Dick Van Dyke honoree of SAGs Life Achievement Award

Dick Van Dyke honoree of SAGs Life Achievement Award

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Dick Van Dyke is best known for 'The Dick Van Dyke Show' and 'Mary Poppins.'

Dick Van Dyke will be honored with the Life Achievement Award at Sunday's 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.

The “Diagnosis Murder” star has been acting since the 1960s, and has won a Tony Award for the musical “Bye-Bye Birdie.”

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Best known for “The Dick Van Dyke Show,”  the legendary screen star says he is appreciative of the recognition.

“This was a surprise,” the 87-year-old Hollywood vet told People Magazine. “People think of me as a song and dance entertainer. To be accepted by my peers as an actor is really a thrill.”

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Now comfortable with his success, receiving the award makes Van Dyke feel as though he’s finally able to appreciate the recognition.

“I’ve always been a bit of an orphan,” he told CBS News. “Actors say, ‘Well, he’s more of a dancer.’ And dancers say, ‘No. He’s really a singer.’ And singers say, ‘No. He’s an actor.’ So, now I’ve got a home.”

A father of four from his first marriage and grandfather of seven, Van Dyke is happy with his 41-year-old wife, Arlene, who he first met at the 2006 SAG Awards, where she was doing makeup.

“There was something about her beautiful eyes,” the actor recalls.