To be a successful actor one has to put on a façade, a fake face if you will to portray the character they've taken on as a pseudo persona. Musicians do this too to create an illusion for their audiences. Sweet.

Some celebrities even take that idea to the next level and change their actual names. Take Tom Cruise. His last real name was Mapother (he uses his middle name for his last name today). Admit it, aren't you glad he did that?

Many celeb names don't even come close to their actual names. Take former Fat Actress and Star Trek lieutenant Kirstie Alley for instance. Her real name was Gladys Leeman. Whoa! Of course you've got rappers you expect not to have real names like Busta Rhymes whose birth certificate reads Trevor Smith, Jr.

Most of us know that Emilo Estevez is Martin Sheen's son whose real last name is Estevez too, but how about his bro, Carlos Irwin Estevez also known as one of two and a half men, Charlie Sheen?

There's our buddy, Speech, who has a bunch of cool smileys with us. What's the name his parents gave him? Todd Thomas. Hey, if he were an actor that would kinda work, wouldn't it? The same doesn't really cut it though for Gene Simmons who was born Chiam Witz.

Here are a few others that'll rattle your senses: Kim Cattrall is Clare Woodgate. Portia de Rossi is Amanda Lee Rogers. Larry King is Leibel Harvey Zeiger. Courtney Love? Michelle Harrison. Elvis Costello? Declan Patrick McManus (and I thought Costello's mom was inspired by The King).

By the way, my family's last name was Didechensky. Peter Didechensky. Sounds like a serious Russian novelist/hockey forward. "Here comes Didechensky! Look at him fly! Score! In his spare time Didechensky likes to brood about Siberia and relate it as a metaphor that reflects resentment of the worker to the current ruling class, a consistent theme in many of his writings." Ah, a boy can dream.

For more names to raise your eyebrows see this name outing site. Tell'em Mary Cathleen Collins sent you, or rather, Bo Derek.