Küss mich, ich spreche Deutsch !

(Kiss me, I speak German !)

German~American Day, October 6th

These well-known Americans may not know or have known German, but their ancestors who came from Germany, Austria, or Switzerland did.

* Doris Day (real name Doris Kappelhoff)

* James Garner (real name James Bumgarner)

* Fred Astaire (real name Frederick Austerlitz)

* Ralph Lauren (real name Lifshitz - from the German Liebschutz meaning ' loving support')

* Sandra Bullock

* Lou Gehrig

* Barbra Streisand

* Elvis Presley (anglicized form of Pressler)

* Lawrence Welk

* Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio

* Babe Ruth (George Herman Ruth)

* Dr. Henry Heimlich (the Heimlich maneuver)

* Billy Wilder (Wilhelm Wilder)

* Johnny Weissmuller (Tarzan)

* Dwight David Eisenhower

* Oscar Hammerstein II

* Milton Hershey

* Clark Gable (his mother was Adeline Hershelman)

* Kirsten Dunst * Mitzi Gaynor (Francesca Mitzi von Gerber)

* Renee Zellweger

* Levi Strauss (Levis jeans)

* Joseph Pulitzer (The Pulitzer Prize)

* Heinrich Steinweg (Henry Steinway, piano maker) and more à

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* Arthur Murray (real last name Teichman) * Oscar Mayer

* Paul Newman (anglicized form of Neumann) * Julie Newmar (real name Julia Newmeyer)

* Sally Jessy Raphael (real last name Lowenthal) * Donna Reed (real last name Mullenger)

* Louis Nye (real name Louis Nyestadt) * Hugh O'Brien (real last name Krampe)

* Sydney Omarr (real last name Kimmelman) * Eugene Ormandy (real name Jeno Blau)

* Dorothy Parker (real last name Rothschild) * Les Paul (real name Lester Polsfuss)

* Molly Pitcher (real last name Ludwig) * Tony Randall (real name Leonard Rosenberg)

* Edward G. Robinson (real name Emanuel Goldenberg) * Charles Schulz (creator of "Peanuts")

* Robert Reed (The Brady Bunch - real name * Larry King (real last name Zeigler)

John Robert Rietz) * Beverly Sills (real name Belle Silverman)

* Jerry Seinfeld * Dr. Seuss (real name Theodor Seuss Geisel)

* Bob Shane (real last name Schoen - The * Shel Silverstein

Kingston Trio) * Kathryn Murray (née Kohnfelder)

* Buffalo Bob Smith (real name Robert Emil Schmidt)

* Bruce Willis (his mother is German) * Barbara Bain (real name Millie Fogel)

* Lauren Bacall (real name Betty Perske) * Rona Barrett (real name Rona Burstein)

* John Denver (real last name Deutschendorf) * Houdini (real name Ehrich Weiss)

* Norman Schwarzkopf * Woody Allen (real name Allen Konigsberg)

* Estee Lauder * Helen Keller

* Jill St. John (real last name Oppenheim) * Gene Barry (real name Eugene Klass)

* Eddie Albert (real name Edward Heimberger) * Joey Bishop (real name Joseph Gottlieb)

* June Allyson (real name Ella Geisman) * George Burns (real name Nathan Birnbaum)

* Bea Arthur (real name Bernice Frankel) * Judy Garland (real name Frances Gumm)

* Mary Kay (real name Mary Katherine Wagner) * Edward G. Robinson (real name Goldenberg)

* Eddie Rickenbacker (real name Richenbacher) * Rock Hudson (real name Roy Scherer)

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