Dick Van Dyke wants to be remembered for two “iconic” projects as he celebrates his monumental 100th birthday on Saturday, Dec. 13.
“I think the two things he always talks about, the two blessings that came to him, were ‘The Dick Van Dyke Show’ and ‘Mary Poppins,'” Steve Boettcher, director of the upcoming documentary “Dick Van Dyke: 100th Celebration,” exclusively told The Post.
“Those two are really the iconic things that he wants to be remembered for,” the filmmaker added.
“The Dick Van Dyke Show” premiered in 1961 and centered on Rob Petrie (Van Dyke), a comedy writer on the fictional “Alan Brady Show.”
The Carl Reiner-created sitcom revolved around Petrie’s life at home in New Rochelle, NY, with wife Laura (Mary Tyler Moore) and young son Ritchie (Larry Mathews), as well as his time at work with fellow writers Buddy Sorrell (Morey Amsterdam), Sally Rogers (Rose Marie) and their producer Mel Cooley (Richard Deacon).
“It was just serendipity,” Van Dyke said in 2015, nearly 50 years after “The Dick Van Dyke Show” ended in 1966.
“I’d still be doing the show if they let me,” the Hollywood legend, who won three Emmys for his role as Petrie, added. “It was the most fun I’ve ever had.”
“Mary Poppins,” meanwhile, was released in 1964 and starred Van Dyke as the hilarious chimney sweep Bert alongside Julie Andrews’ titular character and Karen Dotrice as young Jane Banks.
Although “The Dick Van Dyke Show” made him a household name, “Mary Poppins” was what solidified Van Dyke as an acting and comedy staple around the world.
“I knew way before we started that we had a wonderful movie,” the “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” star told People about the hit Disney classic last month. “There was something…everybody was kind of affected by it.”