The names our parents give us can define what kind of people we become. Some kids are given very unfortunate names that can lead to a lot of bullying in the future. And the sad thing is, some parents don’t even realize it until it’s too late. Fortunately, some correct their mistakes early on.
Comedian and actor Amy Schumer and her husband Chris Fischer had their first child in May 2019 and named him Gene Attell Fischer. A very interesting name, don’t you think? Well, the parents eventually realized that their son’s name sounds like the word “genital” when said out loud and officially changed it to Gene David.
Schumer’s story inspired others to share their own unfortunate name stories. As it turns out, lots of people have run into problems because of their names! Read on, dear Pandas, and let us know in the comments if you’ve ever had any issues with your own names. Bored Panda reached out to celebrity expert Mike Sington to hear his opinion about Schumer's situation, so be sure to scroll down for our interview with him!
This is comedian Amy Schumer. She had her first child in May 2019
Image credits: amyschumer
Here's her husband Chris Fischer holding their son who they named Gene Attell Fischer
Image credits: amyschumer
Schumer named her son in tribute of her close friend Dave Attell
Image credits: amyschumer
However, the couple eventually realized that their son's name sounds like the word "genital" when you say it out loud
Image credits: amyschumer
The parents thought it was best to protect their son from future embarrassment...
Image credits: amyschumer
...so they officially changed his name to Gene David Fischer
Image credits: amyschumer
Schumer openly joked about her mistake and took things in stride
Image credits: amyschumer
Comedian Schumer gave her son his unusual middle name “Attell” as a tribute to her close friend, fellow comedian Dave Attell.
38-year-old Schumer announced that she and her husband changed their kid’s name on the latest episode of her Spotify podcast Amy Schumer Presents: 3 Girls, 1 Keith.
“So do you guys know that Gene, our baby's name is officially changed? It's now Gene David Fischer. It was Gene Attell Fischer but we realized that, by accident, we named our son ‘genital,’” Schumer told her cohosts on the podcast.
A guest on the show, actor and comedian Claudia O’Doherty added that her mom had noticed that earlier: “My mom was like, 'Amy's called her son genital.' And I was like, 'What are you talking about?' And then, she was right.”
Meanwhile, Schumer’s friend Attell seemed to take the news pretty well. He was happy that the toddler now has his first name, even if “Attell” is now off the table.
"She may have prevented her son from years of suffering"
Celebrity expert Mike told us that he thinks Schumer made the right decision to change her son's name. "The kid would have been teased and bullied in school if classmates had found out his middle name," he said.
"Amy meant well by naming her son after a friend, but she didn’t think it through when the first name was considered with the middle name. By making the change, she may have prevented her son from years of suffering. Changing her son’s name was a bold move, and I admire Amy for doing it," Mike told us that Schumer helped her child avoid a lot of potential pain in the future.
After learning about Schumer's kid's name, lots of people shared their own unfortunate name stories
Celebrities change their names to make them more memorable or to simplify them
There are plenty of celebrities out there who have changed their names to make it big. For instance, music legend Freddie Mercury was born Farrokh Bulsara, wrestler Randy Savage was originally Randall Mario Poffo while actress Olivia Wilde had the unfortunate last name, Cockburn. By why do celebs change their names?
"Historically, celebrities have changed their names for one of two reasons: to make them memorable, by selecting a unique name, or to make them easier to remember, by simplifying a complicated or hard to spell name," Mike told Bored Panda.
"The practice is much less common today, when uniqueness seems to prevail—look at all the wacky celebrity baby names like Apple, Blue Ivy, North West, Saint, Chicago, Cricket, and Birdie. Occasionally, a celebrity has no choice. The Screen Actors Guild does not allow two actors to have the same name. So if your name is already 'taken,' you have to change it to something different!"