Dick Van Dyke, 97, got into a minor car accident in Malibu, California on Wednesday, March 15, TMZ reported a week later. The outlet claimed that cops found the famous comedian behind the wheel of his car, a silver 2018 Lexus LS 500, after he crashed into a gate due to the rainy conditions on the roads. Dick allegedly told cops that he “lost control” of his vehicle and slammed right into the gate, after which cops and paramedics arrived to check on him. Dick “was bleeding from the nose and mouth and might have suffered a concussion,” TMZ reported, but the legendary actor apparently refused to go to the hospital.
At the time of the accident, Dick was not on drugs or intoxicated from alcohol, TMZ confirmed in their report. But cops have allegedly requested that Dick retake his driving test because of his age. Dick has yet to speak out about his car accident on social media or in a public statement. The Mary Poppins star has an Instagram with over 100K followers.
Dick’s accident happened about a month after the Hollywood icon returned to the spotlight as a contestant on The Masked Singer. Dick was revealed to be the Gnome on the Feb. 15 premiere episode and got a standing ovation and cheers from the audience and the judges. Judge Nicole Scherzinger even cried about the reveal and told Dick that “the whole world loves you so much.”
After his elimination from The Masked Singer, Dick did an interview with Yahoo where he revealed what keeps him “youthful” at 97 years old. Dick gave all the credit to his wife Arlene Silver, 51, who he’s been married to since 2012. “Having a beautiful young wife half my age to take care of me — that works!” he said. “My positive attitude, I get that from my wife.”
Dick also revealed that he still exercises to stay in shape. “I wrote a book called Keep Moving. I still go to the gym three days a week and work out,” he shared. “And I advise everybody to do that, because that’s what ages people — it’s just a stiffening up and not exercising their muscles and their lungs. Exercise is the answer.”