After the Danville High School show choir performed some of the best-known songs from his movie musicals, 1944 graduate Dick Van Dyke took to the stage to talk about the importance of supporting the arts, and performed songs with his quartet, the Vantastix. Friday night's sellout performance marked the start of fundraising efforts for the Dick Van Dyke Foundation.
The 90-year old actor made a grand entrance Thursday, riding up to Danville High School in a replica of 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' with a performance by the school's show choir. Van Dyke is back to mark the launch a foundation to restore his childhood home, and help fund careers in the arts for young people.
The executive director of Dick Van Dyke's charitable foundation says the 90-year-old actor will take part in events in Danville and suburban Chicago next month.
The Livingston County city of Pontiac, home to one of the country's long-running high school basketball tournaments, has used that history to lure in a minor league franchise. The Pontiac 66ers, part of the Midwest Professional Basketball Association, play on the same court as the high school team, en route to a 12-4 mark this season. They'll play in the league championship Friday night.
