Whoopi Goldberg reveals birth name
Whoopi Goldberg has surprised The View audiences by revealing her birth name.
On Monday’s episode of the US daytime talk show, the co-hosts debated the necessity of a new platform that can tell house hunters in the US the political affiliations of their potential neighbours.
While they were discussing the topic, Whoopi casually dropped her real birth name, with viewers wondering if they'd heard her correctly.
Whoopi made it clear that she was against the start-up, saying: “That is not a good idea because number one, it’s none of your business, and number two, it just fosters more division."
Co-host Sunny Hostin said: “I have a multiracial family, my goddaughter is gay, some of my best friends are trans. I wouldn’t want to live next to an extremist that would make my family feel unwelcome.”
She then clarified, “But I don’t think that’s a political affiliation thing. I think it’s a behavioural thing.”
Goldberg added that there's been a shift in recent years with more people openly talking about their political affiliations.
“I was raised, you never asked anybody how they were voting. I would say, ‘Ma, who are you going to vote for?’ and she’d just give me that look. And she’d say to me, ‘Caryn, that’s nobody’s business,’” she recalled.
Whoopi’s birth name is actually Caryn - pronounced ‘Karen'.
When asked why she changed it, Goldberg replied in an old interview: “Here’s the thing. When you’re performing on stage, you never really have time to go into the bathroom and close the door. So if you get a little gassy, you’ve got to let it go.
“So people used to say to me, ‘You are like a whoopee cushion.’ And that’s where the name came from.”
Image: The View