DICK VAN DYKE

FROM THE TORONTO DAILY STAR

Dick Van Dyke, for years a favorite T.V. Clown, says he has accepted the fact that he is an alcoholic and seeking help, according to syndicated columnist Marilyn Beck.

In a copywrited column distributed recently by the New York Times News Service, Van Dyke told Miss Beck, "I did a lot of worrying. I even phoned Alcoholics Anonymous a couple of times late at night when I was drunk, depressed and on a crying jag. But it wasn't until 15 months ago that I finally accepted the fact I was an alcoholic."

The comedian, who for years carried the image of the ideal family man and pillar of the community, said he regrets not absorbing the truth about alcoholism years ago before it brought anguish to his wife and four children.

But, he said he is grateful his wife never left him.

"Somewhere along the line I progressed from being just a party drinker to the point where I'd race with Margie (his wife) each night to see if I could get drunk before she could get dinner on the table."

Van Dyke said he fooled himself about his problem for years by never drinking at work. "But I knew when 5 p.m. came without checking my watch. The minute work was over, I'd head right for the bottle."

He said last year he started getting the "shakes every morning and had changed from being a happy drunk to being hostile and aggressive."

He committed himself to a facility in Phoenix, Arizona, where he "got help before it was too late" and began to understand some of the reasons I had become an alcoholic."

He noted that commuting between his Arizona home on weekends while spending the weekdays alone in Hollywood where he was shooting his CBS series, was especially hard.

"It was rough. The nights alone were particularly hard, because I had never experienced bachelor life before. I had gone straight from mother to Marjorie.

"On April 3, I slipped off the wagon. I bought a bottle, had four drinks - and got sick to my stomach. The thought that I might become hooked again terrified me, and I poured the rest down the sink. I haven't had another drink since."

Don says: I have the greatest of admiration for this man. He had everything, could have done anything. He chose to face his addiction, and beat it! A wonderful guy!