Dick Van Dyke
Encyclopedia
Richard Wayne "Dick" Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American
actor
, comedian
, writer
, and producer
with a career spanning six decades. He is the older brother of Jerry Van Dyke
, and father of Barry Van Dyke
. Van Dyke starred in the films Bye Bye Birdie
, Mary Poppins
, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
, and the television series The Dick Van Dyke Show
, and Diagnosis: Murder
. Van Dyke has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
at 7021 Hollywood Blvd.
, to Loren (nickname "Cookie") and Hazel (born McCord) Van Dyke, but he grew up in Danville, Illinois
. He is the older brother of actor Jerry Van Dyke
, who is best known for his role on the TV series Coach
. His grandson, Shane Van Dyke
, is also an actor, and directed Titanic II. He is of Dutch descent on his father's side. His mother, as a Mayflower
descendant, is of English
extraction but also carries additional Scottish ancestry.
During World War II
, he enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps
where he became a radio announcer and served in Special Services
entertaining troops in the Continental United States. While Van Dyke appeared at the Chapman Park Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard
in Los Angeles
, he and the former Margerie Willett were married on the radio show Bride and Groom in 1948. They had four children: Christian (Chris), Barry, Carrie Beth, and Stacy. They divorced in 1984 after a long separation. He lived with longtime companion Michelle Triola
for more than 30 years until her death in 2009. Van Dyke's son Barry Van Dyke
and grandsons Shane Van Dyke
and Carey Van Dyke are also actors; both of these last two, along with other Van Dyke relations and grandchildren, appeared in various episodes of the long-running series Diagnosis: Murder
. All of Van Dyke's children are married, and he has seven grandchildren. His son Chris was district attorney
for Marion County, Oregon
in the 1980s. In 1987, his granddaughter Jessica Van Dyke died from Reye's Syndrome
which drove him to do a series of television commercials to raise public awareness of the danger of aspirin to children. In 2010, he said he had once been rescued from drifting out to sea and possible death by a pod of porpoise
s.
. In 1947, Van Dyke was persuaded by Phil Erickson to form a comedy duo with him called "Eric and Van—the Merry Mutes." The team toured the West Coast
nightclub circuit, performing a mime act and lip synching to old 78 records
. They brought their act to Atlanta, Georgia
, in the early 1950s and performed a local television show featuring original skits and music called "The Merry Mutes".
On the stage, Van Dyke was the lead in Broadway's Bye Bye Birdie. In a May 2011 interview with Rachael Ray
, Van Dyke noted that when he auditioned for a smaller part in the show he had no dance experience, and that after he sang his audition song he did an impromptu soft-shoe out of sheer nervousness. Gower Champion, the show's director and choreographer, was watching, and promptly went up on stage to inform Van Dyke he had the lead. An astonished Van Dyke protested that he could not dance, to which Champion replied "We'll teach you". That musical won four Tony awards including Van Dyke's Best Featured Actor Tony
, in 1961. In 1980, Van Dyke appeared as the title role in The Music Man
on Broadway.
on James' Chance of a Lifetime
in 1954. He later appeared on The Phil Silvers Show
in the 1957–8 season. He also appeared early in his career on ABC
's The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom
and NBC
's The Polly Bergen Show
. During this time a friend from the Army was working as an executive for CBS television and recommended Van Dyke to that network. Out of this came a seven year contract with the network. During an interview on NPR
's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
program, Van Dyke said he was the anchorman for the CBS morning show during this period with Walter Cronkite
as his newsman.
Van Dyke starred in the situation comedy The Dick Van Dyke Show
on CBS from 1961 to 1966, in which he portrayed a comedy writer named Rob Petrie. Originally the show was supposed to have Carl Reiner as the lead but CBS insisted on recasting and Reiner chose Van Dyke to replace him in the role. Complementing Van Dyke was a veteran cast of comic actors including Rose Marie
, Morey Amsterdam
, Jerry Paris
, Ann Morgan Guilbert
, and Carl Reiner
(as Alan Brady), as well as television newcomer Mary Tyler Moore
, who played Rob's wife, Laura Petrie. Van Dyke won three Emmy Award
s as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
, and the series received four Emmy Awards as Outstanding Comedy Series
.
From 1971 to 1974 Van Dyke starred in an unrelated sitcom called The New Dick Van Dyke Show
in which he starred as a local television talk show host. He received a Golden Globe
nomination for his performance but the show was less successful than its predecessor, and Van Dyke pulled the plug on the show after just three seasons. In 1973 Van Dyke voiced his animated likeness for the October 27, 1973 installment of Hanna-Barbera
's The New Scooby-Doo Movies
, "Scooby-Doo Meets Dick Van Dyke," the series' final first-run episode. The following year, he received an Emmy Award nomination for his role as an alcoholic businessman in the television movie
The Morning After (1974). Van Dyke revealed after its release that he had recently overcome a real-life drinking problem
. That same year he guest-starred as a murdering photographer on an episode of Columbo. Van Dyke returned to comedy in 1976 with the sketch comedy
show Van Dyke and Company, which co-starred Andy Kaufman
and Super Dave Osborne
. Despite being canceled after three months, the show won an Emmy Award
for Outstanding Comedy-Variety Series. When Carol Burnett
's main foil, Harvey Korman
, quit Burnett's long-running variety series in 1977 Van Dyke took his place. This was the first time he had ever played second banana on television and there were few comic sparks between Van Dyke and Burnett. He left after three months. For the next decade he appeared mostly in low-rated TV movies. One exception was an atypical role as a murdering judge on the first episode of the TV series Matlock
in 1986 starring Andy Griffith
. In 1989 he guest-starred on the NBC
comedy series The Golden Girls
portraying a lover of Beatrice Arthur
's character. This role earned him his first Emmy Award nomination since 1977.
His film work affected his TV career: the reviews he received for his role as D.A. Fletcher in Dick Tracy led him to star first as the character Dr. Mark Sloan in an episode of Jake and the Fatman
, then in a series of TV movies on CBS
that became the foundation for his popular television drama Diagnosis: Murder
. The series ran from 1993 to 2001 with son Barry Van Dyke
co-starring. Van Dyke continued to find television work after the show ended, including a dramatically and critically successful performance of The Gin Game
, produced for television in 2003 that reunited him with Mary Tyler Moore
. In 2003 he portrayed a doctor on Scrubs
. A 2004 special of The Dick Van Dyke Show titled The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited was heavily promoted as the first new episode of the classic series to be shown in 38 years. Van Dyke and his surviving cast members recreated their roles; the program was roundly panned by critics. In 2006 he guest-starred as college professor Dr. Jonathan Maxwell for a series of Murder 101
mystery films on the Hallmark Channel
.
(1963). Despite his unhappiness with the adaptation—its focus differed from the stage version— the film was a success. That same year, Van Dyke was cast in two roles: as the chimney sweep Bert, and as Mr. Dawes Senior, the chairman of the bank in Walt Disney
's Mary Poppins
(1964). For his scenes as the chairman, he was heavily costumed to look much older, and was credited in that role as "Nackvid Keyd" (at the end of the credits, the letters unscramble
into "Dick Van Dyke"). Van Dyke's attempt at a cockney
accent has been decried as one of the worst accents in film history, cited as an example by actors since as an example of how not to sound. In a 2003 poll by Empire
magazine of the worst-ever accents in film, he came in second. According to Van Dyke, his accent coach was Irish
, who "didn't do an accent any better than I did." Still, Mary Poppins was successful upon release and its enduring appeal has made it one of the most famous films of all time. "Chim Chim Cher-ee
", one of the songs that Van Dyke performed in Mary Poppins, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
for the Sherman Brothers
, the film's songwriting duo.
Many of the comedy films Van Dyke starred in throughout the 1960s were relatively unsuccessful at the box office, including What a Way to Go!
, Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N.
, Fitzwilly
, The Art of Love, Some Kind of a Nut
, Never a Dull Moment, and Divorce American Style
. But he also starred (with his native accent, despite the English setting) in the successful musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
(1968), which co-starred Sally Ann Howes
and featured songs by the Sherman Brothers, and choreography by Marc Breaux
and Dee Dee Wood. The Sherman Brothers, Breaux, and Wood were also songsmiths and choreographers for Mary Poppins.
In 1969, Van Dyke appeared in the comedy-drama The Comic
, written and directed by Carl Reiner
. Van Dyke portrayed a self-destructive silent-film era comedian who struggles with alcoholism
, depression
, and his own rampant ego. Reiner wrote the film especially for Van Dyke, who often spoke of his admiration for silent film
era comedians such as Charlie Chaplin
and his hero Stan Laurel
. Twenty one years later in 1990, Van Dyke, whose usual role had been the amiable hero, took a small but villainous turn as the crooked D.A. Fletcher in Warren Beatty
's film Dick Tracy. Van Dyke returned to motion pictures in 2006 with Curious George
as Mr. Bloomsberry and as villain Cecil Fredericks in the Ben Stiller
film Night at the Museum
. He reprised the role in a cameo for the sequel, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
but it was cut from the film. It can be found in the special features on the DVD release.
Van Dyke received a Grammy Award
for his performance on the soundtrack to Mary Poppins.
In 1970 he published Faith, Hope and Hilarity: A Child's Eye View of Religion a book of humorous anecdotes based largely on his experiences as a Sunday School
teacher. Van Dyke was principal in "KXIV Inc." and owned 1400 AM KXIV in Phoenix (later KSUN) from 1965 to 1985. KXIV was at one time an applicant for an FM station in the same area.
As an a cappella
enthusiast, Van Dyke has sung in a group called "The Vantastix" since September 2000. The quartet
has performed several times in Los Angeles
as well as on Larry King Live
, The First Annual TV Land Awards, and sung the national anthem
at three Los Angeles Lakers
games including a nationally televised NBA Finals
performance on NBC
. Van Dyke was made an honorary member of the Barbershop Harmony Society
in 1999.
Van Dyke became a computer animation
enthusiast after purchasing a Commodore Amiga in 1991. He is credited with the creation of 3D-rendered effects used on Diagnosis: Murder and The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited. Van Dyke has displayed his computer-generated imagery
work at SIGGRAPH
, and continues to work with LightWave 3D.
In 2010, Van Dyke appeared on a children's album titled Rhythm Train, with Red Hot Chili Peppers
drummer Chad Smith
and singer Leslie Bixler. Van Dyke raps on one of the album's tracks.
|publisher=F. H. Revell Co. |year=1967}} |last=Van Dyke |first=Dick |title=Faith, hope and hilarity |editor=Ray Parker |others=Phil Interlandi (drawings) |location=Garden City, New York
|publisher=Doubleday |year=1970}}
* Note: Although he is not seen in the regular release of Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Dick van Dyke's work can be seen in the "Deleted Scenes" section of the film's DVD, along with Bill Cobbs
and Mickey Rooney
.
CBS Cartoon Theater (1956)
To Tell the Truth
(1956–1957) The Phil Silvers Show (1957)
The Chevy Showroom Starring Andy Williams (1958)
Mother's Day (1958–1959)
Laugh Line (1959) (canceled after 3 months)
The Dick Van Dyke Show
(1961–1966)
"Dick Van Dyke and the Other Woman" (1969)
"Dick Van Dyke Meets Bill Cosby" (1970)
The New Dick Van Dyke Show
(1971–1974)
The New Scooby-Doo Movies
(1973)
"Julie and Dick at Covent Garden" (1974)
The Morning After (1974)
Columbo: Negative Reaction (1974)
Van Dyke and Company (1976)
The Carol Burnett Show
(cast member in 1977)
Supertrain (1979)
The Runner Stumbles (1979)
"True Life Stories" (1981)
"Harry's Battles" (1981)
The Country Girl (1982)
Drop-Out Father (1982)
Wrong Way Kid (1983) (voice)
"Found Money" (1983)
"Breakfast with Les and Bess" (1985)
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, and producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
with a career spanning six decades. He is the older brother of Jerry Van Dyke
Jerry Van Dyke
Jerry Van Dyke is an American comedian and actor. He is the younger brother of comedian and actor Dick Van Dyke, and made his acting debut on The Dick Van Dyke Show with several guest appearances as Rob Petrie's brother, Stacey...
, and father of Barry Van Dyke
Barry Van Dyke
Barry Van Dyke is an American actor and the second son of actor and entertainer, Dick Van Dyke, and nephew of Jerry Van Dyke. He has one older brother, Christian, and two younger sisters, Stacy and Carrie Beth...
. Van Dyke starred in the films Bye Bye Birdie
Bye Bye Birdie (film)
Bye Bye Birdie is a 1963 musical comedy film from Columbia Pictures. It is a film adaptation of the stage production of the same name. The screenplay was written by Michael Stewart and Irving Brecher, with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams....
, Mary Poppins
Mary Poppins (film)
Mary Poppins is a 1964 musical film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, produced by Walt Disney, and based on the Mary Poppins books series by P. L. Travers with illustrations by Mary Shepard. The film was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi, with songs by...
, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (film)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a 1968 musical film with a script by Roald Dahl and Ken Hughes, and songs by the Sherman Brothers, loosely based on Ian Fleming's novel Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car. It starred Dick Van Dyke as Caractacus Potts and Sally Ann Howes as Truly Scrumptious. The...
, and the television series The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom that initially aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from October 3, 1961, until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. It was produced by Reiner with Bill Persky and Sam Denoff....
, and Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...
. Van Dyke has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
at 7021 Hollywood Blvd.
Early and personal life
Van Dyke was born in West Plains, MissouriWest Plains, Missouri
West Plains is a city in Howell County, Missouri, United States. The population was 10,866 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Howell County. The West Plains Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Howell County.-Geography:...
, to Loren (nickname "Cookie") and Hazel (born McCord) Van Dyke, but he grew up in Danville, Illinois
Danville, Illinois
Danville is a city in Vermilion County, Illinois, United States. It is the principal city of the'Danville, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses all of Danville and Vermilion County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 32,467. It is the county seat of...
. He is the older brother of actor Jerry Van Dyke
Jerry Van Dyke
Jerry Van Dyke is an American comedian and actor. He is the younger brother of comedian and actor Dick Van Dyke, and made his acting debut on The Dick Van Dyke Show with several guest appearances as Rob Petrie's brother, Stacey...
, who is best known for his role on the TV series Coach
Coach (TV series)
Coach is an American television sitcom that aired for nine seasons on ABC from 1989 to 1997. The series starred Craig T. Nelson as Hayden Fox, head coach of the fictional Division I-A college football team, the Minnesota State University Screaming Eagles...
. His grandson, Shane Van Dyke
Shane Van Dyke
Shane Van Dyke is an American television and film actor, best known for playing Dr. Alex Smith on the television series Diagnosis: Murder on CBS Television.-Background:...
, is also an actor, and directed Titanic II. He is of Dutch descent on his father's side. His mother, as a Mayflower
Mayflower
The Mayflower was the ship that transported the English Separatists, better known as the Pilgrims, from a site near the Mayflower Steps in Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, Massachusetts, , in 1620...
descendant, is of English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
extraction but also carries additional Scottish ancestry.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...
where he became a radio announcer and served in Special Services
Special Services (entertainment)
Special Services are the entertainment branch of the American military. The unit was created on 22 July 1940 by the War Department as part of the Army Service Forces. Special Services would not only use their own specially trained and talented troops but would often engage local performers.Special...
entertaining troops in the Continental United States. While Van Dyke appeared at the Chapman Park Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard
Wilshire Boulevard
Wilshire Boulevard is one of the principal east-west arterial roads in Los Angeles, California, United States. It was named for Henry Gaylord Wilshire , an Ohio native who made and lost fortunes in real estate, farming, and gold mining. Henry Wilshire initiated what was to become Wilshire...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, he and the former Margerie Willett were married on the radio show Bride and Groom in 1948. They had four children: Christian (Chris), Barry, Carrie Beth, and Stacy. They divorced in 1984 after a long separation. He lived with longtime companion Michelle Triola
Michelle Triola
Michelle Triola was an American actress who was mainly notable for unsuccessfully suing Lee Marvin in 1977, having cohabited with him from 1965-1970. The trial, which brought about the concept of palimony, was widely covered in the media at the time...
for more than 30 years until her death in 2009. Van Dyke's son Barry Van Dyke
Barry Van Dyke
Barry Van Dyke is an American actor and the second son of actor and entertainer, Dick Van Dyke, and nephew of Jerry Van Dyke. He has one older brother, Christian, and two younger sisters, Stacy and Carrie Beth...
and grandsons Shane Van Dyke
Shane Van Dyke
Shane Van Dyke is an American television and film actor, best known for playing Dr. Alex Smith on the television series Diagnosis: Murder on CBS Television.-Background:...
and Carey Van Dyke are also actors; both of these last two, along with other Van Dyke relations and grandchildren, appeared in various episodes of the long-running series Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...
. All of Van Dyke's children are married, and he has seven grandchildren. His son Chris was district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
for Marion County, Oregon
Marion County, Oregon
Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. It was originally named the Champooick District, after Champoeg, a meeting place on the Willamette River. On September 3, 1849, the territorial legislature renamed it in honor of Francis Marion, a Continental Army general of the...
in the 1980s. In 1987, his granddaughter Jessica Van Dyke died from Reye's Syndrome
Reye's syndrome
Reye's syndrome is a potentially fatal disease that causes numerous detrimental effects to many organs, especially the brain and liver, as well as causing a lower than usual level of blood sugar . The classic features are liver damage, aspirin use and a viral infection...
which drove him to do a series of television commercials to raise public awareness of the danger of aspirin to children. In 2010, he said he had once been rescued from drifting out to sea and possible death by a pod of porpoise
Porpoise
Porpoises are small cetaceans of the family Phocoenidae; they are related to whales and dolphins. They are distinct from dolphins, although the word "porpoise" has been used to refer to any small dolphin, especially by sailors and fishermen...
s.
Radio and stage career
During the late 1940s, Van Dyke was a radio DJ in Danville, IllinoisDanville, Illinois
Danville is a city in Vermilion County, Illinois, United States. It is the principal city of the'Danville, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses all of Danville and Vermilion County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 32,467. It is the county seat of...
. In 1947, Van Dyke was persuaded by Phil Erickson to form a comedy duo with him called "Eric and Van—the Merry Mutes." The team toured the West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
nightclub circuit, performing a mime act and lip synching to old 78 records
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
. They brought their act to Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
, in the early 1950s and performed a local television show featuring original skits and music called "The Merry Mutes".
On the stage, Van Dyke was the lead in Broadway's Bye Bye Birdie. In a May 2011 interview with Rachael Ray
Rachael Ray
Rachael Domenica Ray is an American television personality, businesswoman, celebrity chef and author. She hosts the syndicated talk and lifestyle program Rachael Ray and three Food Network series, 30 Minute Meals, Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels and $40 a Day...
, Van Dyke noted that when he auditioned for a smaller part in the show he had no dance experience, and that after he sang his audition song he did an impromptu soft-shoe out of sheer nervousness. Gower Champion, the show's director and choreographer, was watching, and promptly went up on stage to inform Van Dyke he had the lead. An astonished Van Dyke protested that he could not dance, to which Champion replied "We'll teach you". That musical won four Tony awards including Van Dyke's Best Featured Actor Tony
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical
This is a list of the winners and nominations of Tony Award for the Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical. The award has been presented since 1947...
, in 1961. In 1980, Van Dyke appeared as the title role in The Music Man
The Music Man
The Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
on Broadway.
Television career
Dick Van Dyke's start in television was with WDSU-TV New Orleans Channel 6 (NBC), first as a single comedian and later as emcee of a comedy program. Van Dyke's first network TV appearance was with Dennis JamesDennis James
Dennis James was an American television personality, actor, and announcer. He is credited as the host of television's first network game show, the DuMont Network's Cash and Carry in 1946...
on James' Chance of a Lifetime
Chance of a Lifetime (1950s TV series)
Chance of a Lifetime was a game show which aired on ABC and DuMont.-Broadcast history:Dennis James was the host of the ABC version which ended on August 20, 1953, and John Reed King was the host of the DuMont version, which ran from September 11, 1953 to June 17, 1955...
in 1954. He later appeared on The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show is a comedy television series which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959 for 142 episodes, plus a 1959 special. The series starred Phil Silvers as Master Sergeant Ernest G...
in the 1957–8 season. He also appeared early in his career on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom
The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom
The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom is a half-hour variety show that aired on ABC from October 3, 1957 to June 23, 1960, starring the young singer Pat Boone and a host of top-name guest stars. The program was of course sponsored by Chevrolet...
and NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's The Polly Bergen Show
The Polly Bergen Show
The Polly Bergen Show is a half-hour 18-episode comedy/variety show, starring then 27-year-old Polly Bergen, which aired on NBC in the 1957-1958 television season. The program is remembered for its impressive guest-star lineup as well as its closing theme song, "The Party's Over" .The Polly Bergen...
. During this time a friend from the Army was working as an executive for CBS television and recommended Van Dyke to that network. Out of this came a seven year contract with the network. During an interview on NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! is an hour-long weekly radio news panel game show produced by Chicago Public Radio and National Public Radio. It is distributed by NPR in the United States, internationally on NPR Worldwide and on the Internet via podcast, and typically broadcast on weekends by member...
program, Van Dyke said he was the anchorman for the CBS morning show during this period with Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
as his newsman.
Van Dyke starred in the situation comedy The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom that initially aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from October 3, 1961, until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. It was produced by Reiner with Bill Persky and Sam Denoff....
on CBS from 1961 to 1966, in which he portrayed a comedy writer named Rob Petrie. Originally the show was supposed to have Carl Reiner as the lead but CBS insisted on recasting and Reiner chose Van Dyke to replace him in the role. Complementing Van Dyke was a veteran cast of comic actors including Rose Marie
Rose Marie
Rose Marie is an American actress. As a child performer she had a successful singing career as Baby Rose Marie....
, Morey Amsterdam
Morey Amsterdam
Morey Amsterdam was an American television actor and comedian, best known for the role of Buddy Sorrell on The Dick Van Dyke Show in the early 1960s.-Early life:...
, Jerry Paris
Jerry Paris
Jerry Paris was an American actor and director best known for playing Jerry Helper, the dentist and next door neighbor of Rob and Laura Petrie, on The Dick Van Dyke Show.-Life and career:...
, Ann Morgan Guilbert
Ann Morgan Guilbert
Ann Morgan Guilbert , sometimes credited as Ann Guilbert, is an American actress, who played the neighbor Millie Helper in 61 episodes of the early 1960s’ sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show, and later Yetta Rosenberg, Fran Fine’s doddering grandmother, in 56 episodes of the 1990s’ sitcom The Nanny...
, and Carl Reiner
Carl Reiner
Carl Reiner is an American actor, film director, producer, writer and comedian. He has won nine Emmy Awards and one Grammy Award during this career...
(as Alan Brady), as well as television newcomer Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore is an American actress, primarily known for her roles in television sitcoms. Moore is best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show , in which she starred as Mary Richards, a 30-something single woman who worked as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and for her earlier role as...
, who played Rob's wife, Laura Petrie. Van Dyke won three Emmy Award
Primetime Emmy Award
The Primetime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American primetime television programming...
s as Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor - Comedy Series
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series is an Emmy presented to the best performance by a lead actor in a television comedy series.-Winners and nominees:...
, and the series received four Emmy Awards as Outstanding Comedy Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series is an Emmy given to the best television comedy series of the year.-Winners and nominees:...
.
From 1971 to 1974 Van Dyke starred in an unrelated sitcom called The New Dick Van Dyke Show
The New Dick Van Dyke Show
The New Dick Van Dyke Show is an American sitcom starring Dick Van Dyke that aired on CBS from 1971 to 1974. This was Van Dyke's first return to series television since The Dick Van Dyke Show.-Production:...
in which he starred as a local television talk show host. He received a Golden Globe
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
nomination for his performance but the show was less successful than its predecessor, and Van Dyke pulled the plug on the show after just three seasons. In 1973 Van Dyke voiced his animated likeness for the October 27, 1973 installment of Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
's The New Scooby-Doo Movies
The New Scooby-Doo Movies
The New Scooby-Doo Movies is the second incarnation of the Hanna-Barbera Saturday morning cartoon Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. It premiered on September 9, 1972 and ran for two seasons on CBS as the only hour-long Scooby-Doo series...
, "Scooby-Doo Meets Dick Van Dyke," the series' final first-run episode. The following year, he received an Emmy Award nomination for his role as an alcoholic businessman in the television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
The Morning After (1974). Van Dyke revealed after its release that he had recently overcome a real-life drinking problem
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
. That same year he guest-starred as a murdering photographer on an episode of Columbo. Van Dyke returned to comedy in 1976 with the sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
show Van Dyke and Company, which co-starred Andy Kaufman
Andy Kaufman
Andrew Geoffrey "Andy" Kaufman was an American entertainer, actor and performance artist. While often referred to as a comedian, Kaufman did not consider himself one...
and Super Dave Osborne
Super Dave Osborne
Super Dave Osborne is a character created and played by comedian Bob Einstein. He is a naive but optimistic stuntman who is frequently injured when his stunts go wrong.-Appearance history:...
. Despite being canceled after three months, the show won an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for Outstanding Comedy-Variety Series. When Carol Burnett
Carol Burnett
Carol Creighton Burnett is an American actress, comedian, singer, dancer and writer. Burnett started her career in New York. After becoming a hit on Broadway, she made her television debut...
's main foil, Harvey Korman
Harvey Korman
Harvey Herschel Korman was an American comedic actor who performed in television and movie productions beginning in 1960...
, quit Burnett's long-running variety series in 1977 Van Dyke took his place. This was the first time he had ever played second banana on television and there were few comic sparks between Van Dyke and Burnett. He left after three months. For the next decade he appeared mostly in low-rated TV movies. One exception was an atypical role as a murdering judge on the first episode of the TV series Matlock
Matlock (TV series)
Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of attorney Ben Matlock. The show originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC, where it replaced The A-Team, then from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC.The show's format was similar...
in 1986 starring Andy Griffith
Andy Griffith
Andy Samuel Griffith is an American actor, director, producer, Grammy Award-winning Southern-gospel singer, and writer. He gained prominence in the starring role in director Elia Kazan's epic film A Face in the Crowd before he became better known for his television roles, playing the lead...
. In 1989 he guest-starred on the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
comedy series The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
portraying a lover of Beatrice Arthur
Beatrice Arthur
Beatrice "Bea" Arthur was an American actress, comedienne and singer whose career spanned seven decades. Arthur achieved fame as the character Maude Findlay on the 1970s sitcoms All in the Family and Maude, and as Dorothy Zbornak on the 1980s sitcom The Golden Girls, winning Emmy Awards for both...
's character. This role earned him his first Emmy Award nomination since 1977.
His film work affected his TV career: the reviews he received for his role as D.A. Fletcher in Dick Tracy led him to star first as the character Dr. Mark Sloan in an episode of Jake and the Fatman
Jake and the Fatman
Jake and the Fatman is a television crime drama starring William Conrad as prosecutor J. L. "Fatman" McCabe and Joe Penny as investigator Jake Styles. The series ran on CBS for five seasons from 1987 to 1992. Diagnosis: Murder was a spin-off of this series...
, then in a series of TV movies on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
that became the foundation for his popular television drama Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder
Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...
. The series ran from 1993 to 2001 with son Barry Van Dyke
Barry Van Dyke
Barry Van Dyke is an American actor and the second son of actor and entertainer, Dick Van Dyke, and nephew of Jerry Van Dyke. He has one older brother, Christian, and two younger sisters, Stacy and Carrie Beth...
co-starring. Van Dyke continued to find television work after the show ended, including a dramatically and critically successful performance of The Gin Game
The Gin Game
The Gin Game is a two-person, two-act play by D.L. Coburn that premiered at American Theater Arts in Hollywood in September 1976, directed by Kip Niven. It was Coburn's first play, and the theater's first production.-Plot:...
, produced for television in 2003 that reunited him with Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore is an American actress, primarily known for her roles in television sitcoms. Moore is best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show , in which she starred as Mary Richards, a 30-something single woman who worked as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and for her earlier role as...
. In 2003 he portrayed a doctor on Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
. A 2004 special of The Dick Van Dyke Show titled The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited was heavily promoted as the first new episode of the classic series to be shown in 38 years. Van Dyke and his surviving cast members recreated their roles; the program was roundly panned by critics. In 2006 he guest-starred as college professor Dr. Jonathan Maxwell for a series of Murder 101
Murder 101
Murder 101 is the name of a series of two-hour TV movies appearing regularly on the Hallmark Channel since 2006. In it, Dick Van Dyke stars as professor Dr. Jonathan Maxwell, an absent-minded and brilliant criminologist. His son Barry Van Dyke co-stars as a former cop who is working as a private...
mystery films on the Hallmark Channel
Hallmark Channel
The Hallmark Channel is a cable television network that broadcasts across the United States. Their programming includes a mix of television movies/miniseries, syndicated series, and lifestyle shows that are appropriate for the whole family...
.
Film career
Van Dyke began his film career by playing the role of Albert F. Peterson in the film version of Bye Bye BirdieBye Bye Birdie (film)
Bye Bye Birdie is a 1963 musical comedy film from Columbia Pictures. It is a film adaptation of the stage production of the same name. The screenplay was written by Michael Stewart and Irving Brecher, with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams....
(1963). Despite his unhappiness with the adaptation—its focus differed from the stage version— the film was a success. That same year, Van Dyke was cast in two roles: as the chimney sweep Bert, and as Mr. Dawes Senior, the chairman of the bank in Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
's Mary Poppins
Mary Poppins (film)
Mary Poppins is a 1964 musical film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, produced by Walt Disney, and based on the Mary Poppins books series by P. L. Travers with illustrations by Mary Shepard. The film was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi, with songs by...
(1964). For his scenes as the chairman, he was heavily costumed to look much older, and was credited in that role as "Nackvid Keyd" (at the end of the credits, the letters unscramble
Anagram
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who...
into "Dick Van Dyke"). Van Dyke's attempt at a cockney
Cockney
The term Cockney has both geographical and linguistic associations. Geographically and culturally, it often refers to working class Londoners, particularly those in the East End...
accent has been decried as one of the worst accents in film history, cited as an example by actors since as an example of how not to sound. In a 2003 poll by Empire
Empire (magazine)
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
magazine of the worst-ever accents in film, he came in second. According to Van Dyke, his accent coach was Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
, who "didn't do an accent any better than I did." Still, Mary Poppins was successful upon release and its enduring appeal has made it one of the most famous films of all time. "Chim Chim Cher-ee
Chim Chim Cher-ee
"Chim Chim Cher-ee" is a song from Mary Poppins, the 1964 musical motion picture. It was originally sung by Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews. "Chim Chim Cher-ee" is also featured prominently in the award winning Cameron Mackintosh/Disney stage musical of the same name which premiered in London at...
", one of the songs that Van Dyke performed in Mary Poppins, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
for the Sherman Brothers
Sherman Brothers
The Sherman Brothers are an American songwriting duo that specialize in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman ....
, the film's songwriting duo.
Many of the comedy films Van Dyke starred in throughout the 1960s were relatively unsuccessful at the box office, including What a Way to Go!
What a Way to Go!
What a Way to Go! is a 1964 American comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Shirley MacLaine, Paul Newman, Robert Mitchum, Dean Martin, Gene Kelly, Margaret Dumont, Bob Cummings and Dick Van Dyke.-Plot:...
, Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N.
Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N.
Lt. Robin Crusoe USN is a 1966 comedy film released and scripted by Walt Disney. The film stars Dick Van Dyke as a U.S. Navy pilot who becomes a castaway on a tropical island. It was shot in San Diego....
, Fitzwilly
Fitzwilly
Fitzwilly is a 1967 film by Delbert Mann, based on Poyntz Tyler's novel, A Garden of Cucumbers, adapted for the screen by Isobel Lennart...
, The Art of Love, Some Kind of a Nut
Some Kind of a Nut
Some Kind of a Nut is a 1969 comedy film starring Dick Van Dyke, Angie Dickinson and Zohra Lampert....
, Never a Dull Moment, and Divorce American Style
Divorce American Style
Divorce American Style is a 1967 American satirical comedy film directed by Bud Yorkin.Norman Lear produced the film and wrote the script based on a story by Robert Kaufman...
. But he also starred (with his native accent, despite the English setting) in the successful musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (film)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a 1968 musical film with a script by Roald Dahl and Ken Hughes, and songs by the Sherman Brothers, loosely based on Ian Fleming's novel Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car. It starred Dick Van Dyke as Caractacus Potts and Sally Ann Howes as Truly Scrumptious. The...
(1968), which co-starred Sally Ann Howes
Sally Ann Howes
Sally Ann Howes is a British actress and singer, who currently holds dual British-American citizenship. Her career on stage, screen and television has spanned over six decades...
and featured songs by the Sherman Brothers, and choreography by Marc Breaux
Marc Breaux
Marc Breaux is an American choreographer and occasional film director best known for his work on musical films of the 1960s and 1970s. Most of his well known work was in collaboration with Dee Dee Wood to whom he was married for many years...
and Dee Dee Wood. The Sherman Brothers, Breaux, and Wood were also songsmiths and choreographers for Mary Poppins.
In 1969, Van Dyke appeared in the comedy-drama The Comic
The Comic
The Comic is a 1969 drama/black comedy film co-written, co-produced and directed by Carl Reiner. It stars former Disney regulars Dick Van Dyke as Billy Bright and Michele Lee as Bright's love interest...
, written and directed by Carl Reiner
Carl Reiner
Carl Reiner is an American actor, film director, producer, writer and comedian. He has won nine Emmy Awards and one Grammy Award during this career...
. Van Dyke portrayed a self-destructive silent-film era comedian who struggles with alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
, depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
, and his own rampant ego. Reiner wrote the film especially for Van Dyke, who often spoke of his admiration for silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
era comedians such as Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
and his hero Stan Laurel
Stan Laurel
Arthur Stanley "Stan" Jefferson , better known as Stan Laurel, was an English comic actor, writer and film director, famous as the first half of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy. His film acting career stretched between 1917 and 1951 and included a starring role in the Academy Award winning film...
. Twenty one years later in 1990, Van Dyke, whose usual role had been the amiable hero, took a small but villainous turn as the crooked D.A. Fletcher in Warren Beatty
Warren Beatty
Warren Beatty born March 30, 1937) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter and director. He has received a total of fourteen Academy Award nominations, winning one for Best Director in 1982. He has also won four Golden Globe Awards including the Cecil B. DeMille Award.-Early life and...
's film Dick Tracy. Van Dyke returned to motion pictures in 2006 with Curious George
Curious George (film)
Curious George is a 2006 traditionally animated film adaptation of the children's stories by H.A. and Margret Rey. Will Ferrell voices Ted. Matthew O'Callaghan directed...
as Mr. Bloomsberry and as villain Cecil Fredericks in the Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
film Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum is a 2006 fantasy adventure-comedy film based on the 1993 children's book The Night at the Museum by Milan Trenc. It follows a divorced father trying to settle down, impress his son, and find his destiny...
. He reprised the role in a cameo for the sequel, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is an American adventure comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, and starring Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, and Steve Coogan. The film is a sequel to Night at the Museum...
but it was cut from the film. It can be found in the special features on the DVD release.
Other projects
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for his performance on the soundtrack to Mary Poppins.
In 1970 he published Faith, Hope and Hilarity: A Child's Eye View of Religion a book of humorous anecdotes based largely on his experiences as a Sunday School
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
teacher. Van Dyke was principal in "KXIV Inc." and owned 1400 AM KXIV in Phoenix (later KSUN) from 1965 to 1985. KXIV was at one time an applicant for an FM station in the same area.
As an a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
enthusiast, Van Dyke has sung in a group called "The Vantastix" since September 2000. The quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
has performed several times in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
as well as on Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
, The First Annual TV Land Awards, and sung the national anthem
National anthem
A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a nation's government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people.- History :Anthems rose to prominence...
at three Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
games including a nationally televised NBA Finals
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....
performance on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. Van Dyke was made an honorary member of the Barbershop Harmony Society
Barbershop Harmony Society
The Barbershop Harmony Society, legally and historically named the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. , is the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbershop music as an art form. Founded by Owen C...
in 1999.
Van Dyke became a computer animation
Computer animation
Computer animation is the process used for generating animated images by using computer graphics. The more general term computer generated imagery encompasses both static scenes and dynamic images, while computer animation only refers to moving images....
enthusiast after purchasing a Commodore Amiga in 1991. He is credited with the creation of 3D-rendered effects used on Diagnosis: Murder and The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited. Van Dyke has displayed his computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
work at SIGGRAPH
SIGGRAPH
SIGGRAPH is the name of the annual conference on computer graphics convened by the ACM SIGGRAPH organization. The first SIGGRAPH conference was in 1974. The conference is attended by tens of thousands of computer professionals...
, and continues to work with LightWave 3D.
In 2010, Van Dyke appeared on a children's album titled Rhythm Train, with Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
drummer Chad Smith
Chad Smith
Chad Smith is an American musician, best known as the longtime and current drummer of Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith is also the drummer of the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot which includes Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Michael Anthony, former Deep Purple vocalist Glenn Hughes' backing band and...
and singer Leslie Bixler. Van Dyke raps on one of the album's tracks.
Books
}} (Van Dyke's memoir) |last=Van Dyke |first=Dick ||title=Altar Egos |=Westwood, New JerseyWestwood, New Jersey
Westwood is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 10,908....
|publisher=F. H. Revell Co. |year=1967}} |last=Van Dyke |first=Dick |title=Faith, hope and hilarity |editor=Ray Parker |others=Phil Interlandi (drawings) |location=Garden City, New York
Garden City, New York
Garden City is a village in the town of Hempstead in central Nassau County, New York, in the United States. It was founded by multi-millionaire Alexander Turney Stewart in 1869, and is located on Long Island, to the east of New York City, from mid-town Manhattan, and just south of the town of...
|publisher=Doubleday |year=1970}}
Albums
- Bye Bye Birdie (Original Cast Album) (1960)
- Bye Bye Birdie (Soundtrack) (1963)
- Songs I Like By Dick Van Dyke (with Enoch LightEnoch LightEnoch Henry Light was a classical violinist, bandleader, and recording engineer. As A&R chief and vice-president of Grand Award Records, he founded Command Records in 1959. Light's name was prominent on many albums both as musician and producer...
& his Orchestra/Ray Charles Singers) (1963) - Put on a Happy Face (with Dick Van Dyke and The VantastixDick Van Dyke and The VantastixDick Van Dyke and The Vantastix is an a cappella quartet based in Los Angeles, CA. Formed in 2000, after a chance meeting at a coffee shop, the group has performed at a number of benefit and charity events, and has recently released a children's album, 'Put On A Happy Face' produced by BAMP...
) (2008) - Rhythm Train (with Leslie Bixler and Chad SmithChad SmithChad Smith is an American musician, best known as the longtime and current drummer of Red Hot Chili Peppers. Smith is also the drummer of the hard rock supergroup Chickenfoot which includes Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, and Michael Anthony, former Deep Purple vocalist Glenn Hughes' backing band and...
) (2010)
Stage
- The Girls Against the Boys (November 2, 1959 – November 14, 1959)
- Bye Bye Birdie (April 14, 1960 – October 7, 1961) (left the show when it moved to the Shubert TheatreShubert TheatreShubert Theatre or Shubert Theater may refer to:Theatres*Shubert Theatre , New York City, built in 1913.*Shubert Theatre , Connecticut, built in 1914.*Shubert Theatre , California, demolished in 2002....
) - The Music ManThe Music ManThe Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
(June 5, 1980 – June 22, 1980) (Revival) - Chita Rivera: The Dancer's LifeChita Rivera: The Dancer's LifeChita Rivera: The Dancer's Life is a musical revue based on the life of Chita Rivera, with a book by Terrence McNally and new songs by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens as well as songs from various other composers...
(guest star from January 24, 2006 – January 26, 2006)
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 1963 in film The year 1963 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* June 12 - Cleopatra starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rex Harrison and Richard Burton premieres at the Rivoli Theatre in New York City.... |
Bye Bye Birdie Bye Bye Birdie (film) Bye Bye Birdie is a 1963 musical comedy film from Columbia Pictures. It is a film adaptation of the stage production of the same name. The screenplay was written by Michael Stewart and Irving Brecher, with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams.... |
Albert F. Peterson | |
| 1964 1964 in film The year 1964 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 29 - The film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is released.... |
What a Way to Go! What a Way to Go! What a Way to Go! is a 1964 American comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Shirley MacLaine, Paul Newman, Robert Mitchum, Dean Martin, Gene Kelly, Margaret Dumont, Bob Cummings and Dick Van Dyke.-Plot:... |
Edgar Hopper | |
| Mary Poppins Mary Poppins (film) Mary Poppins is a 1964 musical film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, produced by Walt Disney, and based on the Mary Poppins books series by P. L. Travers with illustrations by Mary Shepard. The film was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi, with songs by... |
Bert/Mr. Dawes, Senior | Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951... |
|
| 1965 1965 in film The year 1965 in film involved some significant events, with The Sound of Music topping the U.S. box office.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:... |
The Art of Love | Paul Sloane/Toulouse aka Picasso | |
| 1966 1966 in film The year 1966 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Animation legend Walter Disney, well known for his creation of Mickey Mouse, died in 15 December 1966 of acute circulatory collapse following a diagnosis of, and surgery for, lung cancer... |
Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N. Lt. Robin Crusoe, U.S.N. Lt. Robin Crusoe USN is a 1966 comedy film released and scripted by Walt Disney. The film stars Dick Van Dyke as a U.S. Navy pilot who becomes a castaway on a tropical island. It was shot in San Diego.... |
Lt. Robin Crusoe | |
| 1967 1967 in film The year 1967 in film involved some significant events. It is widely considered as one of the most ground-breaking years in film.-Events:* December 26 - The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour airs on British television.... |
Divorce American Style Divorce American Style Divorce American Style is a 1967 American satirical comedy film directed by Bud Yorkin.Norman Lear produced the film and wrote the script based on a story by Robert Kaufman... |
Richard Harmon | |
| Fitzwilly Fitzwilly Fitzwilly is a 1967 film by Delbert Mann, based on Poyntz Tyler's novel, A Garden of Cucumbers, adapted for the screen by Isobel Lennart... |
Claude R. Fitzwilliam | ||
| 1968 1968 in film The year 1968 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 30 - The film The Lion in Winter, starring Katharine Hepburn, debuts.* November 1 - The MPAA's film rating system is introduced.-Top grossing films :- Awards :... |
Never a Dull Moment | Jack Albany | |
| Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (film) Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a 1968 musical film with a script by Roald Dahl and Ken Hughes, and songs by the Sherman Brothers, loosely based on Ian Fleming's novel Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car. It starred Dick Van Dyke as Caractacus Potts and Sally Ann Howes as Truly Scrumptious. The... |
Caractacus Potts Caractacus Potts Caractacus Potts is one of the main characters in the family film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. He is an eccentric inventor who lives with his twin eight-year-old children, Jeremy & Jemima, and Grandpa Potts, on the Potts' hilltop farm... |
||
| 1969 1969 in film The year 1969 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* Last year for prize giving at the Venice Film Festival until it is revived in 1980... |
Some Kind of a Nut Some Kind of a Nut Some Kind of a Nut is a 1969 comedy film starring Dick Van Dyke, Angie Dickinson and Zohra Lampert.... |
Fred Amidon | |
| The Comic The Comic The Comic is a 1969 drama/black comedy film co-written, co-produced and directed by Carl Reiner. It stars former Disney regulars Dick Van Dyke as Billy Bright and Michele Lee as Bright's love interest... |
Billy Bright | ||
| 1971 1971 in film The year 1971 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*February 8 - Bob Dylan's hour long documentary film, Eat the Document, premieres at New York's Academy of Music... |
Cold Turkey Cold Turkey (film) Cold Turkey is a 1971 satirical comedy film. It stars Dick Van Dyke plus a long list of comedic actors, several of whom are well known to North American television audiences... |
Rev. Clayton Brooks | |
| 1976 1976 in film The year 1976 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*March 22 - Filming begins on George Lucas' Star Wars science fiction film... |
Tubby the Tuba Tubby the Tuba (1975 film) Tubby the Tuba is a 1975 animated feature film, based on the 1945 children's story for concert orchestra and narrator of the same name by Paul Tripp and George Kleinsinger... |
Tubby the Tuba | (voice) |
| 1979 1979 in film The year 1979 in film involved some significant events.- Major events :* March 5 - Production begins on Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.* May 25 - Alien, a landmark of the science fiction genre, is released.... |
The Runner Stumbles The Runner Stumbles The Runner Stumbles is a 1979 film directed and produced by Stanley Kramer, based on the Broadway play by Milan Stitt. The film stars Dick Van Dyke, Kathleen Quinlan, Maureen Stapleton, Tammy Grimes, Beau Bridges and Ray Bolger.-Plot:... |
Father Brian Rivard | |
| 1990 1990 in film The year 1990 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* CGI technique is expanded with motion capture for CGI characters, used in Total Recall .* The first digitally-manipulated matte painting is used, in Die Hard 2.... |
Dick Tracy | D.A. Fletcher | |
| 2001 2001 in film The year 2001 in film involved some significant events, including the first of the Harry Potter series and also the first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy... |
Walt - The Man Behind the Myth | narrator/interviewee | (voice) |
| 2005 2005 in film - Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2005... |
Batman: New Times Batman: New Times Batman: New Times is an animated CGI film. The CGI models used for the film are based on Art Asylum's Minimates toyline.-Cast:* Adam West as Bruce Wayne/Batman* Joshua Adams as Robin/Dick Grayson* Alan Shearman as Alfred Pennyworth... |
Commissioner Gordon | (voice) |
| 2006 2006 in film - Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006... |
Curious George Curious George (film) Curious George is a 2006 traditionally animated film adaptation of the children's stories by H.A. and Margret Rey. Will Ferrell voices Ted. Matthew O'Callaghan directed... |
Mr. Bloomsberry | (voice) |
| Night at the Museum Night at the Museum Night at the Museum is a 2006 fantasy adventure-comedy film based on the 1993 children's book The Night at the Museum by Milan Trenc. It follows a divorced father trying to settle down, impress his son, and find his destiny... |
Cecil Fredricks | ||
| 2009 2009 in film The year 2009 saw the release of many films. Seven made the top 50 list of highest-grossing films, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that as of this year, their Best Picture category would consist of ten nominees, rather than five .- Highest-grossing films :Please note... |
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is an American adventure comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, and starring Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, and Steve Coogan. The film is a sequel to Night at the Museum... |
Scenes deleted* |
Bill Cobbs
Wilbert "Bill" Cobbs is an American film and television actor. He has starred in over 120 television programs and movies.-Life and career:...
and Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
.
Television
To Tell the Truth
To Tell the Truth is an American television panel game show created by Bob Stewart and produced by Goodson-Todman Productions that has aired in various forms since 1956 both on networks and in syndication...
(1956–1957)
The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom that initially aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from October 3, 1961, until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. It was produced by Reiner with Bill Persky and Sam Denoff....
(1961–1966)
The New Dick Van Dyke Show
The New Dick Van Dyke Show is an American sitcom starring Dick Van Dyke that aired on CBS from 1971 to 1974. This was Van Dyke's first return to series television since The Dick Van Dyke Show.-Production:...
(1971–1974)
The New Scooby-Doo Movies
The New Scooby-Doo Movies is the second incarnation of the Hanna-Barbera Saturday morning cartoon Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. It premiered on September 9, 1972 and ran for two seasons on CBS as the only hour-long Scooby-Doo series...
(1973)
The Carol Burnett Show
The Carol Burnett Show is a variety / sketch comedy television show starring Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Waggoner, and Tim Conway. It originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 278 episodes and originated from CBS Television City's Studio 33...
(cast member in 1977)
- Strong Medicine (1986)
- Ghost of a Chance (1987)
- The Van Dyke ShowThe Van Dyke ShowThe Van Dyke Show is a short-lived 1988 U.S. situation comedy, starring Dick Van Dyke. It was cancelled after one season due to low ratings, possibly due to competition from the Top 20 hits Growing Pains on ABC and the first half of Unsolved Mysteries on NBC.The series marked the first time...
(1988) - The Golden GirlsThe Golden GirlsThe Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
(1989) - MatlockMatlock (TV series)Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of attorney Ben Matlock. The show originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC, where it replaced The A-Team, then from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC.The show's format was similar...
(1990) - Daughters of Privilege (1991)
- The House on Sycamore Street (1992)
- "The Town That Santa Forgot" (1993) (voice)
- A Twist of the Knife (1993)
- BeckerBecker (TV series)Becker is an American television sitcom that ran from 1998 to 2004 on CBS. Set in the New York City borough of The Bronx, the show starred Ted Danson as John Becker, a misanthropic doctor who operates a small practice and is constantly annoyed by his patients, co-workers, friends, and practically...
(1999) (Becker's father) - Diagnosis: MurderDiagnosis: MurderDiagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...
(1993–2001) - Paul O'Grady Does America (2003)
- A Town Without Pity (2002)
- Diagnosis: Murder - Without Warning (2002)
- Sabrina the Teenage WitchSabrina, the Teenage Witch (TV series)Sabrina, the Teenage Witch is an American sitcom based on the Archie comic book series of the same name.The show stars Melissa Joan Hart as Sabrina Spellman, a teenager with magical powers, who lives with her aunts Hilda and Zelda , and their magical talking cat Salem...
as Duke (2000) - The Gin Game (2003)
- The Alan Brady Show (2003) (voice)
- The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited (2004)
- ScrubsScrubs (TV series)Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
(2004) - Murder 101Murder 101Murder 101 is the name of a series of two-hour TV movies appearing regularly on the Hallmark Channel since 2006. In it, Dick Van Dyke stars as professor Dr. Jonathan Maxwell, an absent-minded and brilliant criminologist. His son Barry Van Dyke co-stars as a former cop who is working as a private...
(2006–2008) - The Bonnie Hunt Show (2010)
- The Late Late Show with Craig FergusonThe Late Late Show with Craig FergusonThe Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson is a Peabody Award-winning American late-night talk show hosted by Scottish American comedian Craig Ferguson. Ferguson, the third regular host of the Late Late Show franchise, follows Late Show with David Letterman in the CBS late-night lineup...
(2010) - The Rachel Ray Show (2011)
- The Late Late Show with Craig FergusonThe Late Late Show with Craig FergusonThe Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson is a Peabody Award-winning American late-night talk show hosted by Scottish American comedian Craig Ferguson. Ferguson, the third regular host of the Late Late Show franchise, follows Late Show with David Letterman in the CBS late-night lineup...
(2011)
External links
- Dick Van Dyke in Danville, Ill and Crawfordsville, Ind. — PDF Article
- At the Museum of Broadcast Communications
- "Remembering the Van Dyke Show"
- Dick Van Dyke -Disney Legends profile (requires FlashAdobe FlashAdobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
) - Dick Van Dyke talks about his career for the Archive of American Television Arts and Sciences (requires Flash)
- EmpireEmpire (magazine)Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
- The Worst British Accents Ever - Number 11 - Dick Van Dyke singing in Mary Poppins (1964) (requires FlashAdobe FlashAdobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
)