:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(999x459:1001x461)/george-clooney-sister-122225-9c303f1b70384891ab9c7e6261e3574c.jpg?ssl=1 "All About George Clooney’s Late Sister Adelia ‘Ada’ Zeidler")
NEED TO KNOW
- George Clooney grew up in Kentucky alongside his sister, Adelia “Ada” Zeidler
- Ada welcomed two children with her late husband, Norman Zeidler
- Following Ada’s death on Dec. 19 at 65 years old, George told PEOPLE she was his “hero”
George Clooney is mourning the loss of his “hero“: his sister, Adelia “Ada” Zeidler.
Named after her great-grandmother, Ada was born to journalist Nick Clooney and writer Nina Bruce Warren in 1960, one year before George. While the actor’s stardom rose, Ada attended college in Louisville and Northern Kentucky and worked as a bookkeeper.
As they grew older and lived in different places, the siblings remained “close,” as George told CBS This Morning in 2015.
On Dec. 19, 2025, Ada died from cancer at 65 years old. George confirmed the news in a statement to PEOPLE the next day, saying, “I’ve never met anyone so brave. Amal and I will miss her terribly.”
Here is everything to know about George Clooney’s sister, Adelia “Ada” Zeidler.
She and George grew up in a small town in Kentucky
KMazur/WireImage
The siblings grew up together in the small town of Augusta, Ky.
George, whose first role in Centennial was filmed in Augusta, also spoke of the city in a 2019 speech, per The Tennessean. “All the things we see on cable news of people being unkind to one another doesn’t exist. They have to get along,” he said. “I was really lucky to be raised in a small town like that.“
As of 2012, Ada reportedly still lived in Augusta.
Rosemary Clooney is her aunt
Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty
George isn’t the only famous Clooney in Ada’s family. Her father, Nick, had a prominent career in journalism, and her paternal aunt, Rosemary Clooney, was a renowned singer and actress.
Rosemary became famous in the 1950s with hits like “Come On-a My House” and “Mambo Italiano.” She also starred opposite Bing Crosby in the 1954 Holiday classic White Christmas.
In December 2010, Nick told The Ledger Independent that Ada would serve as the grand marshal of Augusta’s White Christmas parade in place of Rosemary’s husband Dante DiPaolo, who fell ill prior to the event.
She and George played silly games as kids
As children, Ada and George played a few good-spirited games.
“I came home from work one day and George and our daughter and several friends were having a party in [a room of our house],” their mother Nina recalled in a 2006 HGTV interview.
“They had taken [marshmallows], and they would lick one side of them, and throw them at each other. When I came in, there were marshmallows stuck all over the room,” she said while laughing.
She got married in her hometown
Ada married Norman Zeidler in Augusta on March 14, 1987. The whole family, including Rosemary, was in attendance and took part in the ceremony, per the Kentucky Photo Archive.
George read scripture and Rosemary sang a romantic song for the newlyweds. “The whole town helped with the wedding. We couldn’t have gotten through it without them,” Nina said.
George is a proud uncle to her two children
Ernesto Ruscio/GC Images
Ada welcomed two children with her husband Norman, who died in October 2004 of a sudden heart attack, according to The Northerner. They shared a son, Nicholas, and a daughter, Allison.
“I’ve got a niece and nephew,” George said on CBS This Morning in 2015. “My nephew was just made prom king. From the high school that I went to where I was not named [prom king].”
She and her family donated a community center to their hometown
Jeff Spicer/Getty
Nick, Nina, George and Ada previously donated a community center to their hometown. Named the Clooney Community Center, the meeting space can accommodate weddings, parties and fundraisers.
Charity is a big part of the family’s roots. As George said in a 2019 speech, per The Tennessean, the Clooneys also used to give back to the town during the holidays.
“On Christmas morning, when we woke up, before we could open any presents we would drive an hour and a half to some stranger’s home and spend the morning having Christmas with these people, bringing presents,” the actor said. “The understanding was that we are all in this together. It taught me so much.”
She attended George’s wedding in Italy
Robino Salvatore/GC Images
Ada traveled overseas to be there for her little brother when George married Amal Clooney in Italy on Sept. 27, 2014.
The bookkeeper was among the actor and the human rights lawyer’s star-studded guest list, which included Anna Wintour, Matt Damon, John Krasinski and Emily Blunt.
Wedding-goers, including Ada, were photographed getting into water taxis bound for the Aman Canal Grande luxury resort hotel, where the ceremony took place. The siblings’ parents, Nick and Nina, were also aboard Ada’s boat with George.
Surrounding the nuptials, the group was treated to three days of festivities.
Amal’s mother Baria opened up to PEOPLE about the big event, saying, “George and Amal radiated love all night.”
“The wedding was so unbelievably special, it was legendary,” she continued. “These three days — the friends, the families, the atmosphere, everything — will stay with me all the rest of my life.”
She died in December 2025
Ada died on Dec. 19, 2025, at 65 years old.
“My sister, Ada, was my hero. She faced down cancer with courage and humor,” Clooney told PEOPLE following her death, adding that he has “never met anyone so brave.”
According to her obituary, Ada died “peacefully surrounded by the people she loved” at St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood, Ky.
