Obviously this section contains spoilers for all four seasons, the miniseries and Caprica.
Age: 73 (at end of S4)
Colony: Caprica, of Tauron decent
Birth Name: William Adama
Callsign: Husker
Nickname: Willie (as a child), Billy (during the First Cylon War), Bill / The Old Man
Parents: Joseph Adama † (father), Shannon Adama † (mother)
Siblings: Tamara Adama (sister) †
Children: Leland J. Adama, Zak Adama †
Marital Status: Divorced (Carolanne Adama †); Temporarily co-habitated with Laura Roslin aboard Galactica
Role: Commanding Officer, Battlestar Galactica; Military leader of the civilian Fleet
Rank: Rear Admiral
Serial Number: 204971
Portrayed by: Edward James Olmos, Nico Cortez (Razor), Sina Najafi (Caprica)
William Adama (named after his deceased grandfather) was born in 69 BCH on Caprica, the son of Joseph Adama and Shannon Adama and raised in Qualai, a small coastal community (Caprica pilot, Hero). His father was a Tauron immigrant and an attorney specializing in criminal defense and civil liberties with ties to the criminal underworld ("Litmus", "Hero", "Caprica" Pilot). His mother was an accountant (Hero). Both his mother and his sister, Tamara, died in a suicide bombing on the Lev when he was 11. He was still in school when the First Cylon War started (Razor Flashbacks, Episode 1). During his childhood, he was considered small for his age and would often be beaten by his peers (deleted scene, "Exodus, Part II"). Because of anti-Tauron prejudice, Adama's father assumed the more Caprican-sounding surname Adams, but eventually the family reverted to the original Tauron name after 58 BCH (Caprica Pilot).
Adama served late in the Cylon War as both a Raptor and Viper pilot, his first assignment being on Galactica. His first mission behind enemy lines was in a Raptor undergoing an unknown mission ("Razor Flashbacks", Episode 1; "Sine Qua Non"). He allegedly gained the call sign of "Husker" on account of his baritone "graveled" voice. During his time on Galactica, he had a romantic relationship with Jaycie McGavin (Razor Flashbacks, Episode 1). He proved a gifted pilot, shooting down his first Cylon on his very first combat mission, for which he received a commendation.
In the last week in the war, Adama served on Galactica when the battlestar was boarded by Cylon forces. He recalled to his friend and fellow war veteran Saul Tigh a dangerous Cylon tactic that tried to turn the battlestar's power against itself (Scattered, deleted scene).
Furloughed by Colonial Fleet after the war's end, Adama found work as a deck hand on a merchant fleet civilian freighter, where he met Saul Tigh, who became a long-time friend.
Adama married Carolanne Adama, whose family had political influence with the defense subcommittee and pulled to get Adama reinstated to the Colonial Fleet. Adama (now a major) himself arranged for Tigh's reinstatement two years later.
William and Carolanne Adama had two sons, Lee and Zak, before the pressures of Adama's career and the time he spent away from home in active service began to place a strain on their marriage, and the two eventually divorced (Miniseries).
While elder son Lee showed promise as a Viper pilot, younger Zak Adama did not. Kara Thrace, Zak's flight instructor and lover, certified him for basic flight despite his poor flight skills. Later, Zak Adama was killed in an operational flight. Zak's death would cause a rift between Commander Adama and his older son for nearly three years until Thrace admits her error to both of them.
Adama rose through the ranks of the peacetime fleet, becoming the executive officer of the battlestar Columbia, before becoming the commander of the battlestar Valkyrie. About six years prior to the Fall of the Twelve Colonies, he was ordered by Admiral Peter Corman to escort a stealth scout ship over the Armistice Line. The mission was a failure, and in an attempt to cover up, he ordered the ship and its pilot shot down. Ever since, he had felt guilt, both over shooting down his own pilot and over the possibility that his actions resulted in the holocaust. According to Tigh, this mission brought his star into descent, and he was given command of Galactica as a graceful way of easing into retirement.
Adama has the rare combination of qualities that make up a good leader: insight, the ability to naturally command respect, a common touch that enables him to relate to the enlisted personnel under his command as well as his officers, intuition, intelligence, a strong belief in his own abilities, and the ability to take the advice of others. These qualities are reflected in the fact that personnel of all ranks aboard Galactica hold him in high regard, and know that he is approachable (Miniseries).
Adama mistrusts politicians, and sometimes places too strongly a value of loyalty to those he regards as family and friends. From his uneasiness to Laura Roslin's unexpected assumption of the Presidency, to the tolerance and patience of his friend, Saul Tigh, and his stubbornness to save Kara Thrace (You Can't Go Home Again), Adama shows a dogged determination that few others care to confront.
Adama does not share the majority of Colonial beliefs in the gods (Razor), although he has come to accept that his people's scripture may have relevance to the search for Earth.
Several notable assignments and reassignments during his 45-year career in the Colonial Fleet (Hero):
[his decommissioning speech] The Cylon War is long over, yet we must not forget the reasons why so many sacrificed so much in the cause of freedom. The cost of wearing the uniform can be high, but... sometimes it's too high. You know, when we fought the Cylons, we did it to save ourselves from extinction. But we never answered the question "Why?" Why are we as a people worth saving? We still commit murder because of greed and spite, jealousy, and we still visit all of our sins upon our children. We refuse to accept the responsibility for anything that we've done, like we did with the Cylons. We decided to play God, create life. And when that life turned against us, we comforted ourselves in the knowledge that it really wasn't our fault, not really. You cannot play God then wash your hands of the things that you've created. Sooner or later, the day comes when you can't hide from the things that you've done anymore.
Because it's not enough to just live. You have to have something to live for. Let it be Earth.
[Talking to Starbuck over the radio]
Adama: Morning, Starbuck, what do you hear?
Starbuck: Nothin' but the rain.
Adama: Grab your gun and bring the cat in.
Starbuck: Aye-aye, sir.
Lee (Apollo): I'll bring it back.
Adama: You better, or I'll kick your ass. That's a good lighter.
Its not enough to survive... One has to be worthy of survival.
When you hear me say "Downfall", I want you to pull out your weapon ... and shoot Admiral Cain in the head.
Betrayal has a powerful grip on the mind. It's almost like a python. It can squeeze out all other thought, suffocate your emotion until everything is dead except your rage. I'm not talking about anger; I'm talking about rage. I can feel it. Right here, like it's gonna burst. I feel like I wanna scream. Right now, as a matter of fact.
Adama: I guess you didn't understand my orders, huh?
Lee (Apollo): Never could read your handwriting.
Adama: Centurions can't distinguish her from the other humanoid models. Did you know that?
Lee (Apollo): Admiral...
Adama: They were deliberately programmed that way. The Cylons didn't want them becoming self-aware, suddenly resisting orders. They didn't want their own robotic rebellion on their hands. I can appreciate the irony.
I'm not a religious person Mr. Gaeta, as you both know. So if this is the work of a higher power, then they have one hell of a sense of humor.
Look around you. Take a good look at the men and women that stand next to you. Remember their faces, for one day you will tell your children and your grandchildren that you served with such men and women that the universe has never seen. And together, you accomplished a feat that will be told and retold down through the ages and find immortality as only the gods once knew. I'm proud to serve with you. Good Hunting!
Sharon (Boomer): How do you know? I mean, how do you really know that you can trust me?
Adama: I don't. That's what trust is.
Kara (Starbuck): [upon being released from the brig and told she's being given a ship] So you think I'm right?
Adama: Maybe. Maybe not. But I know she is, the President. She's been right all along. I'm tired of losing. I'm tired of turning away from the things that I want to believe in. And I believe you when you say that you'll die before you stop trying. And I won't lose you again.
[emphatically]
Adama: Now go. Find a way to Earth.
[after being relieved of command and witnessing Private Jaffee being shot dead] I want you all to understand this! If you do this, there will be no forgiveness! No amnesty! This boy died honoring his uniform. You, you'll die with nothing!"
Romo Lampkin: I always imagined you a realist, Admiral, not one to indulge a vain hope at the cost of lives. But then, everyone has his limits. "Sine qua non", as they say.
Adama: "Without which not."
Romo Lampkin: Yes. Those things we deem essential, without which we cannot bear living, without which life in general loses its specific value... becomes abstract.
Adama: You may have a point, Counselor.
Romo Lampkin: And while I'm on a roll, Tom Zarek may not be an ideal president, but we could do worse.
Adama: You're right. There are limits to my realism. Goodbye, Counselor.
Just so there'll be no misunderstandings later... Galactica has seen a lot of history, gone through a lot of battles. This will be her last. She will not fail us if we do not fail her. If we succeed in our mission, Galactica will bring us home. If we don't... it doesn't matter anyway.
Saul Tigh: [Adama is watching the cylons plug Samuel Anders into Galactica's systems] You know, it's still not too late to flush 'em all out the airlock
Adama: It'd take too long.
[talking to Laura Roslin's grave on a mountain top on Earth] I laid out the cabin today. It's gonna have an easterly view. You should see the light that we get here, when the sun comes from behind those mountains. It's almost heavenly. It reminds me of you.
[talking to Laura Roslin's grave on a mountain top on Earth] I laid out the cabin today. It's gonna have an easterly view. You should see the light that we get here, when the sun comes from behind those mountains. It's almost heavenly. It reminds me of you.