Dick Van Dyke was an early advocate for civil rights
Clip: 12/12/2025 | 1m 7sVideo has Closed Captions
On May 31st, 1964, Dick Van Dyke delivered a speech on race relations.
On May 31st, 1964, Dick Van Dyke delivered a speech on race relations before Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s address at the Religious Witness for Human Dignity event in Los Angeles.
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Support for American Masters is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, AARP, Rosalind P. Walter Foundation, Judith and Burton Resnick, Blanche and Hayward Cirker Charitable Lead Annuity Trust, Koo...
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Dick Van Dyke was an early advocate for civil rights
Clip: 12/12/2025 | 1m 7sVideo has Closed Captions
On May 31st, 1964, Dick Van Dyke delivered a speech on race relations before Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s address at the Religious Witness for Human Dignity event in Los Angeles.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship(attendees applauding) - [Narrator] On May 31st, 1964, the Los Angeles Coliseum hosts the Religious Witness for Human Dignity event with a keynote address by Dr.
Martin Luther King.
- [Dr.
Martin Luther King] In reality, segregation is nothing but a new form of slavery covered up with certain niceties of complexity.
(attendees applauding) - [Narrator] Prior to Dr.
King's address, Dick, an early advocate for civil rights, delivers an impassioned speech on race relations in America, written especially for him by celebrated writer and creator of "The Twilight Zone," Rod Serling.
(attendees applauding) "The dignity of human beings is not negotiable, and the desperate need for an understanding and a respect between all men is as fundamental as the process of breathing in and breathing out."
(gentle music) (upbeat music)
How "The Dick Van Dyke Show" took inspiration from its leading man
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Clip: 12/12/2025 | 54s | Dick Van Dyke's love of physical comedy was incorpoated into his main character's persona. (54s)
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Preview: 12/12/2025 | 2m 8s | Ahead of his 100th birthday, celebrate the life and career of iconic actor Dick Van Dyke. (2m 8s)
Watch this footage from an unaired Dick Van Dyke pilot
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Clip: 12/12/2025 | 1m 58s | Dick Van Dyke showcases his physical comedy strengths with a short story. (1m 58s)
What made the opening credits of "The Dick Van Dyke Show" special
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Clip: 12/12/2025 | 1m 49s | There were two variants of the opening credits of "The Dick Van Dyke Show" involving an ottoman. (1m 49s)
Why Conan O’Brien had an "out-of-body experience" with Dick Van Dyke
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Clip: 12/12/2025 | 1m 7s | Conan O’Brien had a dream come true when Dick Van Dyke appeared on his show. (1m 7s)
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Support for American Masters is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, AARP, Rosalind P. Walter Foundation, Judith and Burton Resnick, Blanche and Hayward Cirker Charitable Lead Annuity Trust, Koo...