Pop icon Cher's real name is Cherilyn Sarkisian - at least that's what the singer, who was sued for kidnapping her own son, thought for a long time. For over 30 years, to be precise. The artist now revealed this episode of her life in her new memoir, entitled Cher: The Memoir, Part One, which came out on 19 November 2024. She joins the list of many celebrities who have revealed intimate details about their lives in a book.
Discover our latest podcast
According to the report, her real name is Cheryl. She found this out in 1979 when she wanted to change her name to Cher. Her mother, who was only 19 years old when she gave birth, was so exhausted after the birth that she was overwhelmed when the midwife asked her what little Cher's name was. As a result, she made a small mistake.
Cher was in a toxic marriage
The singer, who has already been nominated for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, revisits these and other memories in her biography—the second part of which is also due to be published. A less pleasant experience in her life was her marriage to Sonny Bono, eleven years her senior, with whom she began her career in the 1960s. It is no longer a secret that her relationship with the older man was rather toxic.
However, he is also said to have cheated on Cher, as she reports - after she had just had to cope with her third miscarriage. This is reported in the magazines Gala and Bunte. She is said to have caught her husband red-handed in her own home in 1967. The singer, actor and politician, who died in a skiing accident at the age of 62, had been cheating on the music icon with his secretary. Cher had caught the two of them on their way to the front door at night. She herself was just 21 years old at the time. Today, she describes the whole thing as a 'damn cliché', as her late ex-husband's mistress also 'happened to be young and blonde'.
Cher met Sonny when she was only sixteen
The two met in 1962 - Cher moved in with him when she was just 16 years old. The now 78-year-old singer was fascinated by him right from the start, as she recounts. He was 'one of the most interesting men I've ever seen'.
However, despite her young age, she did not have her first sexual experience with him when she met him, but with a boy from her neighbourhood at the age of 14.
According to Rolling Stone, she slept with him in revenge after he 'dumped' her. Cher explained that she felt so 'violated' that she wanted to reject him as much as he wanted to reject her. She told him to 'go home and never come back'. He then tried to contact her several more times, but she never spoke to him again.
The second part of the icon's memoir is also due to be published next year.
This article has been translated from Oh!MyMag DE.
Read more:
Boris Becker: The tennis star has had some very high profile love affairs
Phillip Schofield: Lorraine Kelly explains how the presenter is doing months after scandalous affair
Amanda Holden's ex-husband Les Dennis reveals how he really feels about her years after her affair
Sources used:
Daily Star: Cher discovered real name after mother's birth certificate mishap aged just 19
Spiegel: Mix-up in hospital Cher was "shocked" when she found out her real name
Bunte: Cher: Her husband cheated when she lost her third child
Gala: Cher When she lost her third child, her husband had fun with his secretary
Rolling Stone: Cher had sex at 14...for revenge on a boy
