Days Of Our Lives
It’s Dick Van Dyke’s 100th BIRTHDAY & We’re STILL CELEBRATING His Emmy-Winning Guest Role on DAYS
Hollywood legend Dick Van Dyke turns 100 years old today. From Mary Poppins to his historic Daytime Emmy win at 98, we’re celebrating!
DICK VAN DYKE DIDN’T NEED TO DO DAYS OF OUR LIVES BUT HE DID IT ANYWAY AND WE’RE STILL NOT OVER IT
TL;DR: Dick Van Dyke turns 100 today, and the fact that this Hollywood legend spent time on Days of Our Lives just because he WANTED to try a soap opera is absolutely wild. The behind-the-scenes chaos of his “Tea for Two” number with Bill and Susan Seaforth Hayes is the stuff of legend, and his historic Emmy win at 98 proved he’s STILL got it.
When A Legend Decides To Try Something New At 97 Years Old
Dick Van Dyke didn’t stumble onto the Days of Our Lives set by accident. The man who charmed audiences in Mary Poppins, danced through Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and won three Emmys for The Dick Van Dyke Show actually ASKED to be on a soap opera. At 97 years old, he was at the gym in Malibu working out with his friend, the late Drake Hogystyn, when the conversation turned to whether DAYS had any roles available for older actors.
The conversation stuck with Hogystyn, who spoke with producers and came back to Van Dyke with an actual offer. He said yes immediately. “I’d love to have a new experience,” he told Soap Opera Digest. He was also new to soap operas in general. “I had never watched a soap opera, really, because I don’t have five days in a row to watch anything!” The Mary Poppins star had spent nearly eight decades entertaining audiences, but a soap opera was uncharted territory. While most people at 97 are slowing down. Van Dyke was actively seeking NEW challenges.
He appeared in four episodes as Timothy Robicheaux, an amnesiac mystery man who turned out to be John Black’s biological father. The role required him to handle dramatic scenes that were very different from his usual comedic work, and at one point he started laughing during a serious moment, ruining the shot. But that’s EXACTLY the kind of delightful chaos you get when you invite a legend to set who doesn’t take himself too seriously.
What’s YOUR favorite Dick Van Dyke performance? Email your birthday wishes and favorite memories to [email protected]!
The “Tea For Two” Number That Almost Didn’t Happen
Susan Seaforth Hayes told Michael Fairman TV that working with Dick Van Dyke was “a big event.” The plan was for Van Dyke to perform a musical number with the legendary couple Bill and Susan Seaforth Hayes, who played Doug and Julie Williams. The twist? They couldn’t rehearse together in advance because the show wasn’t insured for Van Dyke to visit their home to do so.
So Bill Hayes, who was in a wheelchair at the time, and Susan hired their own choreographer to stage the number in their living room. Adding to the challenge was the fact that the choreographer had an ankle injury and couldn’t actually demonstrate the steps, so he just TALKED them through the routine. They settled on “Tea for Two” because it was in the public domain, built the choreography themselves, and hoped muscle memory would save them on taping day.
When cameras rolled, things got even more chaotic. No pianist had been hired. Just a lone guitarist, who launched into the WRONG tempo while Bill whispered corrections under his breath. Van Dyke’s script had errors, he struggled with his lines, and Susan found herself reassuring him that some days are harder than others. And somehow, against all odds, they pulled it off in one take. “It looked pretty good in the end,” Susan said, laughing at the beautiful disaster they’d created together.
Making History At 98 As the Oldest Daytime Emmy Nominee & Winner
Dick Van Dyke’s Days of Our Lives appearance earned him a Daytime Emmy nomination in April 2024, making him the oldest Daytime Emmy nominee in history. Then in June, he WON the award, and was 98 when he became the oldest Daytime Emmy winner ever.
“I feel like a spy from nighttime television,” Van Dyke joked at the 51st Daytime Emmy Awards. “I’m the oldest nominee in history. I can’t believe it. I was playing old men all my life. If I had known I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself!” The audience gave him a standing ovation as he walked to the stage with his wife Arlene, who held his trophy.
The win added to an already staggering collection of honors: six Emmy Awards total, a Grammy, a Tony Award, the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, Kennedy Center Honors, and a Disney Legend designation. He’s one Oscar away from EGOT status, and he’s STILL hoping to get it. “Now that I’m a dramatic actor,” he told CBS News with a twinkle in his eye.
A Century Of Making People Smile
Dick Van Dyke was born December 13, 1925 in West Plains, Missouri. He started as a radio DJ, moved to Broadway where he won a Tony for Bye Bye Birdie, then became a television icon with The Dick Van Dyke Show opposite Mary Tyler Moore from 1961-1966. Walt Disney cast him as Bert the chimney sweep in Mary Poppins in 1964, and despite his famously terrible Cockney accent, the performance became one of cinema’s most beloved.
He followed that with Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, starred in the long-running mystery series Diagnosis: Murder, appeared in Night at the Museum, returned for Mary Poppins Returns at 93, competed on The Masked Singer at 97, and THEN decided to guest star on Days of Our Lives because he’d always wanted to try a soap. And in 2024, he appeared in Coldplay’s “All My Love” music video, dancing barefoot in his backyard at 99 years old.
The man simply will not stop delighting audiences. He still goes to the gym three days a week, calling the habit his “secret weapon,” and recently hosted a two-hour sing-along charity event in Malibu. When asked about his longevity, Van Dyke admitted he doesn’t know what he did right, but credits his wife Arlene and his positive attitude.
Are you celebrating Dick Van Dyke’s 100th birthday? What’s your favorite memory of watching him? Tell us in the comments!
