To be a celebrity is to be a living, breathing brand. It requires constant vigilance over image, success, and trajectory. What’s more, the biggest aspect of a brand is its name. While many celebrities hold on to their birth name and use it to work magic, others sense a certain blandness or forgettable quality with their given names. To combat this, many stars have strange stories using formative moments to create celebrity stage names.
While many of the celebrity stage names you know and love come from simple combinations of street names or childhood pets, others have very strange origin stories. Some of the most famous celebrity stage names come from inside jokes. There’s even a couple that may have originated in the paranormal. In this article, we will explore 15 of the strange stories behind celebrity stage names.
To compile a list of 15 strange stories behind celebrity stage names, 24/7 Tempo consulted a range of entertainment publications including People Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, and the Los Angeles Times. Next, we selected celebrities from a range of mediums that had the most interesting backstories to their stage names. After that, we confirmed the details of the backstories using a myriad of sources including Time Magazine. (For celebrities who achieved mainstream success early, discover actors who won an Oscar in their first film role.)
Pee-Wee Herman
Before he became the world-famous, if not, slightly controversial comedy performer, he was simply Paul Ruebens. To differentiate himself, he used two symbols from childhood. “Pee-Wee” comes from a brand of harmonica he once owned.
Herman was a classmate of Rueben’s who he remembers being particularly high-strung. After that, his stage name fell into place. As he told Vanity Fair, “I like that it didn’t sound like a made-up name, that it was just kind of cruddy.”
Sid Vicious
Another strange story behind celebrity stage names is that of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious. Before he became the Sid Vicious we all know and love (and perhaps fear), he was John Simon Ritchie. After that, he changed his name to John Beverley.
His famous stage name, however, would come from bandmate Johnny Rotten’s pet hamster, Sid. One day, he was playing with the hamster when it bit him. He exclaimed, “Your Sid is vicious!” Rotten thought the remark was so funny, he started calling John Sid Vicious, and the rest is history.
Brie Larson
Another strange story behind celebrity stage names is that of famed actress Brie Larson. She’s best known for her roles in films like “13 Going on 30,” “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World,” and “The Marvels.” While she was born Brianne Sidonie Desaulniers, she decided to rearrange it a bit for her film career. To do this, she shortened Brianne to Brie and chose Larson for her last name as it was the name of her favorite American Girl Doll growing up, Kirsten Larson.
(For other famous contemporary actors, discover the top movie stars of the 2010s.)
Michael Keaton
Another strange story behind celebrity stage names is that of Michael Keaton. Born Michael John Douglas, when he arrived in Hollywood and made enough of a showing to sign with the Screen Actors Guild, he found his name was already taken by the famed actor Michael Douglas. While many people think Keaton is a nod to Buster Keaton, he claims he sort of stumbled upon the name while looking through the letters of the alphabet.
Alice Cooper
Another one of the strange stories behind celebrity stage names is that of legendary shock-rocker Alice Cooper. Born Vincent Furnier, the legend says he got his name from a summoning session with an Ouija board. The spirits told him that Alice Cooper was his name in a past life.
It took years, however, for Cooper himself to dispel the rumor. According to him, the name came up out of nowhere. According to him, “There was something about it. I conjured up an image of a little girl with a lollipop in one hand and a butcher knife in the other. Lizzie Borden. Alice Cooper. They had a similar ring.”
Albert Brooks
Even before he was born, Albert Brooks was overshadowed by a legendary scientist with the same namesake. That’s because he was born Albert Einstein. Seeking to make it big in Hollywood, Einstein first went by just his first and middle name, Albert Lawrence.
After deciding it sounded too much like a Vegas lounge singer, however, he picked out the old family name Brooks and went by Albert Brooks instead. Funnily enough, his older brother Bob Einstein stuck with the name upon entering the business and still found success as the comedy character “Super Dave Osborne.”
Sugar Ray Robinson
Before he became the legendary boxer Sugar Ray Robinson, he was born Walker Smith Jr. The stage name came gradually, however.
At first, he “borrowed” the Amateur Athletic Union boxing card of his friend Ray Robinson. The sugar came from his manager, who declared Robinson’s fighting style to be “as sweet as sugar.” Thus, Sugar Ray Robinson was born.
Jackie Chan
Before he was the legendary film star and martial artist, Jackie Chan, he was Chan Kong-sang. While working on a construction site in Australia, however, his co-workers had trouble pronouncing his birth name.
A co-worker named Jack started calling him “Little Jack.” Pretty soon after, this was shortened to Jackie. From there, Jackie Chan would take his nickname across the world.
Snoop Dogg
Another one of the strange stories behind celebrity stage names is that of rapper, actor, and businessman Snoop Dogg. Born as Cordozar Calvin Broadus Jr., he had a fondness for the “Peanuts” cartoon strip.
What’s more, his family felt he shared a resemblance with the character of Snoopy. Upon entering the rap world, Broadus went by Snoop Dogg. One can only assume the Dogg followed the Snoop.
Whoopi Goldberg
Another one of the strange stories behind celebrity stage names is that of comedian, actor, and television show host Whoopi Goldberg. Born Caryn Johnson, upon getting into the comedy world Johnson developed a reputation for her flatulence. Due to her tendency to pass gas in front of friends and colleagues, they likened her to a whoopie cushion.
After that, her mother gave her the idea to use the last name Goldberg, thinking a Jewish surname would help her get farther in Hollywood. She took the embarrassing nickname and owned it, transforming it into a name known by millions.
Post Malone
Back in the day, aspiring actors and creators had to rely on friends or circumstances to give them unique stage names. Rapper, singer, and pop music extraordinaire Post Malone, however, had the internet to thank for his stage name.
After making a mixtape at the tender age of 14 years old, the then-named Austin Richard Post needed a good rap name. He plugged his name into an online rap name generator, which spat out “Post Malone.” He stuck with it and has sold millions of records in the process.
MC Hammer
Another one of the strange stories of celebrity stage names is that of rapper MC Hammer. Born Stanley Kirk Burrell, he got his stage name from a unique childhood job with the Oakland Athletics baseball team. After the team’s owner Chuck Finley saw him dancing in the stadium parking lot, he hired Burrell as the team’s batboy.
While on the job, Finley and other players began calling him Hammer, thanks to his resemblance to the great hitter “Hammerin’” Hank Aaron. Upon entering his music career, Burrell retained his childhood nickname and went by MC Hammer.
Sting
Another strange yet endearing story behind celebrity stage names is that of The Police frontman, Sting. Born Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, he got his start in music playing weekend jazz shows after school with groups like the Phoenix Jazzmen and Last Exit. Due to his habit of performing in a striped black and yellow jumper, his then-bandleader told him he looked like a bee or wasp.
Over time, his fellow players took to calling him Sting, and the name stuck for good. Even now, Sting is so used to his stage name that he hardly recognizes his birth name. According to him, “I was never called Gordon. You could shout ‘Gordon’ in the street and I would just move out of your way.“
Iggy Azalea
Another one of the strange stories of celebrity stage names is that of rapper, singer, and pop sensation Iggy Azalea. Born Amethyst Amelia Kelly, which is a unique name in and of itself, Kelly took her name in honor of her childhood dog Iggy. After the dog fought a snake and lived to tell the tale, the singer wore a locket in his honor around her neck bearing his name.
After so many people assumed her name was Iggy due to the locket, she rolled with it. Her grandfather, however, warned her against a singular stage name. To combat this, she used the street she grew up on for her surname. Thus, Iggy Azalea was born.
Vin Diesel
Though he was born Mark Sinclair, legendary actor Vin Diesel got his stage name from his years working as a nightclub bouncer at Tunnel in New York City.
Seeking to seem tougher for the job, Sinclair shortened his mother’s married last name from Vincent to Vin. Around the same time, club employees had begun calling him Diesel due to his energetic nature. After that, he combined the two to make Vin Diesel.
(For celebrities of the more notorious variety, discover 22 of Hollywood’s most reviled personalities.)