Second Opinion / OTHER MEDIA : HISPANIC REPORTER : Latinos Losing Out in Hollywood Name Game

They are famous U.S. celebrities and unknown Latinos: Florencia Vicenta de Casillas, Raquel Tejada, Baldemar Huertas, Rocky Echeverria. You probably know them by their stage names: Vikki Carr, Raquel Welch, Freddy Fender and Steven Bauer.

It happens in every sector of society. But it is nowhere more apparent than in the entertainment industry, where over the years talented Latinos have been encouraged to deny their roots by changing their names.

Using a stage name is common among entertainers, but do they also have to change their ethnicity when choosing a new surname? The answer is no. Take Dolores del Rio, the Mexican actress whose real name was Martinez. She held on to her heritage when she chose a stage name and still managed to conquer Hollywood.

In the old days of Hollywood, for some celebrities, it was a matter of survival. They were constantly facing the dilemma of either hiding their heritage or losing an acting job. This makes it hard to judge and condemn them, but it also makes it easy to admire people like Desi Arnaz, Ricardo Montalban, Jose Ferrer, Cesar Romero and Fernando Lamas. By refusing to sell out their roots, they opened doors for today’s Latino celebrities who are proud of their surnames: Andy Garcia, Raul Julia, Rita Moreno, Edward James Olmos, Paul Rodriguez and many others.

Still, many lead roles that call for a Latino character are given to non-Latinos. Al Pacino played the Cuban “Scarface.” Omar Sharif was Che Guevara. Natalie Wood was Maria in “West Side Story.”

In some circles, it is now convenient to have a Latino name. I know a woman who married a Latino and kept using her non-Latino maiden name. She was recently told by her agent to drop her maiden name and start using her husband’s because she has a better shot at finding a job as a television reporter if she pretends to be a Latina. Go figure.

Excerpted from an article by Miguel Perez in Hispanic Reporter magazine, which is published monthly in Los Angeles.