Valerie Bertinelli Covers AARP The Magazine, Discusses Engagement

Posted on May 20, 2010

Actress Valerie Bertinelli graces the July/August cover of AARP The Magazine in 2010. In the AARP interview, Valerie revealed her engagement to her boyfriend of six years, businessman Tom Vitale.

Valerie says, "I've never felt more beautiful at any weight than when Tom looks at me. He loved me no matter what. In his way, he's teaching me to love myself just as I am."

On Turning 50: "Women of this age are not dead. We're part of baby boomers. We're big, man! You know what's so great about being this age? We're smarter. And we're not too old to grow." "I've never been a big age person. I've got the lines. I'm aging. But so what? Now is the best of time of my life...I hope it just gets better, because this is really fun."

On Finding Love: "I've never had a male friend like I have with Tom...Mature love doesn't mean you have to be mature all the time--we definitely have our immature moments. But when disagreements come up, we're able to talk in a way that's not attacking, and we'll still love one another. If my life wasn't starting to turn around, I couldn't have welcomed [fiancee Tom Vitale] into it."

Fiance Tom Vitale on Valerie: "We just understood each other completely...My family is her family. It wasn't love at first sight; it was family at first sight. "If the timing wasn't right, I wouldn't have asked. We're both still a little afraid of commitment but then we were over there [Italy), and it was like our souls were calibrated."

On Getting Healthy, Physically and Mentally: "After Ed [ex-husband Eddie Van Halen] and I separated, I thought 'I'll finish raising my son, and I'll go away, have about 40 cats, and just get nice and fat.' I thought I would be alone for the rest of my life, because I didn't want the responsibility. Relationships are too hard."

Update: Valerie returned to AARP the Magazine again for the February 2022 issue. She talked about her relationship with Eddie Van Halen in the interview. Here's a clip: