Mary Poppins star, Dick Van Dyke is opening up about his fear that his much younger wife would be perceived as a gold digger.
The 96-year-old actor and his partner, Arlene Silver, 50, candidly spoke with Closer about their relationship and how they “got along immediately” after meeting each other, seemingly closing their significant age difference.
RELATED STORIES
“The one” doesn’t always end up being someone your own age, and that’s okay! But the wider the age gap, the more likely it will raise suspicion about potential ulterior motives.
However, there are countless couples with years between them that have gone the distance, proving that you can find love at any age!
Take Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones, for example.
Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, 52, and her husband Michael Douglas, 77, coincidentally share the same birthday, just 25 years apart from each other. The pair got married back in 2000 but split briefly in 2013. Fortunately, they are now happily back together and share two children together.
Or David Foster and Katharine McPhee.
37-year-old singer Katharine McPhee, and her hubby, David Foster, 72, are 34 years apart. While they have faced their fair share of criticism for their age difference, the pair are still going strong and welcomed their first child, Rennie, in 2021.
Or Richard Gere and Alejandra Silva.
Pretty Woman star Richard Gere, 72, and his wife, Alejandra Silva, 38, tied the knot in 2018 and have been living happily ever after since. Proving that in spite of their 34-year age difference, and having got together much later in Gere’s life, the pair were a match.
“Mary Poppins” actor Dick Van Dyke, 96, and his much younger wife, Arlene Silver, 50, recently opened up about their relationship.
Van Dyke admitted that he was surprised there wasn’t more backlash and accusations of his wife being only marrying him for his money, a fortune reportedly worth $50-million.
The couple met back in 2007 at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. At the time, Van Dyke was 81 while Silver was just 35.
“I thought there would be an outcry about a gold digger marrying an old man, but no one ever took that attitude,” he said.
Silver then chimed in, recalling the first time she met her husband, while she was working as a makeup artist at the award show.
“He said, ‘Hi, I’m Dick.’ The first thing I asked him was, ‘Weren’t you in Mary Poppins ?’” she detailed.
The pair were fast friends.
“We got along immediately as friends,” Silver explained, adding that it made her forget about their massive age difference. “So it didn’t feel like he was so much older than me.”
Van Dyke explained that he and his wife get along perfectly. “We share an attitude,” he said.
“She can go with the flow. She loves to sing and dance, which we do almost every day. She’s just delightful,” he gushed.
Silver returned the compliment, calling her husband “perfect.”
“He is the most perfect human being. I’ve never met anyone so happy, so genuine, so amazing. He’s just like a happy pill,” she said.
