Awards Chatter” podcast, and was asked if he thinks the intense fame from his 1960s eponymous sitcom led to him becoming an alcoholic.“I don’t recall that it did, because I’ve known performers who had to have a slug the minute the show was over. But I never needed that,” Van Dyke said.“I don’t know what started it,” he added. “Hanging out with the wrong crowd I think.”THR reporter Scott Feinberg pointed out that sometimes genetics can be a cause for alcoholism.“I obviously am a natural,” Van Dyke admitted.