Tagline Deprived
Rockefeller, Stanislavsky, Jones or White or Brown–
some names smack of commonness, others of renown.
We are born with surnames, then get given names and pet names.
Whether born or given, it is sure that we will get names.
Folks who do not like their names choose names that are more regal,
then change themselves to suit the names once they have become legal.
Mark Twain is a pen name, and Saki, too, was one.
And Chloe Wofford took the name of Toni Morrison!
Writers need names for their pens and actors for the screen.
Afterwards, the names their parents gave are rarely seen.
Allen Konigsberg shifted his first name to his last,
assumed the name of Woody, and the man became a blast!
Jennifer Anastassakis is difficult to say,
but Aniston is simple to recall from day-to-day.
Some call others names that are pejorative or racial,
or names based on peculiarities of form or facial.
Whether we are large or small, hirsute or merely bald–
all these factors might affect what nickname we’ll be called.
“Gordo, Freckles, Skinny, Baldy, Curly, “Hey there, Chubs!”
The ones called by these names find little humor in these dubs.
Crooks and other felons assume pseudonyms because
It hides their identity while hiding from the fuzz.
But in this modern age, the name game is more specialized.
Great-grandmothers and grandfathers would be so surprised
at all the different names we need for social media.
It’s gotten so we need a name encyclopedia
to help us figure out the names for new identities
what’s more, to help us out with all the lingo, if you please.
I do not know. What is this hashtag? What’s a tagline, too?
When I read this prompt, I swear I knew not what to do.
And so I wrote this lengthy poem of pseudonym and name,
only to look up “tagline” and find, much to my shame,
it has nil to do with hashtags or name tags or of title,
screen names, pen names, pet names or of this whole name recital!
It’s just a simple phrase of who I am and how I cope.
If I had done a little research, I would not be such a dope.
I could have looked it up in Google or in other online books.
Instead, I fear I’ve earned this tag: “She writes before she looks!”
The Prompt: Tagline–Often our blogs have taglines. But what if humans did, too? What would your tagline be? (Would that I had researched this topic before writing.)
I enjoyed reading this!
LikeLiked by 1 person
This made me giggle, you’re so funny.
LikeLike
Nice last line. It’s a great tagline. I like knowing random pop culture facts. So thanks for the trivia.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love trivia as well. Unfortunately, Google has trivialized trivia! Ah well, easy come, still interesting..Thanks for reading and commenting, poetdabbler. Judy
LikeLike
Pingback: Branded | Ireland, Multiple Sclerosis & Me
Pingback: Fool Me Once: The Prompt | The Daily Prompt Alternative
I, too, am tagline challenged.
LikeLike