Dick Van Dyke, 99, makes heartbreaking confession about life as he gets ready to turn 100 years old
‘Diminished’
“It’s frustrating to feel diminished in the world, physically and socially.” Wrote the soon-to-be centenarian, per the Independent.
While the stage and screen defined his daily rhythm for more than 60 years, the star of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is now more likely to be found enjoying the calm of his California home, away from red carpets and studio lights.
“Almost all of my visiting with folks has to happen at my house,” he said, admitting that his energy isn’t what it used to be. “Travel takes so much out of me that I have to say no.”
‘Current events could turn anyone sour’
He continued, “On top of that, recent and unfolding current events could turn anyone sour and dark, young or old. I just lived through two Southern California wildfires in less than a month, right out my front door, including the worst one in history.”
Van Dyke, who previously expressed criticism of President Donald Trump, said that climate disasters combined with political turmoil have left him disheartened: “Daily, I spiral into anguish over the mayhem and cruelty being inflicted on the entire world by those in power. So yes, I suppose at certain times of day I am the grumpy old man who yells at the TV.”
Loneliness
In addition to watching the world spin into uncertainty, Van Dyke shared that one of the most difficult parts of reaching his age is that he outlived nearly everyone he’s loved – including his first wife, Margie Willett, the mother of his four children, who passed in 2008 after their 1984 divorce, and his longtime partner Michelle Triola, whom he was with from 1976 until her death in 2009.
