Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines 5/24
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REELZ is standing behind its recent documentary exploring the last hours of Eddie Van Halen's life.
Van Halen's episode of "Autopsy: The Last Hours of…" was slammed by his son Wolfgang Van Halen and ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli.
"F--- @ReelzChannel, f--- everyone that works on this show, and f--- you if you watch it. F---ing disgusting trying to glamorize someone’s death from cancer. Pathetic and heartless," Wolfgang wrote on Twitter.
"Good Christ this is disgusting," Bertinelli replied, using her Twitter username @Wolfiesmom.
Eddie Van Halen's son Wolfgang and ex-wfie Valerie Bertinelli criticized an upcoming REELZ documentary about the rock star's death. (Paul Natkin)
The description of the show, to premiere on June 5, reads, "If caught early, Eddie’s disease had reasonable survival rates, so what exactly happened? Now renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Hunter will analyze every detail of his life in order to piece together what else may have been going on in his body, ultimately leading to his untimely death."
REELZ, in a statement following Bertinelli and Wolfgang's criticism, claimed the documentary episode "responsibly" explored the "circumstances" around Van Halen's death.
"'Autopsy: The Last Hours of...' responsibly explores the circumstances of the passing of well known and genuinely loved celebrities who the public cares about immensely," the statement read.
Van Halen died from cancer in 2020. (Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
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The statement continued: "The REELZ series generates much feedback from our viewers ranging from medical professionals who praise its scientific accuracy, fans who tell us it provides closure or that they have become more proactive for the benefit of their health, and many who gain helpful perspective of health issues that might not otherwise receive attention, like Karen Carpenter, who brought anorexia into the public consciousness, Prince, whose passing focused attention on the opioid epidemic, and Luke Perry, whose passing renewed attention to strokes that affect people of all ages."
Van Halen died at the age of 65 in 2020. The guitarist lost his battle with throat cancer.
Van Halen was a guitar virtuoso, whose blinding speed, control and innovation propelled his band, Van Halen, into one of hard rock’s biggest groups, fueled the unmistakable fiery solo in Michael Jackson’s hit "Beat It," and elevated him to the status of rock god.
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Bertinelli and Van Halen were married for 21 years.
With his distinct solos, Van Halen was the engine behind the ultimate California party band and helped knock disco off the charts starting in the late 1970s with his band’s self-titled debut album and then with the blockbuster record "1984," which contains the classics "Jump," "Panama" and "Hot for Teacher."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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