Dick Van Dyke has had a long and storied career.
Even at 97-years-old the Hollywood icon is active.
And the legendary actor was just involved in a serious accident. But it’s what he did next that will blow your mind.
Still active, still driving
Legendary entertainer Dick Van Dyke was involved in a one-car crash recently, and suffered bleeding in the nose and mouth, as well as a possible concussion.
The accident took place the morning of March 15, outside his Malibu home, according to the celebrity news site TMZ.
Police were called to the scene and found Van Dyke behind the wheel of a 2018 Lexus he had crashed into a gate.
According to TMZ‘s report, Van Dyke told police his car slid in the rain, and then he lost control of it right before it hit the gate.
Dick Van Dyke was behind the wheel of a single-car crash in Malibu. https://t.co/EYjFcnwBnx
— TMZ (@TMZ) March 22, 2023
But what was most shocking was not that the 97-year-old was driving, but what he did next.
Refusing medical care
After being treated at the scene, Van Dyke refused to go to a hospital for further treatment or to be checked for further injuries.
The feisty actor was instead given a ride home from the accident.
Police said neither drugs nor alcohol were suspected in the crash, but police are said to be requesting the California Department of Motor Vehicles to determine whether Van Dyke should continue driving.
California has a process it calls “potentially unsafe drivers” that allows the state to have their licenses revoked if impairments that come with old age are determined to be too severe.
There has yet to be any word on a decision about Van Dyke’s license.
Not his first auto accident
This is not Van Dyke’s first accident since reaching his golden years.
In fact, the crash was almost 10 years after a serious crash in which Van Dyke’s car caught fire while he was driving on a California freeway.
In that August 2013 crash, Van Dyke had to be pulled from the burning car by a passing motorist.
That the actor was driving was no surprise to Hollywood insiders and those who know him, as he has remained active and a fixture in Tinsel Town.
In fact, Van Dyke recently appeared on the 2023 season premiere of The Masked Singer.
“I had never even seen the show when they asked me,” Van Dyke told People Magazine. “So I checked it out and it looked like a lot of fun. I was positive they wouldn’t be able to guess who I was. And I was right!”
On the show, Van Dyke performed the Frank Sinatra classic song “When You’re Smiling.”
He said the song was chosen for him by his wife, Arlene Silver.
“They wanted me to do something current and I know nothing from rock,” Van Dyke told People. So we picked out one which typifies me. She’s the one that came up with it and I liked the song, too.”
According to CNN, that appearance earned Van Dyke the title of oldest contestant to ever appear on the show.
A storied career
Van Dyke’s career has spanned some seven decades in film, television, and stage.
He has won numerous awards including a Golden Globe Award, a Tony, a Grammy, a Daytime Emmy, and four Primetime Emmys.
The iconic actor and performer was also inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1995, and the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2012.
He received the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2013.
Dick Van Dyke began his long and storied career as an entertainer on radio and television, and on Broadway.
Carl Reiner cast him as Rob Petrie on the wildly popular TV sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show from 1961 to 1966, making him a household name.
He went on to star in the movie musicals Bye Bye Birdie, Mary Poppins, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Throughout his career, Van Dyke has made numerous guest appearances on television programs and starred in Diagnosis: Murder from 1993–2001.
Van Dyke has also made numerous appearances in movies as late as 2018.
Dick Van Dyke is one of the last remaining Hollywood icons from yesteryear, here’s hoping he recovers fully.
US Political Daily will keep you updated on any developments to this ongoing story.
