George Clooney had a very close relationship with his older sister, Adelia "Ada" Zeidler, who died on December 19 at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer.
The 64-year-old is the youngest of two children, and while he has met some incredible people thanks to his life in the spotlight, it was Ada who he called his "hero."
Ada lived a very private life and was rarely seen in public with George before her death, but he told CBS This Morning in 2015 that they were "very close."
Find out more about George's late sister Ada below…
Adelia 'Ada' Zeidler
© Robino SalvatoreAda was born one year before George in 1960 to parents Nick Clooney, a journalist, and Nina Bruce Warren, a writer.
Ada reportedly remained in the family's hometown of Augusta, Kentucky, and worked as a bookkeeper after attending college in Louisville and Northern Kentucky.
George has very fond memories of growing up in Augusta with Ada. In 2019, he told 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. I was really lucky to be raised in a small town like that."
© Action Press/ShutterstockClose bond
Due to their closeness in age, Ada and George were part of the same friendship group growing up, and enjoyed hanging out together and playing games.
Their mom recalled one time they enjoyed a spirited game with marshmallows. "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]," 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 added.
Ada was widowed following the death of her husband Norman Zeidler, who passed away in October 2004 of a sudden heart attack.
They married in Augusta on March 14, 1987, and were surrounded by their whole family, including George, who read scripture at the ceremony.
© Metcalfe-Hennessey Funeral HomeTogether, they had two children, a son, Nicholas, and a daughter, Allison, and George is an extremely proud uncle.
"I've got a niece and nephew," he 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]."
Ada returned the favor and was part of the three-day celebrations for George's 2014 wedding to Amal Clooney in Italy.
© KMazurShe was photographed wearing a silver, sequinned-detailed dress while traveling in a water taxi with George and their parents, bound for the Aman Canal Grande luxury resort hotel, where the ceremony took place.
Supportive sister
Before George began his relationship with Amal, rumors circulated about his sexuality, despite his previous relationships with women, and in 2012, Ada gave a very rare interview in which she vehemently denied that George was gay.
© Getty Images"Yes, that's quite ridiculous, we don't even listen when people say things like that anymore," she told the New York Daily News.
"I think he decided that in his life he could have the career, or he could have a family. And so, when he decided to go full bore into the acting. That was where his focus was going to be."
© Getty ImagesAda also admitted that there was a time when she hoped to follow in her brother's footsteps.
"Yes, there is a part of me that would very much like to have become a famous actress or something like that," she said. "I enjoy acting and I was fairly okay at it, but I did not have a thick enough skin for it."
© Getty ImagesAt the time, Ada also revealed that, shockingly, she did not have her brother's phone number, preferring to keep in touch with him by email instead.
"I do not have his phone number because I wouldn't want to have it in my phone and then lose my phone," she explained. "He can phone me, and he does occasionally, but the email is more convenient for both of us."
Death
© Action Press/ShutterstockGeorge paid tribute to his sister following her death on Friday, December 19, calling Ada his "hero" in an emotional message.
"My sister, Ada, was my hero," the actor told People. "She faced down cancer with courage and humor. I’ve never met anyone so brave. Amal and I will miss her terribly."
Ada died "peacefully surrounded by the people she loved" at St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood, Kentucky, according to her obituary.
