Valerie Bertinelli has devoted decades of her life to entertaining audiences on hit
television shows like Touched by an Angel, One Day At A Time, and Hot in Cleveland.
The star, who has a devoted fanbase, even has her own Food Network show, Valerie's Home
Cooking, which has now been on the air for 12 seasons.
Even though it would be impossible to call her career anything other than successful,
Bertinelli has gone through some serious hardships and life-upending changes over the years.
Between becoming a mom, seeing two long-term relationships to their bitter ends, and losing
a soulmate, all the while maintaining a demanding career, it makes you wonder if there is anything
that Bertinelli can't do.
In her recent memoir, Enough Already, Bertinelli revealed dozens of shocking and heartbreaking
details regarding her turbulent life journey.
Valerie has also finally been able to touch on the passing of her ex-husband, Eddie Van
Halen, and how his death affected her.
But that wasn't the only death that has been hard for her to deal with.
The recent passing of her former co-star Betty White was also difficult for her to come to
terms with.
Join Facts Verse as we take a closer look at the life of Valerie Bertinelli.
She's a person who has experienced so much tragedy throughout her life, but nevertheless,
she continues to push on with confidence and class.
She Lost A Brother
Bertinelli is the third child of five born to Andrew Bertinelli, an executive at GM,
and his homemaker wife, Nancy.
She grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, and right out of the gate, Valerie entered the world
surrounded by pain and tragedy.
Valerie's mother was grieving the loss of her brother Mark who died at just 17 months
old while she was pregnant with her.
And that poor little child died in a pretty horrific way.
Her family was visiting a friend's farm when he wandered off on his own unsupervised and
drank poison out of a container that wasn't clearly marked as having poison in it.
The toxic substance was stored in a soda bottle of all things, so the unsuspecting child had
no idea what he was getting himself into.
Sadly, despite being rushed to the hospital, the effects of the poison on the poor little
child, who was just barely a year and a half old, were irreversible, and he quickly perished.
Bertinelli didn't learn about baby Mark's tragic death until she was in her early teens.
Her parent's kept the senseless tragedy tucked away, locked inside of their hearts where
it weighed them down like a heavy stone.
It was simply too painful of a subject for them to discuss.
Years later after Valerie returned back to Delaware to pay her respects to her grandmother
who had passed away, she was able to develop a new understanding of her parent's painful
loss.
Bertinelli's grandmother was buried close to little baby Mark's grave.
When he visited her brother's burial place, she was holding her own son, Wolfie, who was
also 17 months of age at the time.
Coming face to face with the reality of her brother's death in that manner made her realize
the full extent of her mother's grief.
Later that day, when she saw her parents, she developed an even greater appreciation
for them, knowing what they had to go through.
Since then, both of Valerie's parents have died.
Her father passed in 2016 and her mother died in 2019.
Looking back on both of their lives, especially considering the tremendous amount of pain
they went through, Bertinelli knows that they both did the best they could.
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And don't go anywhere just yet.
Keep watching to learn all about Valerie Bertinelli's difficult marriage to the late rocker Eddie
Van Halen.
Her Tumultuous Relationship With Eddie Van Halen
Bertinelli married Eddie Van Halen in 1981.
They ended up staying together for twenty years before separating in 2001 and finalizing
their divorce in 2007.
Throughout their time together, they had one son, Wolfgang Van Halen.
The two met when Valerie was granted an exclusive backstage meeting with Eddie at one of his
shows.
Eddie and Valerie immediately had chemistry together despite both being quite nervous.
After a brief, passionate courtship, the two got married just a few months after meeting.
On the day of their wedding, Eddie was apparently so drunk that Valerie had to hold back his
hair so that he could vomit.
Valerie also remembers that when they were filling out the pre-ceremony questionnaire
forms that the priest had provided them, they each held vials of cocaine.
Clearly, their marriage was going to be one wild ride.
And a wild ride it was, though unfortunately not in a good way.
Their marriage proved to be a difficult one.
While filming One Day at a Time, Bertinelli tried to keep up with Eddie's rocker lifestyle
but she simply couldn't.
Eventually, she had to give up partying, but Eddie continued to battle a pretty nasty coke
addiction for years.
The couple's problems weren't limited to just drugs.
They also struggled to connect with each other as both parties had many work obligations
to keep up with.
In time, they drifted apart – and whenever they were together, it seemed like all they
ever did was fight.
Bertinelli finally decided to pull the plug on her marriage to Van Halen in 2001, primarily
motivated by the desire to give her son Wolfgang a better vision of what it's supposed to look
like when two people love each other.
She knew that what he was seeing with her and Eddie wasn't anything close to healthy.
Bertinelli has also stated in her memoir that another reason for her deciding to divorce
Eddie was how he refused to quit smoking despite being diagnosed with oral cancer and having
to have a third of his tongue removed in treatment.
She Remarried and Remained Friends With Eddie Until His Death
In 2010, Bertinielli announced that she was engaged to a financial planner named Tim Vitale.
The two had met and struck up a relationship in 2004.
They ended up getting married in 2011 in Malibu, and Eddie showed up at the ceremony with his
new wife, Janie Liszewski, whom he had married in 2009.
Even though they no longer were married to each other, Valerie and Eddie remained close
friends right up until his death.
They continued to support each other in both the good times and the bad ones.
Bertinelli regularly visited Eddie when he was in treatment and did her best to make
sure that he was comfortable.
Eddie ended up losing his battle with cancer on October 6, 2020, at the age of 65.
A few months later, Bertinelli gave an interview in which she revealed the peculiar way that
she was treated during her grieving process for her ex-husband.
Valerie Says That Was "Grief Shamed"
In her interview with 'Today', Bertinelli revealed that she was grief-stricken after
learning of Eddie's passing.
She went on to discuss how she had been "grief shamed" for her reaction to his death.
She didn't go into all of the details, but she made the case that Eddie had been such
a major figure in life that she certainly should be allowed to miss him.
They had a different kind of love that didn't in any way detract from the love that they
had for their respective spouses, Jane and Tom.
Following the rocker's death, Valerie posted a heartfelt tribute to him on her Instagram.
She expressed gratitude that he had given her 'the one true light' in her life, their
son, Wolfgang, and said that her 'life changed forever' when she met him in 1980.
Valerie Separated From Tom Vitale In 2021
Right before Thanksgiving in 2021, Valerie filed for legal separation from her husband
of ten years, Tom.
According to leaked documents, the couple is separating due to 'irreconcilable differences.
While there isn't much we know as of yet why the two are going their separate ways, it's
conceivable that when Bertinelli mentioned that she had been 'grief shamed' by someone,
it just might have been Tom.
After all, it can't be easy to see your spouse spend so much of their time and energy thinking
about their ex-husband.
Maybe that was too much for Tom – perhaps he got jealous.
We'll likely learn more details about this ongoing situation as time goes on, so we'll
keep you posted in future videos.
She Deeply Misses Her Former Co-Star Betty White
It's been a rough couple of years for Bertinelli.
Between losing her ex-husband, separating from her second husband, and now losing her
Hot in Cleveland co-star Betty White at the age of 99, it makes you wonder if Valerie
can keep up with all of this adversity.
Bertinelli and White appeared on TV Land's spiritual successor to The Golden Girls from
2010 to 2015.
Valerie played Melanie, a recent divorcee who just relocated to Cleveland and leased
the home of caretaker, Elia, played by White.
Following her death, Bertinelli tweeted that heaven must be 'bright' now.
Shortly before her death, Valerie took part in an interview with People to discuss what
would have been White's 100th birthday.
In that interview, she said that White had taught her about gratitude.
She also said that she never met another human being that 'glowed' as brightly as she did.
While Valerie Bertinelli certainly has had to deal with her fair share of heartbreak
and tragedy, all of that struggle has only made her a stronger person.
She is truly inspirational and someone that we should all keep our eyes on.
She might be in her early 60s, but her career is far from over.
We can expect to see more of Bertinelli for years to come.
Let's just hope that eventually, she's able to find love that lasts.
But even if she doesn't find that in a partner, she'll always have the love of her son, Wolfgang
Van Halen, who is following in his father's footsteps by pursuing a career in music as
well.
Were you aware that Valerie Bertinelli had such a painful past?
And did you know that she and Eddie Van Halen remained close friends right up until his
death?
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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