Celebrities who changed their name for their work
Because with Cockburn as a last name, unfortunately, you don't get very far
I used to always say that I wanted to marry my high school boyfriend . Yes, a sweetheart of a boy, but if I ever were to change my last name in my life, I would want his. Every Fox sounds pretty okay, right? Anyway, that's not going to happen anymore and there's nothing wrong with Wijnands, but there are a number of famous people you probably didn't even know had changed their name for the industry they now work in.
Olivia Cockburn
To start with that Cockburn; that is the original last name of actress Olivia Wilde, whom you know from the series House and The OC, or films like Drinking Buddies. The reason for changing her last name is exactly the reason you would expect: she wanted to avoid all the sexual jokes and her choice to use Wilde comes from her love for the author Oscar Wilde.
Katheryn Hudson
Nothing wrong with that in itself, but Katy Perry, her mother's last name, sounds just a bit nicer. And more convenient, because we already had actress Kate Hudson.
Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon
Speaks for itself: this is of course just Reese that we all know from the romantic comedy Sweet Home Alabama or Elle Woods from Legally Blonde. Laura Jeanne is of course also beautiful, but Reese has just a bit more of that Hollywood allure.
Natalie Herschlag
We all know her as Oscar-winning Natalie Portman who decided to use her grandmother's last name for her work.
Peter Gene Hernandez
May I introduce you to Bruno Mars? How he came up with the name was actually from a wrestler named Bruno Sammartino, and he claims he got the idea to use Mars as a last name because girls often told him he was ‘out of this world’.
Christopher Catesby Harington
Ah, my man Kit, also known as Jon Snow. Kit was always his nickname when he was young and he thought: why not keep it that way? There are plenty of Christophers in the industry anyway?
Adam Richard Wiles
The ex-boyfriend of Taylor Swift: Calvin Harris.
John Roger Stephens
The man, the myth, the legend. John Legend.
Eric Marlon Bishop
Ha, Jamie Foxx actually handled it very cleverly by changing his stage name. When he just started as a stand-up comedian, he realized that female comedians always got better times for performances and so he decided to change his name to something unisex, which would allow him to be scheduled for better times. Smart, Jamie, smart.
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta
You don't really think someone is going to literally name their child Lady Gaga, do you? By the way, if you take all these crazy names , it could actually be possible. The name Gaga comes from her love for the song Radio Ga Ga by Queen.
Alicia Augello Cook
The lady who always makes you feel the urge to book a ticket to New York. This is just Alicia Keys and for someone who can also play the piano ridiculously well, I must say there was no better choice than to go for Keys as a last name.
