[Music]
I want you to tell all your friends
about me who are you
I’m Batman stars always seem to have the
best names but they weren’t all born
with them so see you hooks see into ass
Ferg have a charm and remember Italian
bring you up Manisha flooring you office
off come on out out she want a job
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
celebrities who needed a stage name
[Music]
for this list we’re looking at some of
the names in Hollywood that needed the
most help before they could reach
celebrity status whether they were
already taken by another celebrity too
hard to pronounce or just too long or
unflattering but this is right let’s
hire these pirates and March straight to
Brundusium number 10 David Jones stage
name David Bowie
[Music]
we tragically lost this brilliant
musician in early 2016 he will be
remembered by a variety of stage names
and characters he used over the years
such as the famous Ziggy Stardust Major
Tom the thin white duke and halloween
jack but his most famous stage name was
the one everyone knew him by simply
David Bowie
[Music]
this telethon
born david jones he initially began
performing under the moniker Davy Jones
but with the popularity of the Monkees
and their singer Davy Jones he
recognized the need to distinguish
himself
[Music]
Oh
[Music]
drawing inspiration from the American
frontiersman Jim Bowie and his popular
knife David Bowie was born
rabble rabble
hot tram alone
number nine Michael Douglas stage name
Michael Keaton Alfred let’s go shopping
yes sir
Michael is a pretty common name
historically and it’s rarely if ever
experienced much of a dip in popularity
if you’re a Michael looking to make a
name for yourself the family name had
better be distinct what’s your name
well uh I can’t tell you why not
well yeah why because if I tell you you
tell your friends your friends are going
me on the horn all the time I got a show
up at shopping centers for opening sign
autographs and shit like that and it
makes my life a hell okay a living hell
sadly for a young Michael Keaton and his
parents his birth name Michael Douglas
didn’t stand a chance hey buddy
Michael Douglas of Wall Street Fame was
already an established actor in
Hollywood and a man in daytime
broadcasting had already claimed Mike
Douglas as his own
[Applause]
[Music]
although Keaton had already gotten a few
roles credited as Michael Douglas a name
change became necessary when he was
informed that he could not join the
actors union without adopting an
available stage name what’s wrong with
me what eyes beg people to love me
number 8 Nicolas Coppola stage name
Nicolas Cage
why would you let you suck my tongue
would you be grateful a surprising
number of people are actually still
unaware of this Hollywood family
connection but Nicolas Cage is a Coppola
I just read a large NY he explains to me
sorry I apologize okay go ahead it’s not
coincidence or a distant relation
Nicolas Cage is the nephew of the
world-famous director Francis Ford
Coppola I always loved movies my brother
used to take me my my first impression
of films where the Corte films the piece
of Baghdad the man who could work
miracles
and his cousins include filmmaker Sofia
Coppola and actor Jason Schwartzman oh
that is so rude of me to accidentally
leave my paycheck for $25,000 on your
pillow sorry it’s a dick move he’s part
of what can only be described as a
Hollywood dynasty or royal family the
son of August Coppola a literature
professor and joy Vogelsong a dancer
Paige adopted his stage name in order to
literally make a name for himself in the
business and to avoid any potential
accusations of nepotism
apparently Kage came from the Marvel
character Luke Cage what do you say you
do the man hey hand over the gun and
let’s go buy some rocket I said shut the
number-7 Joaquin
Raphael bottom stage name Joaquin
Phoenix started from the bottom now my
whole team here started from
bottom now we here started from the
bottom now the whole team man let’s have
a bit of Straight Talk here no one wants
to see a movie starring Joaquin Raphael
bottom Joaquin great first name Raphael
solid middle name bottom as a surname
kills any hopes for success
[Music]
but the initial name change wasn’t for
the sake of Joaquin’s acting career
nothing illegal but borderline like if a
guy wants to see a transvestite in a
rubber immersion suit god I got it I got
the picture again
his parents changed the family name to
Phoenix after leaving the controversial
religious group children of God as a
symbol of their family’s rebirth it was
a good choice of surname as Joaquin
clearly went on to undergo a series of
rebirths throughout his life as a child
actor and until he was 15 he adopted the
name leaf in keeping with his other
siblings River rain liberty and summer
all of whom also acted he could pick up
his little bitty Wanaka brother and so
many are so hard on himself
oh he falls a big pop ah number 6
Olivia Coburn stage name Olivia Wilde
you’re really creepy dude
it’s not true yeah it is
I have to go home born Olivia Coburn the
now famous actress followed a similar
logic to Nicolas Cage in changing her
name and I’m in awe of my mom for
speaking to me like an adult taking my
dream seriously the child of two
renowned journalists her family also
boasts two journalist uncle’s an older
sister who’s a well-known New York civil
rights attorney and a novelist /
journalist grandfather I need to know
where you came from
totally these family ties may not seem
as looming as cages Coppola connection
but wild still felt it best to act under
a stage name in order to distinguish
herself Tusker she took the name wilde
from writer oscar wilde when she was
still in high school she apparently also
considered the adopted name to be in
honor of the many writers in her family
who often wrote under pseudonyms their
vehicles aren’t designed to go up grid
they’ll malfunction on this terrain what
about us
obviously not number five louis c.k
stage name louis ck’s i was 8 years old
and i just went into a CVS one day
because i just roamed store aisles and
and I was at looking at the tampons and
I was sort of staring at them with this
I knew there was something dirty about
it I know this world famous comedian and
all-around hilarious actor adopted the
abbreviated CK because it’s actually as
close as the average person is ever
going to get to properly pronouncing his
traditional Hungarian surname
if murder was legal there would be so
much murder regular people would murder
murderers would murder even more much to
the surprise of those unfamiliar with
Hungarian names it’s actually pronounced
CK so CK works as a remarkably close
approximation and it would break their
hearts if they knew how much I scream I
keep in the house it’s like a restaurant
it’s a disgusting amount of ice cream
and it’s not for them I never give them
ice cream you got to give the guy credit
for finding a way to force the world
into saying his surname correctly rather
than just passively adopting a more
generic name and I just went home and I
threw him under my bed and I’m eating
dinner like everybody knows I have
tampons over my bed number four II sorta
Daniel ovitch stage name Kirk Douglas
that’s not a godfather that’s only a man
Louie may have found himself a nice
workaround in order to keep the proper
phonetic pronunciation of his family
name but some people of European descent
don’t have a two-letter solution
available when it takes all
[Music]
yes Douglas’s family had already adopted
the simpler name demske when they
immigrated to America so despite the
fact that II saw Daniel ovitch appeared
on his birth certificate he went by the
name is he demske they taken me for
succor all this time honey
as early as high school he knew he
wanted to become an actor but for an
actor in the Golden Age of Hollywood
cinema he saw Daniel ovitch just didn’t
fly and is he demske wouldn’t cut it
either
therefore just before enlisting in the
American Navy to fight in World War 2
Kirk Douglas became Izzy dem skis legal
name I’m Spartacus I’m Spartacus I’m
Spartacus
number 3 krishna banjee stage name ben
kingsley they cannot take away our
self-respect if we do not give it to
them the son of a British actress and a
medical doctor of Gujarati Indian
descent Kingsley was born and raised in
Yorkshire England do you wanna have a
look around
y’all wouldn’t a minute when I have a
piss around the time he transitioned
into film acting and having just blown
an audition following the butchering of
his name don’t know the face I’m a cock
toll Kingsley considered a stage name
acknowledging that the birth name
Krishna banjee would limit his career
still wanting to honour his family
however Kingsley found his stage name by
combining the nicknames of his father
and grandfather Benji and king clove so
what kind of warrior have you been in
that warfare oh not a very good one
that’s right I have so much tolerance
for the other scoundrels of the world
number two Terry Eugene Vallejo stage
name Hulk Hogan why is he gonna take a
rope what’s gonna happen
[Applause]
you know seriously intimidating even in
his 60s Hulk Hogan you know who’s not
super intimidating regardless of size
anyone named Terry Eugene Vallejo
[Music]
Hollywood Hulk Hogan is one of the most
famous wrestlers in history and his
success is a result of his charisma
distinct look and smart self-promotion
I’m looking at the size of your arms I
don’t believe this I wish I had anything
that big earlier in his career when a
talk-show host noted that Terry actually
physically dwarfed Lou Ferrigno the
actor who played the Hulk Belaya began
performing as Terry the Hulk Boulder the
name would ultimately evolve into the
household name he bears now Hulk Hogan
[Applause]
what’s still gonna do
before we unveil our number one pick
here are some honorable mentions
[Music]
by
I love
yes yes yes Oh
[Music]
you obviously know my job better than I
do
well you are my 10th prime minister mr.
Blair my first of course was Winston
Churchill
[Music]
fill your hand you son of a bitch
number one Albert Einstein stage name
Albert Brooks now any rushing fluid so
are you see oh how many stripes do I
have so the striped question he might
not be the most famous of celebrities
the actor comedian and filmmaker is more
known for his recent voice work and
earlier comedy than anything else but
his role is Bernie Rose in the 2011 film
Drive earned him dozens of awards and
nominations Albert clinches the top spot
because no celebrity has ever needed a
name change more desperately than him
it’s tough to make a name for yourself
when your name is already one of the
most famous in history admittedly the
name change has resulted in a lot of
confusion as to whether he’s related to
comedy legend Mel Brooks he’s not
however his brother Bob Einstein is
better known by his stage name Super
Dave Osborne and there goes the first
arrow holy shit
all in all we think this is one name
change that helped rather than hindered
his career would you want me to cut open
your mother with the same knife I used
on a serial killer yes I’d probably
request it do you agree with our list
cheers and thank you very much under
which celebrity name change do you think
was most desperately needed for more
historical top 10s published every day
be sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com I
just wanted to be what you wanted know I
spend every G day try to be somebody
else somebody I’m not
[Music]
you
I want you to tell all your friends
about me who are you
I’m Batman stars always seem to have the
best names but they weren’t all born
with them so see you hooks see into ass
Ferg have a charm and remember Italian
bring you up Manisha flooring you office
off come on out out she want a job
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
celebrities who needed a stage name
[Music]
for this list we’re looking at some of
the names in Hollywood that needed the
most help before they could reach
celebrity status whether they were
already taken by another celebrity too
hard to pronounce or just too long or
unflattering but this is right let’s
hire these pirates and March straight to
Brundusium number 10 David Jones stage
name David Bowie
[Music]
we tragically lost this brilliant
musician in early 2016 he will be
remembered by a variety of stage names
and characters he used over the years
such as the famous Ziggy Stardust Major
Tom the thin white duke and halloween
jack but his most famous stage name was
the one everyone knew him by simply
David Bowie
[Music]
this telethon
born david jones he initially began
performing under the moniker Davy Jones
but with the popularity of the Monkees
and their singer Davy Jones he
recognized the need to distinguish
himself
[Music]
Oh
[Music]
drawing inspiration from the American
frontiersman Jim Bowie and his popular
knife David Bowie was born
rabble rabble
hot tram alone
number nine Michael Douglas stage name
Michael Keaton Alfred let’s go shopping
yes sir
Michael is a pretty common name
historically and it’s rarely if ever
experienced much of a dip in popularity
if you’re a Michael looking to make a
name for yourself the family name had
better be distinct what’s your name
well uh I can’t tell you why not
well yeah why because if I tell you you
tell your friends your friends are going
me on the horn all the time I got a show
up at shopping centers for opening sign
autographs and shit like that and it
makes my life a hell okay a living hell
sadly for a young Michael Keaton and his
parents his birth name Michael Douglas
didn’t stand a chance hey buddy
Michael Douglas of Wall Street Fame was
already an established actor in
Hollywood and a man in daytime
broadcasting had already claimed Mike
Douglas as his own
[Applause]
[Music]
although Keaton had already gotten a few
roles credited as Michael Douglas a name
change became necessary when he was
informed that he could not join the
actors union without adopting an
available stage name what’s wrong with
me what eyes beg people to love me
number 8 Nicolas Coppola stage name
Nicolas Cage
why would you let you suck my tongue
would you be grateful a surprising
number of people are actually still
unaware of this Hollywood family
connection but Nicolas Cage is a Coppola
I just read a large NY he explains to me
sorry I apologize okay go ahead it’s not
coincidence or a distant relation
Nicolas Cage is the nephew of the
world-famous director Francis Ford
Coppola I always loved movies my brother
used to take me my my first impression
of films where the Corte films the piece
of Baghdad the man who could work
miracles
and his cousins include filmmaker Sofia
Coppola and actor Jason Schwartzman oh
that is so rude of me to accidentally
leave my paycheck for $25,000 on your
pillow sorry it’s a dick move he’s part
of what can only be described as a
Hollywood dynasty or royal family the
son of August Coppola a literature
professor and joy Vogelsong a dancer
Paige adopted his stage name in order to
literally make a name for himself in the
business and to avoid any potential
accusations of nepotism
apparently Kage came from the Marvel
character Luke Cage what do you say you
do the man hey hand over the gun and
let’s go buy some rocket I said shut the
number-7 Joaquin
Raphael bottom stage name Joaquin
Phoenix started from the bottom now my
whole team here started from
bottom now we here started from the
bottom now the whole team man let’s have
a bit of Straight Talk here no one wants
to see a movie starring Joaquin Raphael
bottom Joaquin great first name Raphael
solid middle name bottom as a surname
kills any hopes for success
[Music]
but the initial name change wasn’t for
the sake of Joaquin’s acting career
nothing illegal but borderline like if a
guy wants to see a transvestite in a
rubber immersion suit god I got it I got
the picture again
his parents changed the family name to
Phoenix after leaving the controversial
religious group children of God as a
symbol of their family’s rebirth it was
a good choice of surname as Joaquin
clearly went on to undergo a series of
rebirths throughout his life as a child
actor and until he was 15 he adopted the
name leaf in keeping with his other
siblings River rain liberty and summer
all of whom also acted he could pick up
his little bitty Wanaka brother and so
many are so hard on himself
oh he falls a big pop ah number 6
Olivia Coburn stage name Olivia Wilde
you’re really creepy dude
it’s not true yeah it is
I have to go home born Olivia Coburn the
now famous actress followed a similar
logic to Nicolas Cage in changing her
name and I’m in awe of my mom for
speaking to me like an adult taking my
dream seriously the child of two
renowned journalists her family also
boasts two journalist uncle’s an older
sister who’s a well-known New York civil
rights attorney and a novelist /
journalist grandfather I need to know
where you came from
totally these family ties may not seem
as looming as cages Coppola connection
but wild still felt it best to act under
a stage name in order to distinguish
herself Tusker she took the name wilde
from writer oscar wilde when she was
still in high school she apparently also
considered the adopted name to be in
honor of the many writers in her family
who often wrote under pseudonyms their
vehicles aren’t designed to go up grid
they’ll malfunction on this terrain what
about us
obviously not number five louis c.k
stage name louis ck’s i was 8 years old
and i just went into a CVS one day
because i just roamed store aisles and
and I was at looking at the tampons and
I was sort of staring at them with this
I knew there was something dirty about
it I know this world famous comedian and
all-around hilarious actor adopted the
abbreviated CK because it’s actually as
close as the average person is ever
going to get to properly pronouncing his
traditional Hungarian surname
if murder was legal there would be so
much murder regular people would murder
murderers would murder even more much to
the surprise of those unfamiliar with
Hungarian names it’s actually pronounced
CK so CK works as a remarkably close
approximation and it would break their
hearts if they knew how much I scream I
keep in the house it’s like a restaurant
it’s a disgusting amount of ice cream
and it’s not for them I never give them
ice cream you got to give the guy credit
for finding a way to force the world
into saying his surname correctly rather
than just passively adopting a more
generic name and I just went home and I
threw him under my bed and I’m eating
dinner like everybody knows I have
tampons over my bed number four II sorta
Daniel ovitch stage name Kirk Douglas
that’s not a godfather that’s only a man
Louie may have found himself a nice
workaround in order to keep the proper
phonetic pronunciation of his family
name but some people of European descent
don’t have a two-letter solution
available when it takes all
[Music]
yes Douglas’s family had already adopted
the simpler name demske when they
immigrated to America so despite the
fact that II saw Daniel ovitch appeared
on his birth certificate he went by the
name is he demske they taken me for
succor all this time honey
as early as high school he knew he
wanted to become an actor but for an
actor in the Golden Age of Hollywood
cinema he saw Daniel ovitch just didn’t
fly and is he demske wouldn’t cut it
either
therefore just before enlisting in the
American Navy to fight in World War 2
Kirk Douglas became Izzy dem skis legal
name I’m Spartacus I’m Spartacus I’m
Spartacus
number 3 krishna banjee stage name ben
kingsley they cannot take away our
self-respect if we do not give it to
them the son of a British actress and a
medical doctor of Gujarati Indian
descent Kingsley was born and raised in
Yorkshire England do you wanna have a
look around
y’all wouldn’t a minute when I have a
piss around the time he transitioned
into film acting and having just blown
an audition following the butchering of
his name don’t know the face I’m a cock
toll Kingsley considered a stage name
acknowledging that the birth name
Krishna banjee would limit his career
still wanting to honour his family
however Kingsley found his stage name by
combining the nicknames of his father
and grandfather Benji and king clove so
what kind of warrior have you been in
that warfare oh not a very good one
that’s right I have so much tolerance
for the other scoundrels of the world
number two Terry Eugene Vallejo stage
name Hulk Hogan why is he gonna take a
rope what’s gonna happen
[Applause]
you know seriously intimidating even in
his 60s Hulk Hogan you know who’s not
super intimidating regardless of size
anyone named Terry Eugene Vallejo
[Music]
Hollywood Hulk Hogan is one of the most
famous wrestlers in history and his
success is a result of his charisma
distinct look and smart self-promotion
I’m looking at the size of your arms I
don’t believe this I wish I had anything
that big earlier in his career when a
talk-show host noted that Terry actually
physically dwarfed Lou Ferrigno the
actor who played the Hulk Belaya began
performing as Terry the Hulk Boulder the
name would ultimately evolve into the
household name he bears now Hulk Hogan
[Applause]
what’s still gonna do
before we unveil our number one pick
here are some honorable mentions
[Music]
by
I love
yes yes yes Oh
[Music]
you obviously know my job better than I
do
well you are my 10th prime minister mr.
Blair my first of course was Winston
Churchill
[Music]
fill your hand you son of a bitch
number one Albert Einstein stage name
Albert Brooks now any rushing fluid so
are you see oh how many stripes do I
have so the striped question he might
not be the most famous of celebrities
the actor comedian and filmmaker is more
known for his recent voice work and
earlier comedy than anything else but
his role is Bernie Rose in the 2011 film
Drive earned him dozens of awards and
nominations Albert clinches the top spot
because no celebrity has ever needed a
name change more desperately than him
it’s tough to make a name for yourself
when your name is already one of the
most famous in history admittedly the
name change has resulted in a lot of
confusion as to whether he’s related to
comedy legend Mel Brooks he’s not
however his brother Bob Einstein is
better known by his stage name Super
Dave Osborne and there goes the first
arrow holy shit
all in all we think this is one name
change that helped rather than hindered
his career would you want me to cut open
your mother with the same knife I used
on a serial killer yes I’d probably
request it do you agree with our list
cheers and thank you very much under
which celebrity name change do you think
was most desperately needed for more
historical top 10s published every day
be sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com I
just wanted to be what you wanted know I
spend every G day try to be somebody
else somebody I’m not
[Music]
you
Please follow and like us: