 Ed in 1953 | |
| Ed Valentine | |
| Portrayed by | Wiley Pickett |
| Episode | Devil Music |
| Status | Deceased (1995) |
Ed Valentine is a character from "Devil Music". He is the husband of Juliana Valentine, father of JP Valentine and uncle of Bingo Zohar.
Ed fought in World War II. In 1953, he owned the Five-and-Dime, a diner where teens hung out. Ed had been having an affair with the make-up girl working for him, often in his office at night. Juliana was aware of the affair but, focusing on her image as a devoted housewife, kept quiet, thinking the make-up girl was just for his urges and it was okay as long they were only in the diner.
Despite his adultery, Ed hypocritically believed in conformity like most of the adults in Germantown; he hated rhythm & blues and derisively referred to it as "devil music". Ed fired the Five-and-Dime's busboy, Aces Brown, after Bingo accidentally left an R&B record in the jukebox and later offered his nephew a promotion as the counter manager. He hoped to curb Bingo's musical aspirations when his nephew got an offer from American Bandstand, which Ed tried to hide from him.
On the night of Bingo's murder, instead of being in his office at the diner as usual, Ed went out with his mistress, apparently not showing any concern if anyone saw them. Juliana then gave her nephew his letter from Bandstand. After Bingo left to record his song, Ed came back to the house reeking of whisky and cheap perfume. Shortly after, his .45 pistol was used by JP to murder Bingo at the Five-and-Dime, having found out that his "perfect family" was a façade and blaming his cousin for it.
Ed passed away in 1995, 12 years before Bingo's case was reopened. At some point, the Five-and-Dime was converted into a health food store.