a lot of famous or at least well known people use stage names (not just actors)
two that I know are
Jeff Bezos real name is Jeffrey Preston Jorgensen–founder of amazon
Bill de Blasio real name is Warren Wilhelm Jr.–current mayor of new york city
do you know any others?
Neither are stage names; both were legally changed.
Other examples of name changes:
Bill Clinton: William Jefferson Blythe III
Gerald Ford: Leslie Lynch King Jr
From the headlines: Bob Dylan: Robert Allen Zimmerman
A very extensive list:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_stage_names
Wow, did not know that about Bezos or de Blasio!
southfloirdamom9 I guess having a name that sounds like a german admiral from world war one… would not be good for someone with hopes of to getting into political office in NYC…he needed a more ethnic name I guess.
Bill Clinton isn’t really a stage name, it’s just a nickname, like calling Richard Milhouse Nixon, Dick, is using a nickname.
I believe that Gerald Ford and Bill DeBlasio were adopted by their moms’ new husbands, but I am not 100% sure. It’s interesting that both were originally “Jr.,” which could mean that their moms were trying to erase their birth dads from their lives by changing their names.
One of my son’s friends is named Dylan for Bob. When word of the Nobel prize went out, my son learned for the first time that his name is really Zimmerman. He called his friend and told him he was changing his name in his phone to Zimmerman!
techmom99 from a while back
when he was asked
http://hellobrooklyn.com/politics/bill-de-blasio-born-warren-wilhelm-says-name-change-had-nothing-to-do-with-politics/
According to Wikipedia,. his mother’s maiden name was De Blasio, and since his father left the family and he was brought up by his mother’s family, he chose to change his name. He was called Bill or Billy in the family.
Nothing nefarious. In what way is de Blasio more “ethnic” than Wilhelm, anyway? ALL names are “ethnic.”
Clinton also took his stepfather’s name since his bio father had left the family when he was very young.
My favorite is Ralph Lauren, nee Lipschitz.
Clinton’s father was killed in an auto accident before Clinton was born. Let’s not slander the poor man.
Does anyone know who “Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr.” is?
^^love his original name btw.
John Denver!
Was it John Denver? I am just guessing, didn’t google or check online.
Thanks for the link; I knew I had read or heard somewhere that his name was changed due to issues with his birth father.
One thing I didn’t realize was that he was raised in the Boston area. How interesting that NYC’s current mayor, its most recent former mayor and the recently retired police commissioner were all raised in the Boston area.
Yes!!! Always had a soft spot for John Denver music growing up . . . never knew much about him personally though. Was surprised when I read that. And, iirc, his dad was decorated military pilot - quite famous in that world (?). He grew up moving around.
I found out years after the event that my H and I, who wouldn’t meet for another 4 years, were both at the same John Denver concert. I had a great time, but his date made him leave so she could get stoned.
not nefarious …strategic . conveniently done before his run for office in 2001.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/election/de-blasio-names-de-blasio-article-1.1463591
Seriously, who cares? He first changed his name in the 80s- long before a run.
Unless you know the guy, you have no idea why he changed his name. I take him at his word.
Questioning why he did or didn’t change his name is just as annoying as when people question why I didn’t change my name upon marriage. 8-|
SO, why didn’t you change your name at marriage? I am just teasing, I didn’t change mine, either, and my reasons are not your business, nor are yours mine.
In my opinion, the reasons why people like you and I chose not to change our names (or chose to change them) are irrelevant because we are private citizens. However, when a person chooses to put him or herself into the public eye, they are open to a higher degree of scrutiny than others who have not so chosen. I take DeBlasio at his statement as to why he changed his name, but the fact that he did is newsworthy because of his status. If it turns out that he is lying about it, that is something people who might vote for him are entitled to know.
Trends in names change with different eras. So many reasons depending on the culture of the time. Young adults often do not realize the difficulties people faced based on their name alone. A Jewish sounding names decades ago could mean not getting jobs for actors. Long, less common names likewise can have issues. So many other prejudices can be the reason to not stand out. This affects we private citizens who merely deal with those around us as well.
Name changing with marriage (or not) can have many reasons. I find it interesting, not annoying to find out an individual’s logic in making a name change. btw- with my long, hard to pronounce, last name I think I would have changed mine IF my H did not also have a long name closer to the end instead of the beginning of the alphabet. I think if he had had a three or four letter last name it would have been very appealing, especially one near the beginning of the alphabet. It would have been worth changing/amending all of those documents et al. I guess with my name I know if someone tries to forge my signature fast they (almost) deserve to get away with it. Also I can tell who knows me or is clueless by the name they use, and that Mrs./Ms. thing…
John Denver didn’t legally change his name for many years. His older children are Deuchtendorfs and his younger daughter was Denver. The firm I started working for the day after he died shared ownership of an airplane with him and I had to do the transfer, so all his kids were involved because of his will. He had been in the office on Friday and died on sunday.
The PBS bio on him that often plays (at least on Rocky Mountain PBS) during beggathons is interesting and tells about his youth moving around and his father as a pilot.