Mary Poppins, the nanny, is ageless. But "Mary Poppins" the movie turns 50 years old next August, and Disney is jumping the gun by nine months to begin celebrating the film's half-century mark.
While Julie Andrews, who played Mary Poppins, wasn't at Saturday's party, Dick Van Dyke, 87, who played Bert the chimney sweep, made the scene. He posed with Karen Dotrice, 58, the British actress who played Jane Banks, and Richard M. Sherman, 85, who co-wrote the film's score with his late brother, Robert.
The celebration, which included a screening of the film, was part of AFI Fest 2013 in Hollywood.
An all-new digital restoration of "Mary Poppins" on Blu-ray and DVD will be released on Dec. 10. And "Saving Mr. Banks," which stars Tom Hanks as Walt Disney and Emma Thompson as "Mary Poppins" author P.L. Travers, comes to theaters Dec. 13.