Namely Marly

Gregory Peck began his journey in life in 1916 with the name Eldred. Like a lot of people he used the name given to him by his parents until he moved away in his early 20′s. I don’t know what it is about those college years, but it seems to inspire more than just higher education, it can also be a time for some to shed youthful monikers. Mikey becomes Mike, Candy becomes Candace, etc.

Peck earned a BA in English from Berkely, headed off to New York city, and shed that childhood name. “I never liked the name Eldred. Since nobody knew me in New York, I just changed to my middle name,” said Peck.

A combination of talent, looks, and a good name (I had to throw that last one in), led him to one of the most successful acting careers in the US. With all the famous roles throughout the years, he still considered Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird his favorite. “Hardly a day passes that I don’t think how lucky I was to be cast in that film,” Peck said in 1997 . “I recently sat at a dinner next to a woman who saw it when she was 14 years old, and she said it changed her life. I hear things like that all the time.”

Peck died in 2003. Brock Peters who played Tom Robinson in the Mockingbird movie spoke about Peck at his funeral. He said that “Atticus Finch gave him [Peck] an opportunity to play himself.”

He had a career studded with accomplishments from Academy Awards to the National Medal of Arts. I like to believe his name was just one part of that successful career.

Joaquin Phoenix has lived a fascinating life journey so far and his name seems to have been on a parallel path. The third of five children, he was originally named Joaquin Rafael Bottom. He comes from a family of unconventional, nearly exotic names including siblings River, Liberty, Rain, and Summer. Joaquin’s parents met in the late 1960′s, joined a religious cult and as a result moved to South America. Less than a decade later they decided they’d had enough of the cult, moved back to the US, and changed their family’s last name to Phoenix. The name represented to them rebirth and it was a time for great change in the family. Not only were they starting a new life with a new last name, but they also became vegan at this time and the family’s mother, Arlyn, changed her name to Heart. And Joaquin was ripe for some change of his own.

It was in this period that Joaquin (pronounced wah-keen) became dissatisfied with his own name. He began referring to himself as Leaf mostly because he wanted a name in a similar vein to his siblings but also because he was frustrated and embarrassed by his name which was not so well-known in the US. He said this about the change, “I was born in Puerto Rico and Joaquin is a Spanish name. And when I came to the US, nobody could pronounce it. They would say, ‘What’s your name?’ And I would say, ‘Joaquin’ and they would go, ‘Walk-ing? Walk – what?’ And you know how kids always get bothered with that kind of thing. Like, ‘No! My name is…’ So it bothered me and so I changed it.” In fact, Leaf River is the name he is credited with for his first acting parts from his childhood.

However, during his teen years he decided to resume using the name Joaquin. He has twice been nominated for an Academy Award and is the recipient of both a Golden Globe and a Grammy Award. His brother is the well-known late actor River Phoenix. Joaquin dated and was even engaged for awhile to actress Liv Tyler. (What a fascinating couple they would have made with both of them having changed their names!)

Early in his career he is quoted as saying, “That kind of fame; I couldn’t have it in my life. I love that we can sit on the lawn in Central Park and I’m just one of the millions. I don’t want to lose that. I just want to be right in the middle.” His fame has probably taken him beyond anything he expected and his name journey from Bottom, Joaquin, Phoenix, and Leaf has been along for the marvelous ride.

Robert Trebor has a face you know you’ve seen before. It makes sense because he’s been a character actor in movies like “52 Pick-up”, “Talk Radio”, and “The Devil’s Rejects.” He also played the role of “Salmoneus” in the TV shows “Xena” and “Hercules.” The thing is, I don’t think I’ve seen those movies and I’m really certain I’ve never watched those TV shows. But yet, somehow, Robert Trebor’s face still looks familiar to me. Maybe he just has one of those faces.

Face aside, the thing I find really interesting about this actor is his name (go figure!). He was given the name Robert Schenkman at birth. In an interview with Bret Ryan Rudnick, Trebor explains that when he went to sign up for the actor’s union, someone else had his exact name. (Wait a minute. There’s another actor with the name Robert Schenkman?) Trebor explained that it’s alright for actors to register with the same name, but it can cause a lot of confusion. In a field like acting where it’s all about name recognition, confusion is not a good thing. In explaining how he selected his new name he stated, “When I was about nine, I was a fan of Regal Crown sour candies, made by an English company called Trebor. And one day many years after, I just looked at the name “Trebor” and said ‘That’s my name backwards!’”

So Robert Trebor is a palindrome (check out my earlier post on palindromes.). Trebor described how his name change was not merely a stage name, but something more all-encompassing. He’s changed his passport, social security card, voter registration, etc. The Robert Trebor Facebook Fanpage is attestation to the actor’s cult-like following; his fans seem as devoted to the palindromic name as they are to the quirky, comedic actor.

This famous comedienne was given the name Trace Ullman upon her birth and she had this to say about it, “My real name is Trace Ullman, but I added the ‘y.’ My mother said it was spelled the American way, but I don’t think she can spell!”

She is also quoted as saying, “I always wanted a middle name. My mum used to tell me it was Mary but I never believed her. I looked on my birth certificate and I didn’t have one, just Trace Ullman.”

Ullman is currently starring in Showtime‘s, Tracey Ullman’s State of the Union which draws on Ullman’s brilliant impersonations and provides a humorous satire on life in America. In fact, Tracey began her variety shows at a young age; performing home-spun skits for her family.

I still say there’s something dynamic about someone who chooses their own name. We’re all given one at birth. The woman who referred to herself as “just Trace Ullman” was already beginning her life as an entertainer, but who knows? Maybe owning her own name by adding the “y” helped her own her own life as well!