See the man in the picture above? What’s his name, punk rockers?
If you said “Eugene Richard O’Connor,” you lose. It’s actually legendary Dead Boys guitarist Cheetah Chrome whose old, discarded birth name is Eugene O’Connor. But he’s been known to the world as Cheetah Chrome for more than 40 years. It’s the name on his albums, the name on his gripping and beautifully written (without a ghostwriter!) autobiography which you should read, the name on his Wikipedia page, and the name everyone’s used to compliment him and swear at him for over four decades.
It is not, however, the name on his Facebook account, which he uses to communicate with fans and friends around the world. Facebook insists he use the name “Eugene Richard O’Connor,” the name he was given when he was born in Cleveland in 1955 and a name almost no one knows him by.
He’d been using the name Cheetah Chrome for years until early this fall when the change was forced on him by a Facebook rule forbidding the use of pseudonyms — a rule that’s commonly disregarded and for which Facebook has given dispensation for drag queens and burlesque performers who commonly appear under a stage name. Such a rule would appear to also apply to rockers such as Cheetah, especially since — unlike many drag queens and burlesque performers who have “straight” lives and name — Cheetah is Cheetah in all facets of his life. He’s not trying to conceal his identity or hide from anyone, the reason Facebook gives for insisting on “real” names. If anything, the use of “Eugene O’Connor” conceals his identity.
He’s now at full-on war with Facebook, trying to make them see sense. He’s tracked down emails and Facebook pages for various Facebook executives all the way up to founder Mark Zuckerberg and has been urging all his Facebook friends to contact them. He’s brought his case to the attention of the media.
He became particularly incensed when he learned that a French Dead Boys fan had opened a page as “Cheetah Chrome.” He brought this to Facebook’s attention and nothing happened. He communicated with her and she agreeably took it down, but she wasn’t the offender here. He also became irritated when Facebook generated its own “fan page” for Cheetah Chrome.
On November 24, he posted, “Facebook update: I made another page for myself, using the name Cheetah Chrome. Guess what? THE ASSHOLES AT FACEBOOK TOOK IT DOWN!!! Yet there are now two more pages using my name with no problem.
FUCK FACEBOOK, FUCK ZUCKERBERG AND HIS MINIONS.”
There’s even a Facebook page called “Give Cheetah Chrome his Name Back.”
To keep up with his battle, follow him on Facebook. Just remember to look for “Eugene Richard O’Connor” for now.