Dick Van Dyke, 99, shares the secret to his age gap romance with wife Arlene, 54

Dick Van Dyke got candid about his 46-year age gap with his wife, Arlene Silver, whom he met in 2006 backstage at the SAG Awards when she was working as a makeup artist. The 99-year-old, who will celebrate his 100th birthday on December 13, shared with People that their age gap had never been an issue in their relationship.

“We thought it might be [a problem] in some regard, to some extent, but it hasn’t really,” he told the publication. “I’m infantile to start with. I think I’m about 13, so that’s been a problem, and she’s quite mature for her age, so I don’t think we [have] had any problem with age at all.”

The legendary entertainer added that his 54-year-old wife is full of life and helps to keep him young. “I can’t even list everything she does. She’s constantly busy. She has a big following online with her own show. She sings, she dances,” he said.  

“When I learned all that, and then I found out she likes Halloween, that did it. She had to be a part of the family, and now we’re pretty famous for our Halloweens.”

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“She’s responsible for keeping me in the moment,” Dick continued. “She’s kept me happy every day of my life, every day. She’s a joy. She can get me singing or dancing, and she carries so much responsibility…I’m just lucky.”

The Mary Poppins star admitted that he was instantly drawn to her when they crossed paths at the SAG Awards. “One thing I had never done was ever approach a strange woman in my life,” he said.

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“She walked by, and without thinking, I jumped up and said, ‘Hi, I’m Dick.’ [I] asked her to sit down and found out she was a makeup lady and I hired her on the spot.”

Arlene recalled their fateful meeting in an interview with the Huffington Post in 2013. “I remember seeing Dick at the catering table with his bow tie and his big smile. Right when I sat down, he was sitting next to me. He said, ‘Hi, I’m Dick.’ The first thing I asked him was, ‘Weren’t you in Mary Poppins?’ I wasn’t sure.”

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“I knew who he was, but I wasn’t sure why I knew who he was. I was not familiar with all his work. He has so much work, I can’t believe I missed it.”

The two became fast friends, yet didn’t strike up a romance until his longtime love, Michelle Triola Marvi, died from lung cancer in 2009. After her passing, Arlene brought comfort food to Dick and provided emotional support while he was grieving, cementing their strong bond.

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The couple married in a small ceremony in 2012. “Everybody said it wouldn’t work,” Dick told People, as Arlene chimed in: “Yeah. I mean, it’s eerie how well it works. People the same age don’t last…We just care about each other so much.” 

He was previously partnered with Michelle for more than 30 years before her death, and before that, was married to Margie Willett from 1948 to 1984. They welcomed four children together: Christian, Barry, Stacey and Carrie Beth.