later, he learned that he had been conceived out of wedlock.
- Is a huge fan of the situation comedy The Office (2005).
- His cockney accent in Mary Poppins (1964) was so heavily criticized that it may have cost him a Best Leading Actor Academy Award nomination the following year.
- Resided with Michelle Triola from 1976 until her death in 2009. Van Dyke had become friendly with her before his marriage ended and in his autobiography he admits that the final cause of his divorce from his wife was when he gave Michelle Triola out of his own pocket the six-figure amount she had sued for unsuccessfully in her infamous "palimony" case against Lee Marvin.
- After his divorce with Marjory Willett, he remained close friends with her.
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