‘Mary Poppins’ Star Had No Idea Dick Van Dyke Played This Character in the Classic Disney Movie
Dick Van Dyke is a total chameleon. Just ask Karen Dotrice, who starred with him in the 1964 classic Mary Poppins.
Karen Dotrice recalls working with Dick Van Dyke in ‘Mary Poppins’
Dotrice played Jane Banks in the beloved Disney movie, which featured Van Dyke as Bert the Chimney Sweep. But unbeknownst to his young co-star, the legendary funnyman also played another character in the movie: the elderly and intimidating bank president Mr. Dawes.
“One of the most startling things was, you know, we have the bank scene, Jane and Michael go to the bank to deposit their tuppence,” she recalls in the new American Masters documentary special, Starring Dick Van Dyke, which premieres December 12 on PBS. “There’s this very elderly bank owner who’s really scary. I mean, as real-life kids, I was terrified of the man. He was ugly as sin and very dodgery, and I was afraid he was going to fall on me.”
It wasn’t until she saw the movie that Dotrice realized the terrifying Mr. Dawes was played by the affable Van Dyke.
“And then I get to the premiere in London, which was the first time I saw the film. At the end of the movie, the credits get all kind of jumbled up. And you realize that he had played the old banker,” she says. “Hadn’t got a clue. Not at all. Which was wise, because I wouldn’t have been scared of him. I would have been waiting for him to crack a joke. But actually, he’s a very convincing crotchety old man.”
Dick Van Dyke was like Walt Disney, says ‘Mary Poppins’ star
Van Dyke — who turns 100 on December 13 — was nothing like Mr. Dawes in real life. In fact, he reminded Dotrice of another American icon: Walt Disney.
“Beloved Uncle Walt. We all got to call him Uncle Walt,” she shares. “He was magic. A magic man. And actually, a lot of Dick’s qualities remind me of Walt. I can see why Walt would cast him.”
“It’s always about the joy with Dick,” Dotrice adds. “And finding the good stuff. Finding something fun about anything. I mean, he would make you laugh uproariously, and then the camera light would go on, and we were meant to be in scene. Forget about it. We all couldn’t stop laughing.”
Julie Andrews, who played the magical nanny Mary Poppins, agrees.
“Dick was so good looking and tall and endearing and a wonderful partner to work with,” she says.
Andrews even gives Van Dyke’s often-criticized Cockney accent a pass, saying his top-notch singing, dancing, and acting in Mary Poppins more than made up for whatever other quibbles people might have about his performance.
“I didn’t think it was that bad. There’s not just one kind of Cockney. It depends on where you come from,” she says. “And he was so rivetingly entertaining, funny, and sweet and doing so much on camera that one didn’t really get bothered by it, I don’t think.
American Masters — Starring Dick Van Dyke airs Friday, December 12 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on PBS. (Check local listings.)
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