Valerie Bertinelli Claps Back In Vintage Style, Shares Sizzling Pic After Ex’s Jab

Valerie Bertinelli is taking a stylish walk down memory lane, and the internet is loving it.

The 64-year-old actress and TV personality shared a striking throwback on Instagram Thursday, posting a pinup-style photo from 1979 when she was just 19 years old.

The vintage snap shows Valerie Bertinelli crouched down in a red-and-coral plaid shirt, black underwear, and ankle-strap heels, confidently smiling at the camera.

The bold image, featuring no bottoms aside from the black underwear, came with a bit of backstory.

“Throwback 1979. From what I remember this was at the end of one of many throwaway photo sessions I would have at CBS,” she wrote in the caption. “Usually we would do the required poses they wanted and then have some fun at the end.”

She revealed that a shot from the same session later ended up on the cover of Us Weekly, accompanied by a headline about her “growing up too fast.” Bertinelli added, “I mean, they weren’t really wrong… months later I would meet Ed, get engaged and be married within the span of eight months.”

“Ed” refers to late rock legend Eddie Van Halen, whom she wed in 1981.

The post comes shortly after Bertinelli found herself on the receiving end of a pointed Instagram message from her ex-boyfriend, writer Mike Goodnough, following their breakup six months ago.

In a lengthy caption, Goodnough addressed speculation that he and Bertinelli were sending indirect messages through cryptic social media posts.

“That is not the case,” he wrote. “I have never at any time posted something on social media for the purposes of communicating with someone indirectly when I know them personally and have ample ways to reach them directly.”

He continued, “I am not communicating with Valerie via my posts. I am not engaging with the things she posts.”

But the statement didn’t stop there. Goodnough went on to accuse the "One Day at a Time" star of taking subtle jabs at him.

“While I am disappointed in the array of hostile, dishonest, and uncalled-for backhanded swipes she continues to take at me, there is no war between us,” he said. “She just won’t stop shooting. Valerie is in a war with her ghosts. I’m just the guy who catches the bullets. And that isn’t new.”

Bertinelli dated Goodnough following her divorce from Tom Vitale.

Last year, Bertinelli spoke candidly about the end of her marriage to Vitale, and the deeper self-work it inspired.

During her appearance on "The Drew Barrymore Show" on Monday, April 15, 2024, the actress opened up about her divorce and the personal revelations she’s had since. “I can’t just blame my ex-husband for a toxic, horrible marriage,” the 63-year-old said honestly.

Bertinelli and Vitale, a financial planner, were together for seven years before tying the knot in 2011. But after more than a decade of marriage, Bertinelli filed for legal separation in November 2021. Their divorce was finalized exactly a year later on November 22, 2022.

Earlier this year, in February, Bertinelli shared a pointed Instagram video that many believed was a reflection on the split. “I am over it. I’m over the narcissist. I’m long over the narcissist,” she said. “What I’m working on is, what made me tolerate the intolerable?”

Now, with some distance and healing behind her, she’s taking accountability and digging into her past. “It’s not his fault,” she told Barrymore. “What led me to that? Oh, childhood! That’s the stuff I got to start working on.”

The Emmy-winning actress began her career at just 14 years old, landing a leading role on Norman Lear’s iconic sitcom "One Day at a Time" a year later. She spent a decade on the show, growing up in front of the cameras, and facing pressures that few teenagers could relate to.

While reflecting on her journey, Bertinelli admitted that fame at such a young age came with its own set of challenges, shaping not only her career but her personal life as well.

Through it all, she’s remained open with fans about her struggles and triumphs, continuing to inspire with her vulnerability, humor, and strength.