A Rose By Any Other Name…
There are any number of reasons why a celebrity can choose not to use their real name and adopt a stage name instead. Perhaps it’s too easy to mispronounce, or perhaps they want to give their family privacy…or, in one case, perhaps it’s just downright embarrassing.
Sigourney Weaver
Considering what an original name “Sigourney” is, this one almost feels like a betrayal. We had to worry for a second that she’d just made it up! However, Sigourney Weaver, AKA Susan Alexandra Weaver, got tired of being called “Suzy” at the age of 13.
She picked the name “Sigourney” from a minor character in F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.
Joaquin Phoenix
Phoenix’s name changes throughout the years reflect his family’s dark history. Raised as part of the abusive Children of God cult, he was born Joaquin Rafael Bottom. When his parents left the cult, they changed their family name to Phoenix to signify their rebirth. Then, as a child star, he called himself Leaf Phoenix to match the nature-inspired names of his siblings, like River. He later came back to the name Joaquin Phoenix.
Whoopi Goldberg
For some reason, we always thought “Whoopi” was the kind of name you were born with, not the kind of name you chose. However, Goldberg’s real name is Caryn Elaine Johnson. So, why did she change it? Well, she thought her birth name was boring, so she picked Goldberg from a relative, and chose Whoopi because, well…she frequently had gas.
Rita Hayworth
Pressured to hide her Latin roots, this Old Hollywood starlet had her name changed not once but twice. It was all to cover up her birth name, Margarita Carmen Cansino. First, she tried working with the name Rita Cansino, but studio head Harry Cohn eventually pressured her to change it to Rita Hayworth—as well as shaving her hairline and dying her naturally dark hair red.
Michael Caine
Michael Caine sounds like one of those names that actors choose not to use because it’d be too common. But the legendary actor was actually born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite. He shared the name with his father, a worker in a fish market. Later, he used the stage name Michael Scott—yes, like The Office character—before settling on Michael Caine.
Olivia Wilde
Olivia Wilde chose her stage name to pay tribute to the famous author Oscar Wilde—which makes sense, since her family has a few journalists and writers in there. We can sort of understand why she didn’t go with her real family name though, as it’s ripe for mispronunciation. Her real name is Olivia Cockburn.
Dean Martin
The King of Cool was born Dino Paul Crocetti. He adopted the stage name Dino Martini when he started his career crooning, and then eventually simplified it to Dean Martin at the behest of a bandleader that he was working with.
Michael Keaton
Stay with us for this one. Keaton is just a stage name for the Batman actor—but he has a good reason for it. Keaton was born Michael Douglas. So yup, not only was there another actor in the union with that name—it was a pretty famous actor. He picked Keaton to honor the vaudeville legend Buster Keaton.
Lizzo
It’s no big surprise that Lizzo isn’t her real name. The musician was born Melissa Jefferson, but went by Lissa initially. When the song “Izzo” by Jay-Z became a hit, a new nickname was born, and she’s been Lizzo ever since.
Judy Garland
Garland was actually born Frances Ethel Gumm, and performed with her siblings as the Gumm Sisters—until one audience nearly laughed them off stage when they heard the name. They decided to change their names to Garland, and Frances later adopted Judy, after a popular song at the time.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Wikimedia Commons
Demi Moore
Surprising, Moore was actually born with the first name Demi. It’s her family thing where things have been a bit of a rollercoaster. She was born Demetria Gene Guynes, but that’s not her father’s family name. It’s the name of the man her mother married when she was three months old. Later, at 19, she married a musician named Freddy Moore.
Though they divorced four years later, she kept his name.
Vin Diesel
If you’re going to be an action star—and a bouncer, while we’re at it—you’ve gotta have a name that reflects that. That’s how Mark Sinclair picked his stage name, all the way back when he still worked at a nightclub.
Bruno Mars
This one certainly sounds like a stage name crafted for, well, the stage. But Bruno Mars, AKA Peter Jean Hernandez, has actually been called Bruno since childhood. Why? Well, he was a little chubby baby, and his family said that he looked like wrestler Bruno Sammartino.
His excuse for Mars is less adorable—he says it’s because girls say he’s out of this world. Sheesh.
Barbara Stanwyck
This Old Hollywood legend’s name seems pretty straightforward—but it turns out that she had an even more eye-catching one all along. Born Ruby Katherine Stevens, Stanwyck could’ve likely still become a star with her birth name, but for some reason, she chose to combine the first name of a character she portrayed in a play, and the last name of another actress.
Helen Mirren
That’s Dame Helen Mirren to us—but even before she had the title, her name was off. Why? Well, she was born Ilyena Mironov. Though Mirren was born in London, she comes from a Russian family.
HelenMirrennews' photostream, CC-BY-SA-2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Shania Twain
The country icon got her start singing in bars at the age of 10—and back then, she went by her birth name, Eileen Edwards. Later, her mother remarried a man with the last name Twain. Then, when she decided to launch her career, she settled on the first name Shania. What does it mean? Well, according to Twain…nothing. She kind of just picked it out of thin air.
Kirk Douglas
The Hollywood legend and patriarch was actually born Issur Danielovitch and grew up going by the name Izzy Demsky. He changed his name to Kirk Douglas before joining the Navy during WWII.
Natalie Portman
Portman was born Neta Lee Hershlag in Jerusalem, and she lived there until she was three years old. When she broke into acting, she chose the name Portman—like portmanteau? Well, no. It was her grandmother’s maiden name. According to Portman, she changed it to protect her family’s privacy.
Jamie Foxx
The name “Jamie Foxx” certainly has a lot of flash—but when Eric Marlon Bishop chose it, he wasn’t concentrating on the surname Foxx. Instead he wanted to opt for a first name that appeared unisex, since, as he explained, female stand-up comedians were so rare that they always got picked to appear on the stand-up circuit. His gamble worked, and bookers would call him up expecting a woman. He clearly made it work for him either way, and he’s been Jamie Foxx ever since.
John Bauld, CC-BY-SA-2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Cary Grant
What’s more suave than Cary Grant? Nothing. Certainly not the surname Leach, for sure. The Hollywood heartthrob was both Archibald Alec Leach in Bristol, England. When he went to Hollywood, he was inspired to pick an “All American” name like Gary Cooper, and ultimately opted for Cary Grant.
Reese Witherspoon
Turns out she’s not named Reese after all—Witherspoon’s real first name is Laura Jeanne. So why did she choose to go by that name? Well, it’s her mother’s maiden name. So her full name is Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon.
GabboT, CC-BY-SA-2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Elton John
The Rocket Man himself Elton John was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, but he knew that he needed something flashier to reflect his music. He landed on Elton John, mixing the names of sax player Elton Dean and musician Long John Baldry.
Jennifer Aniston
Aniston was actually born Jennifer Linn Anastassakis, but her actor father made the executive decision to simplify things for himself and simply go by the name John Aniston. When it was time for Jennifer to start acting too, she followed his lead, and the name stuck.
Chuck Kennedy, Wikimedia Commons
Boris Karloff
In the Old Hollywood era, actors often changed their names to sound less “ethnic”. Not so for Boris Karloff, who was born William Henry Pratt. When he began acting on the stage, he picked the name, claiming that “Boris” was “exotic,” and that there were Karloffs in his family—something his daughter later denied.
NBC Television, Wikimedia Commons
Lorde
Lorde, born Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor, may never be a royal, but she did certainly pick a royal nickname—opting to add an “E” to the end of the word Lord to make it more feminine.
Mindy Kaling
Mindy Kaling was born with the name Vera Chokalingam, and although she’s never used her real name, we think it’s beautiful. We can easily see how she shortened her last name, and “Mindy” came from her middle name, which has a hilarious origin—her parents were fans of the TV show Mork & Mindy.
Claire Leahy, CC-BY-SA-4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Lana Del Rey
The artist we know as Lana Del Rey began her career as Lizzy Grant—but she was originally born Elizabeth Grant. The then-bleach blonde singer tried her hand at pop music and had an album shelved before she decided to change her name, and adapt a persona that much better matched the smooth, cool-sounding moniker.
John Wayne
The Duke was actually born Marion Robert Morrison in 1907. Understandably, he preferred not to use the name Marion as a teenager, instead adopting his dog’s name, Duke. How very Indiana Jones of him. It was director Raoul Walsh who eventually suggested he pick the very manly moniker of John Wayne, partially inspired by a famous Revolutionary War general.
Cardi B
Sure, we expected that her real name wasn’t Cardi B—but we didn’t expect it to be such an intriguing name. Cardi B was born Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar, and has a sister named Hennessy. Thanks to the association with the famous drink, people began calling her Bacardi to match—and the rest is history.
VOGUE Taiwan, CC-BY-SA-3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Meg Ryan
Years before Ryan graced our screens in everyone’s favorite rom-com, When Harry Met Sally, she was born Margaret Mary Emily Anne Hyra. After dealing with all those names for a couple of decades, she was all too eager to shorten it to Meg Ryan—with the family name Ryan honoring her grandmother by using her maiden name.
David Shankbone, CC-BY-SA-3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Engelbert Humperdinck
Once again—one of those names you’d expect someone to change, but no—this singer chose this name for himself. He was born Arnold George Dorsey, and initially began his performing career as Gerry Dorsey. To make waves, he then changed it to Engelbert Humperdinck, after the German composer.
Winona Ryder
Born Winona Laura Horowitz, Ryder picked her name on a whim after completing her first acting job. When someone asked her how she wanted to be credited, an album by musician Mitch Ryder was playing in the background. Funny enough, Ryder himself picked his name from the Manhattan phone book.
She picked his name—and a star was born.
Piccolo Missionario, CC-BY-SA-2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Iggy Azalea
Rapper Iggy Azalea was born Amethyst Kelly—already a pretty cool name, if you ask us. But she wanted something a bit cooler sounding when she launched her rap career, so she used a classic formula: Iggy was her dog’s name, and Azalea was the name of the street she grew up on.
Portia De Rossi
Born Amanda Lee Rogers, Rossi decided to adopt a more glamorous name when she came to Hollywood to make her name in showbiz. She chose Portia from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice—and since then, she’s adopted her wife Ellen DeGeneres’ last name.
Pulicciano, CC BY-SA 2.0 , Wikimedia Commons
Akon
This hitmaker landed on his four-letter stage name for an understandable reason. His real name is Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara Akon Thiam. That would’ve been hard to fit that on the spine of a CD or show poster or hey, even a recording contract. I’m just interested on how he landed on Akon over his nine other options.
Anne Rice
The legendary author of Interview With the Vampire has sold millions of books, and has also worked under the pen names Anne Rampling and AN Roquelaure. However, her birth name is actually Howard Allen Frances O'Brien.
Diana Dors
Diana Dors was a blonde bombshell in the vein of starlets like Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield. Well, it’s a good thing she changed her name to Dors, because her birth name was Diana Fluck. You can see how that would’ve led to some confusion.
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