George Clooney’s sister, Adelia “Ada” Zeidler, passed away on Friday, 19 December. According to People, Ada died after a battle with cancer. She was 65. “My sister, Ada, was my hero,” Clooney said in a statement to the publication. “She faced down cancer with courage and humor. I’ve never met anyone so brave. Amal and I will miss her terribly,” he added.
Ada passed away peacefully at St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood, Kentucky, surrounded by family and loved ones, her obituary states.
Ada Zeidler's life and family
Born on 2 May, 1960, in Los Angeles, Ada was the daughter of journalist and television host Nick Clooney and writer Nina Bruce Warren. She was named after her great-grandmother, a detail her family always held close.
Her obituary describes her as a gifted artist and educator. She spent several years teaching elementary art at Augusta Independent School, shaping young students with the same care she brought to her own work. In high school, she qualified as a National Merit Scholar, a distinction that reflected both discipline and curiosity.
Books were a lifelong companion. Ada frequented to a local book club and remained active in the Augusta Art Guild. She once served as grand marshal of Augusta’s Annual White Christmas Parade, a role that placed her at the heart of the small Kentucky town she loved.
She later attended college in Louisville and Northern Kentucky and worked as a bookkeeper, choosing steady work and privacy over public attention.
Ada Zeidler's marriage, loss, and a close-knit town
Ada married retired Army captain Norman Zeidler on March 14, 1987, in Augusta. According to the Kentucky Photo Archive, nearly the entire town turned out for the wedding.
George Clooney read scripture during the ceremony. Their aunt, singer Rosemary Clooney, performed a romantic song for the couple. Nina Bruce Warren once recalled, “The whole town helped with the wedding. We couldn't have gotten through it without them.”
Norman Zeidler died of a heart attack on 11 October, 2004, a loss that marked a turning point in Ada’s life.
Despite staying out of the spotlight, Ada attended her brother’s wedding to Amal Clooney in Venice in 2014, one of the few public appearances she made in later years.
Ada is survived by her parents; her children, Nick Zeidler and Allison Zeidler Herolaga, and her husband, Kenny; her brother George and Amal; and a wide circle of extended family.
A funeral service is scheduled for Monday, December 22. Her obituary suggests memorial donations to the Knoedler Memorial Library in Augusta.
FAQs
How did Ada Zeidler die?
She died after a battle with cancer, according to her family and obituary.
How old was George Clooney’s sister Ada?
She was 65 years old.
