Every Living Celebrity Who Is Currently 100 Or Older

Want to live to be 100 years old? It's not as far-fetched as it sounds. Though only a small percentage of people reach the centenarian milestone currently, Pew Research reports that four times as many will celebrate their 100th birthdays by 2054.

Of course, reaching 100 isn't guaranteed. However, it may be a combination of genetics and a health-focused lifestyle, according to a study cited by the New York Post. The study revealed that centenarians seemed to carry a unique type of molecule. Specifically, they aged a little slower than their peers. As one of the study's researchers noted, "The answer is very clear: centenarians have significantly lower levels of antioxidant proteins than the standard geriatric population."

But heredity is only half of the solution to getting 100 candles on a cake. The other half includes taking care of yourself. As of 2026, several living celebrities who have turned 100 have either shared their secrets to longevity or have left hints to how they've kept going.

World-recognized comedian Dick Van Dyke celebrated turning 100 in 2025 by publishing a book of hints on how to live as long as he has. One rule he follows is working out regularly, which he told The New York Times includes yoga. Explained Van Dyke, "The doctors can't believe it when I touch my toes."

During an interview with Al Roker, Van Dyke added another long life suggestion to his list: Belt out some old tunes. "Singing is the best thing you can do for yourself," he told Today (via YouTube).

Of all the film critics in the past century, only Gene Shalit sported a thick mustache and untamed eyebrows. Today, Shalit is 100 and stays out of the spotlight. Consequently, he hasn't given any direct advice on how to emulate his aging.

However, former colleague Al Roker reported that when he last saw Shalit, "He was buying cat food" (via The Charlotte Observer). And the remark may be a clue into Shalit's longevity. Here's why: A 2023 study in Frontiers in Veterinary Science revealed that owning a cat could lower a person's risk of developing cardiovascular disease, which is one of the 10 leading causes of death in America.

Forget 100. Actress Eva Maria Saint is 102 years young and credits her decades to staying active physically and socially. In a People exclusive, she said, "I continue to take walks out in the fresh air, like watching baseball — especially the Los Angeles Dodgers, and enjoy time with my family and friends." (By the way, Saint is currently the oldest living Oscar winner.)

Saint's definitely on to something, especially with her socializing. A 2010 review in PLOS Medicine examined 148 studies and found that having strong social networks could reduce the risk of a person dying by 50%.

How has filmmaker and narrator David Attenborough been able to age gracefully for 100 years? He's said before that it's mostly luck, according to Today. However, he also eats a mostly flexitarian diet and told Good Housekeeping a few years ago, "I've become much more vegetarian over the past few years than I thought I would ever be" (via Yahoo! Life).

Could eating more veggies help keep the birthdays coming? Science isn't sure, as evidenced by a 2025 article in Maturitas that questioned the long-held belief of vegetarianism's superiority to carnivorism. That said, eating a lot of red meat does seem to heighten the chances of cardiovascular disease, so trimming his meat intake may have done Attenborough a good turn. And the truth about the flexitarian diet is that it has also been shown to reduce mortality risk.

Actress Lee Grant is 100 and remains refreshingly honest about all the lengths she took to remain visibly young, including undergoing multiple cosmetic surgeries starting in her 20s (via New York Post). But it hasn't been plastic surgeons who have kept Grant vibrant for 10 decades. Instead, Grant's long life may be connected with her ability to acknowledge and even laugh at her missteps, as she did at a TCM festival in 2017, according to The Hollywood Reporter, when she dished about a life that included a lot of SMH moments.

Is having a sense of humor truly an anti-aging ingredient, though? Maybe, particularly if you're actually incorporating laughs into your life. In fact, a 2020 study in the Journal of Epidemiology found that laughing daily seems to lower a person's mortality risk.

Actress, singer, and dancer Bambi Linn lit up musicals like "Oklahoma" and "Carousel" in the 1950s. Now, she's age 100 — and gaining fame again with new generations for her longevity.

In an interview with Rogers and Hammerstein, Linn revealed one of her habits that might have led to her reaching the century goalpost. "I was happy to be working doing what I do," she recalled when asked about her career. In other words, she liked her job. That's interesting, given that a 2021 study in SSM – Population Health showed that women in "routine jobs" lived fewer years than those who were in more leadership positions.

You might be less familiar with Jacqueline White, an actress who held the spotlight in the 1940s. Nonetheless, she's also cemented her centenarian club membership by reaching age 103.

White has been out of the celebrity scene for decades. As IMDb notes, White quit acting after her marriage to dedicate herself to being a wife and mom. But her dedication to her family could be a clue as to why she's overcome the odds and passed the 100-year mark. Why? A study cited by Time showed a correlation between strong family connections and a 6% reduced likelihood of dying within the following five years.