Celebrities You Probably Didn’t Know Use Stage Names
You might not know the name Mark Sinclair. But if you've heard of the Hollywood actor Vin Diesel, then you know who Mark Sinclair is — they're the same person.
Sinclair started using the name Vin Diesel when he worked in security at a nightclub because he didn't want people to know his real name.
He named himself "Vin" after his stepfather's surname, Vincent, and "Diesel" because he had a lot of energy, so his friends joked that his body must be burning diesel. When he started acting, he decided to keep the name.
Vin Diesel isn't the only celebrity to use a different name, though. In fact, it's quite common.
"Stage names" are often used to avoid confusion. Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, who the world knows as actor Michael Caine, used Michael Scott at the start of his career. But another actor in London was already using that name, so he changed his stage name to Michael Caine.
Albert Brooks is an actor and filmmaker known for films like Drive and Finding Nemo. But his real name is Albert Einstein — you can probably guess why he chose a different stage name!
Other people change their names to reinvent themselves — like Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, whose stage name Lady Gaga was inspired by the Queen song Radio Ga Ga.
Or Marilyn Monroe, who grew up as Norma Jeane Baker. According to TIME, "Marilyn" was chosen by Ben Lyon, who worked at 20th Century Fox. He said Norma Jeane reminded him of Broadway star Marilyn Miller. And "Monroe" was her mother's surname before marriage.
