MovieChat Forums > Back to School (1986) Discussion > Why did he shorten his last name?

Why did he shorten his last name?

posted 10 years ago by charli3
4 replies | jump to latest

Thornton is not Jewish is he?

[–] v_anzaldua 10 years ago

No, Italian. He shortened his last name probably for the same reason that many others of his generation did--to make himself sound more Americanized.

[–] charli3 10 years ago

Right. I was thinking of how the Germans, Jewish, and Polish people changed the variation of their last names during that time. Ex Kryzewski to Kross, Brown from Von Bron ect...

[–] stevenackerman69 9 years ago

Yeah, that's what I thought too.

[–] kylopod 9 years ago

Of course, Dangerfield is Jewish, and so is Keith Gordon. It's common in Hollywood for Jews to play Italians and vice versa.