Can a name change affect the complete image of a person? Here are some famous Hollywood or other celebrity examples that illustrate the power of a name change.
Hollywood / Celebrity Name |
Given Birth Name |
Birthplace |
| Jane Seymour (Same as King Henry VIII’s 4th wife) | Joyce Penelope Wilhelmina Frankenberg | Middelsex, England |
| John Denver | Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. | Roswell, New Mexico |
| Dean Martin | Dino Paul Crocetti | Steuben, Ohio |
| Doris Day | Doris Mary Anne Kappelhoff | Cincinatti, Ohio |
| George Michael | Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou | East Finchley, London, UK |
| Gretta Garbo | Greta Lovisa Gustafsson | Stockholm, Sweden |
| Hulk Hogan | Terry Gene Bollea | Atlanta, GA |
| Angelina Jolie (Pitt) | Angelina Voight | Los Angeles, CA |
| Buddy Hackett | Leonard Hacker | Brooklyn, NY |
| Mars Bruno | Peter Gene Hernandez | Honolulu, HI |
| Kirk Douglas | Issur Danielovitch | Amsterdam, NY |
| Natalie Wood | Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko | San Francisco, CA |
| Lady Gaga | Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta | New York City, NY |
|
Snoop Dog
|
Cordozar Calvin Broadus | Long Beach, California |
|
Alice Cooper
|
Vincent Damon Furnier | Allen Park, Michigan |
|
Cat Stevens – Now –> Yusuf Islam
|
Steven Demetre Georgiou | London, England |
|
Miley Cyrus
|
Destiny Hope Cyrus | Nashville, Tennessee |
|
Woody Allen
|
Allen Stewart Konigsberg | Brooklyn, New York |
|
John Wayne
|
Marrion Morrison | Winterset, Iowa |
|
Tom Jones
|
Thomas Jones Woodward | Pontypridd, Wales |
|
Cary Grant
|
Archibald Alec Leach | Bristol, England |
|
Lauren Bacall
|
Betty Joan Perske | New York City, NY |
|
Audrey Hepburn
|
Edda Van Heemstra Hepburn | Ixelles, Belgium |
|
Tiger Woods
|
Elridge Tiger Woods | Cypress, California |
|
Fred Astaire
|
Frederick Austerlitz | Omaha, Nebraska |
|
Richard Burton
|
Richard Walter Jenkins Jr. | Pontrhydyfen, Wales |
|
Marilyn Monroe
|
Norma Jean Baker | Los Angeles, California |
|
Michael Caine
|
Maurice Micklewhite | South London, England |
|
Charles Bronson
|
Charles Buchinsky | Ehrenfeld, Pennsylvania |
|
Queen Latifah
|
DanaElaine Owens | Newark, New Jersey |
|
Bob Hope
|
Leslie Townes Hope | Eltham, London, England |
|
Ringo Starr
|
Richard Starkey | Dingle, Liverpool, England |
|
Rodney Dangerfield
|
Jack Roy | Babylong, NY |
|
Kid Rock
|
Robert (Bob) James Ritchie | Romeo, Michigan |
|
Larry King
|
Lawrence Zeiger | Brooklyn, NY |
|
Bono
|
Paul David Hewson | Dublin, Ireland |
|
Whoopi Goldberg
|
Caryn Johnson | New York, New York |
|
Madonna
|
Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone | Bay City, Michigan |
|
Eminem
|
Marshall Bruce Mathers III | St. Joseph, Missouri |
|
Natalie Portman
|
Natalie Hershlag | Jerusalem, Israel |
|
Samuel Goldwyn
|
Samuel Goldfish | Warsaw, Poland |
|
Lewis Carroll
|
Rev. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson | Daresbury, Cheshire, UK |
|
Carmen Electra
|
Tara Leigh Patrick | Sharonville, Ohio |
|
Stewart Granger
|
James Leblanche Stewart | London, England |
|
Ludacris
|
Christopher Brian Bridges | Champaign, Illinois |
|
Ice Cube
|
O’Shea Jackson | Los Angeles, California |
|
The Rock
|
Dwayne Douglas Johnson | Hayward, California |
|
Gene Simmons (of KISS)
|
Chaim Witz | Haifa, Israel |
|
Anne Rice (author)
|
Howard Allen OBrien | New Orleans, Louisiana |
|
David Bowie
|
David Jones | Brixton, London, UK |
|
John Le Carre
|
David John Moore Cornwell | Poole, Dorset, UK |
|
Mark Twain
|
Samuel Longhorne Clemens | Florida, Mo |
|
Yakon Smirnoff
|
Yakoff Naumovich Pokhis | Odessa, Ukraine |
| Mike Wallace | Myron Leon Wallace | Brookline, Massachusetts |
|
Bob Dylan
|
Robert Zimmerman | Duluth, Minnesota |
|
Demi Moore
|
Demetria Guynes | Roswell, New Mexico |
| Jennifer Aniston | Jennifer Anastassakis | Sherman Oaks, California |
| Buffalo Bill | William F. Cody | Le Claire, Iowa |
|
Vin Diesel
|
Mark Sinclair Vincent | New York, New York |
|
Joan Rivers
|
Joan Molinksy | Brooklyn, New York |
| Olivia Wilde | Olivia Cockburn | New York, New York |
| Omar Sharif | Michael Shaloub | Alexandria, Egypt |
| Mel Brooks | Melvin Kaminsky | New York City, USA |
And the famous exceptions: The two big stars who refused to change their names: Arnold Schwarznegger and Raquel Welch. And the one big star who didn’t have to: Sylvester Stallone, though his full given name is actually Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone.
Test your naming knowledge right here – and send us others you may know about.
| Sting | Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner | Wallsend, England |
| Elton John | Reginald Kenneth Dwight | Pinner, England |
| Nicolas Cage | Nicolas Kim Coppola | Long Beach, CA USA |
| The Ventures | The Versatones | Oregon, USA |
| Tony Curtis | Bernard Schwartz | East Harlem, NY |
| Rita Hayworth | Margarita Carmen Cansino | New York, NY |
| Buddy Holly | Charles Hardin Holley | Lubbock, TX USA |
| Freddie Mercury | Farrokh Bulsara | Zanzibar, Tanzania |
| Jon Bon Jovi | John Francis Bongiovi Jr. | New Jersey, USA |
<– Return to Naming and Branding Articles
All data copyright Brighter Naming. You are welcome to link to this page, but not to copy it in any manner whatsoever.
© 2002-2024 Brighter Naming® 650-704-8181 The Power of ®
See the latest Name Critic ratings for names like Skype, Pinterest, Etsy, etc.
Join 
