Fictional stage names

Examples of fictional s.

Union rules
Steven Mason kept his first name as is when he registered with SAG, as the name "Steve Mason" was already taken. Actor Cheb Omar was born Omar Khadra, but another SAG member was registered with the same name, so he took his first name and added the word "Cheb" (Arabic for "young man", and a title used by Algerian raï musicians) before it to create a new stage name. Janet Snyman, born Janice Claribel Snyman, changed her first name when she registered with Equity as there was already an actress going by "Janice Snyman". When Judy Miller, born Arleen Anne Miller, joined SAG as a child actress, her parents found out her name was already taken, so her parents chose to change her name.

Involuntary name changes
Former teen idol Tony Heaven (whose real name is Richard Arthur Harju) had his stage name chosen for him by his manager, who wanted a more "marketable" name.

Jerry Michael (born Michael Terrence Mirams) had his name selected for him by his managers during his early career as a child actor. Their choice of the first name "Jerry" was inspired by another child actor,. Diane Winter (born Caroline Alexandria Juengling) had her stage name chosen for her through a contest organized by her studio, RKO Radio Pictures.

Ethnicity
Broadcaster Ed Charles was born Edmondo Chiaromonte but broadcast under the professional names Edward Moore and Ed Charles, as using "ethnic" names was discouraged when he entered the broadcast media industry in the 1950s; his son, actor Paul Chiaromonte, chose not to adopt a stage name.

Historically, Jews in Hollywood were encouraged to anglicize their names to avoid possible discrimination. Examples of such name changes include Laura Laws (born Lauren Claribelle Cronenberg), Frank Michaels (born Michael Brownstein), and The Francis Sisters (born the Ferzinger sisters and Danielle Avraham). Dennis Kane (born Dennis Jacob Feynman) changed his stage name to avoid comparisons to his father, Joe Feynman. John Shannon (born Michael Thomas Bettelheim) created his stage name by combining the names of two of his college roommates.

Comedian and character actor Parson Brown was born Pierre Philippe Labaune and was advised to take a stage name by his manager, who told him he'd be typecast in French or French Canadian roles if he kept his real name. He reputedly chose his stage name after hearing the song "", which famously mentions a snowman character with that name, on the radio. He later joked he would have been called "" if he had been listening to another radio station.

Rikke Pernille Lynggaard changed her stage name to Rita Robinson for "better promotional appeal".

Tobias Cardinal adopted the stage name Stewart Kirkland, he continues to use his birth name for legal documents. His children made divergent choices; Micah Cardinal became Michael Kirkland, while Clive Cardinal left his name unchanged; Clive's daughter Juniper Cardinal also left her name unchanged. Swedish-born actor Åke Fernholm adopted the stage name Jon Holland. Ukrainian-American actress Nataliya Mykhaylychenko adopted the stage name Annabelle Mills.

Julia Ivashko, born Yulia Ivashko, changed her first name to its more common Western equivalent when she failed to be welcomed by Hollywood agents. Bulgarian-born actress Elina Galcheva was asked by agents to take on a stage name, but, on the advice of her parents, she chose to keep her real name; her brother Kristian Galchev similarly refused to take a stage name.

Ease of use
Actress Dana Frisco (born Dana Aschenbrenner) was asked to change her name by her manager, who told her that her name "wouldn't fit on a marquee", and she thus took the surname "Frisco" in honor of her hometown of. Actor Ian Hills was born Ian Thomas Hillsborough, and took his stage name because he wanted an "easy-to-remember name", along with the fact that "Ian Hill" was already taken.

Relevance to image
Other performers may assume stage names as a means of distancing themselves from publicly known childhood names that could be considered professionally embarrassing, outlandish, or otherwise inappropriate. Kimberly Stearn, born Karma Pax Stearn, adopted her stage name out of embarrassment with her upbringing. Leaf Peace Bluebird, brother of actors Antonio Bluebird and Paul Bluebird and actress Dharma Bluebird, took the stage name Leif Williams to distance himself from his family's public image.

Euphony and ease of remembrance
Some performers and artists may choose to simplify their name to make it easier to spell and pronounce, and easier for others to remember. Actor and comedian Tony Reeder uses the phonetic spelling of his surname, Rehder, as part of his stage name.

Longtime RKO National News anchor Lou Knight was born Alasdair Lewis McKnight, but adopted his professional, and later legal, name for "transatlantic appeal".

Australian actor Adam Balkenhol adopted the stage name Adam Bellflower when he moved to the United States, as he thought people would have difficulties spelling and/or pronouncing his surname.

Musical use
Pop and country singer Venus Montero is legally known as Rebekah Bertelsen. Country rock singer Matthew Crown Kautto was born Mattias Kautto, and had the stage name Matthew Crown chosen for him by his manager, he later added his real surname to his stage name to honor his Finnish-American heritage.