I think it's 2 battles. 1- Should I choose a stage name? 2- What will it be? If your name sucks, or is hard to pronounce or spell, you need to simplify it and make it easy for people to remember, marketing etc...As far as figuring out what it will be...you are doing the right thing...leaving it to the Café members for suggestions and throwing names out there. That's all you can do. Hopefully one will stick. But yeah, if you can try to incorporate your first name into the stage name and change the last, it isn't to difficult. IMO

Hmmm.... "IMO"... now there's a "unique" name!

Perhaps "IMO The GREAT!" or... "The Great IMO!"

lol

Danny,

Is your real last name pronounced coin?

That has somewhat of a magic ring to it.... You could just change the spelling to "coin" or "coins".

I like "Danny Wonders" a lot - for all the reasons you stated above. I personally don't think Tommy Wonder is too close. But that would be a decision you would have to make on your own. If you personally feel that the names are too close, then they are.....



I always wondered who came first, Kevin James the magician, or Kevin James the comedian/actor????




Scott (needs a stage name himself) Brown

I use one as well. I work full-time as a consultant for several large companies and my primary area of focus is information security. I speak on occasion and have done so in several large venues. Unfortunately, I realize there are some who may consider my hobby/part-time gig a rather whimsical thing and may look down on me for my interests. That being said, and despite being a rather flamboyant personality, I do cherish my and my family's privacy. So, to answer your question, yes - for many reasons - I do use a stage name.

I used one for many years because it helped me draw a firm line between my career persona and my private life.

The biggest payoff was that if I were addressed by someone I didn't know (on the phone, or some circumstance in which I couldn't remember who the person was) I'd know immediately whether I needed to reply to them as my wife's husband and my kids' father and probably their kid's scoutmaster, or whether they were expecting to talk to a magician (meaning they were probably a customer).

I am a family entertainer going by Princess Lexiloo. Corporate loves me

No trouble pronouncing or spelling, they go home with too much promo.

I've followed the example of such persons as Mr. T and the wrestler, John R:

Steve M

Robert Bloor is available if anyone wants it. PM for fee information.

Requirements: Must not have any visible talent, originality or personality.

If you want to use a stage name, fine. No biggie. Some do some don't.

Make sure your payment terms are spelled out in contract for your legal name or business name.

Robert "Not Bloor the Wh0re" Smith

Just my 2 cents, I think Danny Coyne is a great name for a magician. Or Daniel Coyne. I wouldn't change it.

I started out doing a lot of street magic and kid shows. I chose the Name "Prof. Gizmo." I was a clown so it also worked for that. Whether clown or magician I was Prof. Gizmo. I was doing a roller rink show every week. After the show was a roller hockey pickup game. I would be wearing clown make-up for the show and hang around to play hockey in the next session. I would still have the clown makeup on to play hockey. They started calling me Giz! "Giz pass the puck!"
The guys in Seattle magic club would call me Giz or Professor. I started getting shows on Cruise boats and Microsoft. My friend told me that adults may not want to book "Prof. Gizmo." I had to agree, so I started calling myself "The Black Belt Magician." (It came to me at about 2AM one night.) It seemed to work. I hope to do more corporate shows so the "Black Belt Magician is what I go by now. Unfortunately Prof. Gizmo or "Giz" is still around. It's what my grandsons still call me. Choose wisely.

Since your initials are DRC how about DR. C? How about "Coyne the con" if you do 3 card monte or 3 shell game? How about "Cards and Coyne?" Otherwise Daniel Coyne the . . .
Think of your character or personna and give that a name.
Forget the inni's or "worlds greatest!
I always liked Penn & Tellers moniker: "A couple of eccentric guys who know how to do a few cool things."
Good luck!!!

...Danny Coy

...Daniel Coy and Associates

My stage name is

Professor Eugene Witless, BalloonOlogist
scientific savant and all around super genius
Inventor of the portable black hole and the famed pocket house
World renound researcher of the Canine Latexus aka the little Rubber Doggie

I could go on...
I now have a whole lot of false acheivments and am getting ready to release web based videos of "The Professor's Lab"
that is also going to have a blog going on

Gee Whiz... and I liked the name "Mike Clay"... so I just bought the dot com address for it