Valerie Bertinelli has revealed that Eddie Van Halen’s family and loved ones ordered pizza to his hospital room upon his passing on October 6th, 2020.
The rock icon’s ex-wife was at Eddie’s bedside with their son, Wolfgang Van Halen, and the guitar legend’s brother, drummer Alex Van Halen, along with Alex’s two sons.
Bertinelli told People in a new cover story that Eddie died while holding her hand and Wolfgang’s hand, with his last words to both being, “I love you.”
“I didn’t want to believe it was happening,” said the actress. “Even while it was happening, I wasn’t believing it was happening,”
She went on to say that she and the Van Halen family members decided to order pizza in his honor.
“I forget who suggested it, but we were like, ‘Should we have pizza?’ … Because he couldn’t eat, and the last thing Ed really wanted was pizza,” Bertinelli explained. “He loved pizza and burritos, so we had pizza in his hospital room. I hope people don’t think that’s morbid.”
Bertinelli married Van Halen guitarist in 1981, and the two stayed together until separating in 2001 and eventually divorcing in 2007. Bertinelli said the two became close again during Eddie’s final years, but looking back she realizes they were never meant to rekindle their romantic relationship.
“I continued for years to rewrite the facts in my head and build them into some sort of fantasy,” she remarked in the same interview with People. “But now I know we were never going to get back together. We were becoming kinder souls to one another. Our bond was the unconditional love we had for our son.”
Eddie passed away of a stroke after a long battle with lung cancer.