Madonna’s Brother, Anthony Ciccone, Dead At 66, Family Member Says

Madonna’s oldest brother, Anthony Ciccone, has died, a family member said Saturday.

The 66-year-old died Friday night, the singer’s brother-in-law, Joe Henry, who is married to Madonna’s sister, Melanie Ciccone, posted on Instagram. He was one of her seven siblings.

“As Brother Dave Henry (who took this photo) notes here, Anthony was a complex character; and God knows: we tangled at times, as true brothers can. But I loved him and understood him better than I was sometimes inclined to say,” Henry wrote. “But trouble fades; and family remains – with arms stretched across the table.

Anthony Ciccone’s cause of death has not been released. He reportedly struggled with alcoholism and became estranged from his family.

In 2011, he told London’s The Daily Mail that he was “homeless” and living under a bridge in Michigan, where the family grew up. He accused his family members of abandoning him, but his family denied this.

Representatives for Madonna did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday.