George Clooney's father, Nick Clooney, has led quite a successful career of his own.

If one were to condense his life's work into words he was — a news anchor, starred in his own TV show called The Nick Clooney Show, hosted a local game show called The Money Maze, wrote a column for The Cincinnati Post, hosted a national television show called American Movie Classics, ran for Congress, and, with son George, became an activist for Darfur.

Yup, he'd kept himself busy all these years. 

George Clooney's father Nick Clooney

George Clooney's dad Nick Clooney (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Still, his name somehow gets overshadowed by that of his son George. The doting father couldn't be prouder. He also has a daughter, George's sister, Adelia Clooney.

It is natural for everyone to simply accept that Nick was a great father because his son, George, is not just a titan of show business, he is a responsible member of the society who believes in giving back. 

As Nick himself explained, his son has always been one to help those who had less power than he did and challenge those who had more. 

"I think that's a good philosophy of life," the proud father said during an interview with NBC News. "It's inconvenient often, but that has not stopped him."

The son has always maintained in the public sphere that he was greatly influenced by his patriarch, but Nick will not have it. 

Nick was adamant that he did not teach George to become what he has become. 

"I can only enjoy it," he said of his son's body of work. "What we have to give him great credit for, is his great talent that brought him great power, and he decided to use it in this way. I just love that."

Nick Clooney Refused Credit for Son's Success

In another interview with Huff Post, Nick pressed on his argument further. He went as far as to claim that the influence of parents was some sort of overblown statistic. 

He was of the idea that people came into the world as the people they were going to be. 

"They come out of the womb that way," the humble father insisted. "We have very little to do with it."

I tell you, if he were a serial killer, this would be an entirely different conversation you and I would be having, and I'd be running away from you.

He went on to gush about his film star son and shared that regardless of the situation, his son would make a call and return the call. 

Nick Clooney Has Respect for His Son

The seasoned journalist admitted that he too would cower behind a closed door for a few weeks if he was dealt some of the circumstances his son had to go through. 

"So I salute him. He's turned out to be kind of a great guy," Nick said of his son. 

Then citing how George had a sense of irony and justice from when he was very little, the father began an anecdote from when the actor was 3. 

Apparently, during a visit to their grandparents' place, little George was playing with a puppy and the puppy snapped at him. 

This young man's sense of justice was so straightforward that he carried the pup and bit it too.

"What a perfect sense of justice," Nick said with a laugh.