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In Keep Moving, Dick Van Dyke offers his own playful anecdotes and advice, as well as insights from his brother, actor Jerry Van Dyke; his friend and creator of The Dick Van Dyke Show, Carl Reiner; and other spirited friends and family. Whether he's describing the pleasure he takes in his habitual visits to the grocery store; how he met his late-in-life-love Arlene; or how he sprung back, livelier than ever, from a near-death experience, Dick's optimistic outlook is an invigorating tonic for anyone who needs a reminder that life should be lived with enthusiasm despite what the calendar says.
"You don't have to act your age. You don't even have to feel it. And if it does attempt to elbow its way into your life, you do not have to pay attention. If I am out shopping and hear music playing in a store, I start to dance. If I want to sing, I sing. I read books and get excited about new ideas. I enjoy myself. I don't think about the way I am supposed to act at my age - or at any age. As far as I know, there is no manual for old age. There is no test you have to pass. There is no way you have to behave. There is no such thing as 'age appropriate.'
When people ask my secret to staying youthful at an age when getting up and down from your chair on your own is considered an accomplishment, you know what I tell them? 'Keep moving.'"
- Dick Van Dyke
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
October 13, 2015 -
Formats
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781602862975
- File size: 6296 KB
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781602862975
- File size: 6296 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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September 1, 2015
In this follow-up to his memoir, My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business (2011), song-and-dance man Van Dyke relishes his approaching 90th birthday and shares some tips for readers on reaching and enjoying that venerable age. Best known for Bye Bye Birdie, Mary Poppins, and the Dick Van Dyke Show, the still-energetic actor, aided here by Gold (co-author, with Billy Ray Cyrus: Hillbilly Heart, 2013, etc.), presents not so much a memoir as a collection of sprightly, scattered essays, a few poems, some correspondence with a TV reviewer, one raunchy limerick, and a fair number of platitudinous to-do and not-to-do lists. One chapter, featuring his report card rating of significant events since his birth in 1925, results in some odd juxtapositions: Van Dyke seeing Al Jolson in a "talkie" in 1930 (The Jazz Singer) is followed by the election of Franklin Roosevelt in 1932 ("The country...needed a leader, someone to believe in, and FDR was the man"). Both years receive an A. Van Dyke's boyhood, marriages, career, bout with alcoholism, health problems: all touched upon but not explored, for this is determinedly upbeat stuff. If the secrets to a long life are good genes and a good attitude, the author appears to have been blessed with both, plus the important factor of good luck. Some celebrity name-dropping is inevitable in a showbiz memoir, but here it is fairly low-key. A late chapter featuring a conversation with longtime friend Carl Reiner would have been a fitting way to wrap up this offering on aging well, but unfortunately, Van Dyke cannot resist concluding this account by tacking on more forgettable platitudes. Those with fond memories of the author's wholesome movies and TV shows may take pleasure in this dose of good cheer; others not so much.COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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