Dick Van Dyke reflects on his ‘meant to be’ romance with wife Arlene

Beloved entertainer Dick Van Dyke has fondly reflected on his relationship with his wife of 12 years, Arlene Silver, sharing how their romance blossomed after a chance encounter.

Van Dyke, 98, first met Silver, 52, who was working as a makeup artist, at the 2007 SAG Awards where he presented his Mary Poppins co-star, Julie Andrews, with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Van Dyke shared heartwarming details about their first meeting, offering an intimate glimpse into the start of their love story.

“I never approached a strange woman in my life,” Van Dyke recalled.

“And she walked by and I jumped and I said, ‘Hi, I’m Dick.’ I had no idea she was half my age. Beautiful.”

After learning that Silver was a makeup artist, Van Dyke immediately hired her and a friendship soon began.

“We were friends for so long that when I told people that I know, they were happy about [our relationship], and I was scared,” Silver said.

“I mean, the facts, our age difference. But it’s so irrelevant. I think when you see us together, it’s like you don’t think about it.

“I’ve never met anyone like him. He’s always happy and just positive. Always singing, and I would never sing in public.

“He got me to sing. He got me to sing up on a stage and sang in front of 1,500 people for the first time. He’s just the most joyful person. He influences everybody else to be more joyful, playful.”

The couple eventually tied the knot in 2012, Van Dyke telling Entertainment Tonight that he and Silver “were meant to be”.

Van Dyke has previously credited Arlene for the secret to his “energy and joy” well into old age.

“Genes, I guess, for one thing. Having a beautiful young wife half my age to take care of me — that works!” he told Yahoo.

While Van Dyke has nothing but nice things to say about his loving wife, the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang star recently revealed to Closer Weekly that he was concerned about what fans would think of his marriage to a younger woman, saying he initially felt anxious that people might perceive Silver as a “gold digger”.

“I thought there would be an outcry about a gold digger marrying an old man, but no one ever took that attitude,” he admitted.