Celebrities Who Changed Their Names

Celebrities Who Changed Their Names - Listomania, Bing, Bruce Willis, Demi Moore, Faith Hill, Jennifer Aniston, Miley Cyrus, Natalie Portman. Not everyone is born with a name that belongs on a billboard. Some stars had to ditch their original first and last for something that would sizzle in bright lights. Find out which of your favorite stars traded in their birth names for something more showbiz-friendly, and learn what they used to be called back in the day.

She's one of the few stars who can dispose of her last name without seeming pretentious, but did you know that "Rihanna" isn't even Rihanna's real first name?

She's become one of the top names in comedy, but "Tina" isn't Tina Fey's real name, though "30 Rock" fans might be able to guess what is. No, her real name is considerably longer.

Demi's ex-husband -- err, the older one, that is -- also grew up going by a name different than the one that eventually showed up on movie marquees. Maybe "Bruce Willis" just sounded cooler?

You have to wonder: Would Jennifer Aniston have risen to fame if she had entered showbiz with her birth name?

Is "John" his last name or just part of a double first name? That's a question only the man himself can answer. Elton John was born with three names, neither of which is "Elton" or "John."

As a writer and actress, Mindy Kaling has often incorporated her Indian heritage into her work. But when she entered show business, this "The Office" star hacked a lot of letters off her name to make it easier for English-speakers to spell.

He may be known to most of the world as "Kumar," but in real life, Kal Penn hasn't even been "Kal Penn" all that long. In fact, his stage name is just a variation on the first name his parents gave him.

Would you believe that someone would choose to be known as "Whoopi Goldberg"? Because this lady didn't always have the name. Even more surprising, she got her first name from a nickname she got as a result of her reputation for being gassy. No, really.

Miley is actually just a nickname for "Smiley," which her family once called her. And no, the real name isn't "Hannah Montana."

Dakota Fanning's days as Hollywood's go-to moppet may have helped popularize her name, but she was born with a different, though equally fashionable, name.

Today, Reese Witherspoon has a style that you might call "classic Reese," but she was born with a less "Hollywood" name.

Jon Bon Jovi's actual name isn't all that different from his stage name. He switched because he wanted one that everyone could spell and pronounce.

He's not the only actor in the family, but Tom Cruise is the only one to go by the surname "Cruise," which he borrowed from his great-great-grandfather to sound a little flashier.

No, Demi Moore's name doesn't mean "half." It's a nickname. And she got her now-famous last name from her first husband, Freddy Moore.

Though Natalie is probably quite proud of her family name, even she realized that it doesn't have quite as nice a ring to it as her grandmother's maiden name, Portman, does.

Olivia Wilde claims citizenship in both the U.S. and Ireland, and Irish playwright Oscar Wilde inspired her stage name. Why the change? Her actual last name was definitely not A-list material.

Jamie Foxx improved on his more humdrum given name by paying tribute to one of his idols, comedian Redd Foxx.

Helen Mirren was originally known to her family by a traditionally Russian name. Good thing, though, because it's a mouthful.

It's pretty easy to guess why Lea Michele dropped her last name. It happens to sound less melodic than this songbird would like.

Like Ritchie Valens before him, Ricky Martin dropped a traditionally Spanish name for a similar sounding one that would fly in English- and Spanish-speaking countries.

She may forever be Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman in our hearts, but there was a time before that, when Jane Seymour wasn't even "Jane Seymour." In fact, she chose the stage name in honor of King Henry VIII's third wife.

Shania Twain has changed her name twice: First she was adopted and took her stepfather's name. Then, early in her career, the songstress switched her first name to an Ojibwa word meaning "on my way."

Come on -- didn't you think "Vin Diesel" sounded a little bit too much like an action hero? His birth name is a little less high-octane.

Her name embodies the cute-as-a-button schtick that made her famous, and there's no way Meg Ryan's career would have turned out the way it did had she stuck with her original clunker.

Good thing Prince gave Carmen Electra her moniker. Her real name happens to be very similar to that of a certain adult film star.

As a teenager in her native Australia, Portia de Rossi dreamed up her current name in order to sound famous and stylish. And that's exactly what she became.

A little Christian, a little outdoorsy, Faith Hill sounds like a country singer's name. This lady's birth name apparently didn't.

It's one of the most recognizable names in sports, but it was only given to him by a friend of his father. His real names are English and Thai, respectively.

As the only girl in the family band, Marie Osmond made the right call, going by a prettier name than the drab-sounding one her parents gave her.

The late Natalie Wood is forever remembered for the way she lit up the silver screen. But you have to wonder how Wood's life might have been different if she had kept the name her Russian immigrant parents gave her.

Steven Tyler's adopted last name might sound more rock-and-roll, but there's a certain charm in the one he left behind.

Before she was Anna Nicole Smith, she was Nikki Hart. And before that, there was that name she was actually born with.

Chevy Chase dropped his nerdy sounding name in favor of his now-famous one. And the current one comes from an English ballad, not from the city of Chevy Chase.

Tina Turner's marriage to Ike Turner may have been troubled, but she kept the marquee-friendly name he assigned to her early in her career nonetheless.

It's different for actors today, but way back when, Martin Sheen felt he had to drop his non-English-sounding name in order to land roles.

John Wayne famously had a name that was not especially manly-sounding. We're fairly certain that not too many people got away with teasing him, though.

Today the KISS frontman is Gene Simmons. Before that, he was Eugene Klein. And before that, he had an even less rock-and-roll-sounding name.

via: msn