Celebrity wannabees: lead with a lie!
A lot of Jewish performers used to do that, and Polish in the case of Bronson.
Because Jane Seymour sounds sexier than Joyce Frankenberg
Mine would be Buck Naked.
It may be that they chnge their names to protect their families from weirdos that are obsessed by celebrities or from crimminals who want to blackmail them.
Alice Cooper was named Vincent Damon Furnier.
Alicia Keys was named Alicia Augello Cook.
50 Cent was named Curtis Jackson.
Axl Rose was William Bailey.
Angelina Jolie was named Angelina Jolie Voight.
Anna Nicole Smith was named Vickie Lynn Hogan.
Bob Hope was named Leslie Townes Hope.
Bob Dylan was named Robert Zimmerman.
Charlie Sheen was named Carlos Irwin Estevez.
Clay Aiken was named Clayton Holmes Grissom.
Demi Moore was named Demetria Guynes.
Doris Day was named Doris von Kappelhoff.
Elton John was named Reginald Kenneth Dwight.
Elvira was named Cassandra Peterson.
Elvis Costello was named Declan McManus.
Gene Simmons was named Chaim Witz.
One legit reason. There can’t be two actors with the same name in the Screen Actors Guild.
Public relations. The same reason Adolf Schicklgruber changed his name to Hitler, and Iosef Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili changed it to Stalin.
Cause Bernard Schwartz doesn’t sound very sexy
It used to be that names were changed because their real name was too hard to pronounce so the agent picked them a name. Always wondered what happened to Efrim Zimbalist Jr.
Today it doesn’t matter. Such as McConaughey.
And don’t forget the Duke. I don’t think he would have made it as Marion Michael Morrison.
I think it’s disgusting these people changing their names like that. You wouldn’t catch me doin’ something like that.
Sincerely, Tula Ellice Finklea.
Because nobody would ever be intimidated by someone named Marion Morrison.
It’s been going on for DECADES. It’s marketing just like anything else. sheesh
Elvis Presley was Zdzislaw Szczudzki.
Richard Starky changed his to Ringo Starr.
Freddy Cannon was Federico Boom Boom Canone.
Johnny Cash was John R. Credit.
I understand what you are saying. Many immigrants to this country changed their names in order to become more "Americanized" and accepted by the general population once they settled here.
For example, my next door neighbor's last name is "Thomas" but that's only because her father, a Polish immigrant, forced her to change it from Tomaczewski......
Another Polish decendent's last name is now Wojt which was changed from Wojtowski. Another individual's last name is Koster which his parents changed it to from Kostrzewski.........
So, many immigrants who came to this country were very concerned about how they would be accepted here and thus they went so far out of their way to try to "Americanize" their last names...........
It was a common thing to do and I have no problem with that.
With that being said, I do have a problem with the current stage names such as "Angelina Jolie" who was born to John Voigt and the cast of others who chose to change their names to sound more "exotic" to the adoring masses..........
Somehow, Bob Bumpus does not conjure up images of a tier one hollywood actor........LOL!
Marion Morrison would have never become famous.
My dad was not a celebrity, but changing his name from Francis
seemed very understandable to me.
Then there was my step dad, Peter. That wasn’t bad, but he made everyone call him Pete. You see, his last name was Eder.
If I were to change my boring name of Dan, I think I would pick the name of one of my favorite movie’s, “August Rush”.
How about The Artist Formerly Known As Prince.