Ten Strange Names Rock Stars Gave Their Kids | Phoenix New Times Ten Strange Names Rock Stars Gave Their Kids Or sign in with a social account: FACEBOOK GOOGLE + TWITTER YAHOO! Don't have an account yet? Sign Up › Connect. Discover. Share. Get the most out of your experience with a personalized all-access pass to everything local on events, music, restaurants, news and more. Enter your email or sign up with a social account to get started FACEBOOK TWITTER GOOGLE+ YAHOO! Don't have an account yet? Sign Up › Ten Strange Names Rock Stars Gave Their Kids Wednesday, July 13, 2011 at 10 a.m. Mama, don't let your babies grow up to be Bronxes -- or Diezels or Moon Units. Wikimedia Commons Print Article On Monday night, singer Jewel and her husband, Ty Murray, had their first child, a boy they named Kase Townes Murray. And while "Kase Townes" isn't that bizarre of a name, it's not as traditional as say, Jason or John or Steven. But what do musicians and rock stars care about tradition, anyway?

Here are ten wild and weird names given to children by their famous parents. Bronx Mowgli Wentz (born November 20, 2008): Yes, the offspring of Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson is named after a New York City borough. Wentz told Time that "Brooklyn gets a lot of love. It's time for the Bronx to get a little bit of love too." (On a side note, David and Victoria Beckham have a son named Brooklyn). Apple Blythe Allison Martin (born May 14, 2004) : The daughter of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and actor Gwyneth Paltrow's name isn't too weird, save for her first name, Apple -- no doubt inspired by The Beatles' record label, more so than the fruit. The couple had a baby boy in April of 2006. Rather than name him Orange or Banana, they went with Moses Bruce Anthony Martin. Audio Science Clayton (born May 23, 2003): With a name like Audio Science, the son of actor and musician Shannyn Sossamon and children's book author Dallas Clayton probably gets teased a ton in school.

Alice Cooper's daughter, Calico ​Calico Cooper (born 1981): Okay, so we could hardly expect a traditional baby name from Shock Rocker supreme Alice Cooper, but to name your daughter after a breed of cat? It makes Calico's sister, Sonora Rose, seem normally-named. Fifi Trixibell Geldof (born March 31, 1983): Like Cooper, former Boomtown Rats singer (and star of Pink Floyd's The Wall movie) Bob Geldof can't resist giving his kids crazy names. He's also father to Peaches Honeyblossom Geldof and Little Pixie Geldof. Diezel Ky Braxton-Lewis (born born March 31, 2003): Diezel is the son of singer Toni Braxton and musician Keri Lewis (of Mint Condition). Diezels' older brother is named Denim Cole Braxton-Lewis. Heaven Love'on Stone and God'lss Love Stone (born 2002 and 2005): These poor kids.

Sure, their parents (Al Stone and R&B singer Lil' Mo) may be cool, but their children sound like trinkets you'd buy in a New Age bookstore. Frank Zappa's daughter, Moon Unit Wikimedia Commons ​Seven Sirius (born 1997): This is a seriously strange name, even considering the progenitors: Erykah Badu and Andre 3000 of Outkast. It's hard to tell which parent in this now-separated couple came up with the name, but considering what Badu named her other two children -- Puma Sabti and Mars Merkaba -- we can probably give her the uh, credit. Bluebell Madonna (born May 14, 2006): Former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell gave birth to her daughter by C-section, and named her after a rare flower and her favorite singer. Luckily, she was into bluebells and Madonna. It could have been worse. It could have been Milk Thistle Merman or Catnip Benatar. All of Frank Zappa's children. Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet, and Diva Muffin.

With baby names like that, you've got to wonder what Frank Zappa named his dogs. The top 10 bizarre children names of celebrities - People - Entertainment The top 10 bizarre children names of celebrities Moon Unit Zappa. Photo: Brendan Esposito Frank Zappa's daughter Moon Unit has topped a list of celebrity offspring with the most bizarre names, according to an online poll published today. Another of the late US singer-songwriter's four children - Dweezil - also makes the top 10 at No. 7, but there are no mentions of his two other children: Ahmed Emuukha Rodan and Diva Muffin. Moon Unit Zappa won out ahead of Apple, daughter of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow. Behind them followed Misty Kyd, Texas singer Sharleen Spiteri's daughter; Geronimo, Blur bass guitarist Alex James's son; and Heavenly Hirani Tiger Lily, the only daughter of the late INXS star Michael Hutchence and Paula Yates.

The survey of 2300 people - carried out by online entertainment site getLIVE.co.uk - found the names of Michael Jackson's children, Prince Michael and Prince Michael II, were not "wacko" enough for the top 10. "Rock stars have always been known for their outrageous living," said the website's international new media vice-president, Mark Yovich. "But no amount of sex, drugs and debauchery can ever be as bad as naming your offspring a peculiar name that they have to live with for the rest of their life." Asked once why he gave his children such unusual names, Zappa reputedly said simply: "Because I wanted to." He also considered "Zappa" might be more of a problem than their unconventional first names.

The top 10 is: 1 Moon Unit - Frank Zappa 2 Apple - Chris Martin/Gwyneth Paltrow 3 Misty Kyd - Sharleen Spiteri 4 Geronimo - Alex James 5 Heavenly Hirani Tiger Lily - Michael Hutchence/Paula Yates 6 Dandelion - Keith Richards (Rolling Stones) 7 Dweezil - Frank Zappa 8 Elijah Bob Patricius Guggi Q - Bono (U2) 9 Zowie Bowie - David Bowie 10 Rufus Tiger - Roger Taylor (Queen) AFP Whatever happened to baby Moon Unit Zappa? | The Independent This Britain Whatever happened to baby Moon Unit Zappa? Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow are calling their daughter Apple, following the celebrity tradition for unusual names. Cahal Milmo reports on how the children cope Sunday 16 May 2004 23:00 BST Click to follow The Independent Online When Frank asked his 12-year-old daughter whether she would like a diaphragm and her own flat to have sex with boys, it was just one more unconventional moment for a child named after an astronomical measurement.

Name: Moon Unit (Parents: Frank and Gail Zappa) When Frank asked his 12-year-old daughter whether she would like a diaphragm and her own flat to have sex with boys, it was just one more unconventional moment for a child named after an astronomical measurement. Moon Unit, along with her fellow siblings Ahmet, Diva and Dweezil, was one of the first in the modern era to shoulder the burden of their rock star parents' taste in outlandish monikers. She is also one of the few who has spoken freely about what she sees as the damaging effects of an alternative 1970s upbringing ranging from a strange name to the freedom to do anything she wished. Speaking after the publication of her first novel four years ago, she said: "In my house, it was a free zone. It was a be-yourself zone. We had slumber parties - but you could have sex in the house if you wanted. "I was offered a diaphragm at age 12, but I didn't know what it was for.

In my 20s, I realised not everyone knew what it sounded like when their parents had sex." By the age of 18, Moon Unit was in therapy and has since frequently complained of the problems created by being the offspring of a famous mother or father. Psychotherapists say one of the most common problems for these children is coping with the expectation that they have the same talent and personality as their celebrity parent. Moon Unit said: "Professionally, having a famous dad has been nightmarish - a total hindrance. Because there's an association with my family. People think I'm wacky and they already think that before I walk in the room. "I didn't have any motivation and the result was misery," she said. "I spent hours locked away in my room. I was a complete hermit. "I really wanted to be a nun, but I'd already had sex and I hadn't been raised with any religion, so I knew that was out of the question. The problem was that my parents didn't even notice." Now aged 36, Moon Unit - who prefers to be called Moon - is a successful actress, comedian, sculptor and writer. She lives in Los Angeles.

Her husband, musician Paul Doucette, said: "Her name has been part of pop culture ever since she was born. It was a news story when she was born that this crazy rock star guy named his kid Moon Unit. She is used to it. She has had it her whole life." Name: Zowie (Parents: David and Angie Bowie) Despite his pedigree in rebellion, Zowie Bowie, the eldest son of rock legend David and his first wife Angie, wasted little time in consigning to history the rock'n'roll name given to him at his birth in 1971. While at Gordonstoun, the Scottish public school attended by Prince Charles, Bowie Junior had changed his first name to Joe. Zowie, Bowie experts say, is the male version of Zoe, derived from the Greek for life. After Zowie's birth, his father, then known as the flame-haired Ziggy Stardust, wrote a song dedicated to him called "Kooks". Not content with escaping his father's taste for rhyming names, Joe also reverted to the original family surname of Jones.

Apparently revelling in his anonymity as Joe Jones, he gained seven O Levels at Gordonstoun before taking A levels in London and doing a degree in philosophy at Ohio. Jones reportedly had ambitions to become an academic. But he has since pursued more creative avenues. Three years ago, residents of Clerkenwell, north London, found themselves sharing their area with a young student sporting a sheepskin jacket, a wispy beard and the name Duncan Jones. It was Zowie (aka Joe, aka Duncan) who had moved to London from Manhattan to follow a three-year course at the International Film School in Covent Garden. Name: Rolan Bolan (Parents: Marc Bolan (and Gloria Jones) His father was the androgynous permed icon of glam rock and proto-punk whose life was cut short by a tree on Barnes Common at the age of 29. When Marc Bolan, the lead singer of T Rex, died in that car crash in 1977, his son, Rolan, was not yet two years old. Unsurprisingly, he has few memories of his father.

But Rolan's life has in many ways been shaped by the man who, according to rock legend, chose his son's alliterative as part of a pact with David Bowie when he called his child Zowie. Unlike Zowie, Rolan saw no reason to baulk at his comedic name. "It gave me a sense of humour," he says. "If people laughed, I laughed with them. It was the name my dad gave me and it will do for me." It is not a name that gave Rolan access to his father's millions, though. Due to an overseas trust fund set up by Marc Bolan before he met Rolan's mother, Gloria Jones, who was driving the Mini in which the pop star died, his son has been denied the royalties from hits such as "Life's An Elevator" or "20th Century Boy". Rolan, now 29, has vowed to try to unravel the trust, saying he wants to "protect my father's memory in a dignified way". But he has also insisted he wants to make his own way in life. Rolan was raised in his mother's native California and did not see any footage of his father until he was 18.

"I remember spending my second birthday in the hospital with mum and, although nobody said 'your dad's dead', somehow I just seemed to know," he said four years ago. Despite his mother's reluctance to buy him a guitar as child, Rolan has ended up as a musician after periods as a jewellery store worker and a model for Tommy Hilfiger. Name: Fifi Trixibelle (Parents: Bob Geldof and Paula Yates) As one quarter of perhaps the four most exotically named siblings of recent times, the eldest daughter of Bob Geldof and Paula Yates has often found herself the subject of sly derision for her name and, since her mother's death, mawkish sympathy. Along with her sisters, Peaches Honeyblossom and Pixie, and her half-sister Heavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily (the daughter of Ms Yates and INXS singer Michael Hutchence), Fifi's childhood was played out against a backdrop of a bitter divorce and her mother's struggle with drugs and eventual suicide in 2000. Ms Yates is said to have chosen her daughters' ethereal names as part of her desire to give them the sort of fairytale upbringing that she would have craved for herself.

Sadly, it was a wish that has not been reflected in reality. When Fifi found herself arrested for being drunk and incapable after a marathon drinking session two years ago, parts of the media eagerly leapt upon her embarrassment as proof of yet another celebrity wild child driven off the rails by parental fame and tragedy. In a magazine interview in 2001, Sir Bob described Fifi as a "great companion, fantastic fun, a gorgeous girl, though the most like in me in that she can also be uncooperative and surly. She walks like me, scowls at people like I do, is iconoclastic to a fault." According to those who know her, Fifi, 21, is a remarkably level-headed, if occasionally boisterous, young woman despite her difficult childhood. Her parents' marriage dissolved into a public slanging match when she was 12. She attended Bedgebury, the £5,000-a-term private school in Kent, and later taught in a progressive Montessori school. She has since dedicated herself to a cosy family existence - albeit with a few appearances on London's party circuit.

Name: China 'god' Slick (Parents: Grace Slick and Paul Kantner) When Grace Slick, the lead singer of 1970s band Jefferson Airplane, was asked by a nurse for the name of her newborn daughter, her answer was: "god. We spell it with a small 'g' because we want her to be humble." It was a joke. Instead, she merely named her child after the world's most populous country. Name: Brooklyn Beckham (Parents: David and Victoria Beckham) Brooklyn, now five, was named after the New York borough where he was conceived. News that Posh was pregnant in 2002 sparked speculation that they would choose another name by geography. But when asked why Romeo, David said: "It's just a name we love." Names: Daisy Boo Oliver (Parents: Jamie and Jools Oliver) Jamie Oliver proved that strange names were not the unique preserve of pop stars and footballers when he announced the birth of his second child last year. The celebrity chef, whose first daughter is called Poppy Honey, explained that Boo was in fact the nickname of his wife, Jools.

Name: Dandelion Pallenberg (Parents: Anita Pallenberg and Keith Richards) The daughter of Rolling Stones' paramour Anita Pallenberg and guitarist Keith Richards was born into a relationship which declined into heroin. Dandelion later changed her name to Angela, became teetotal and married a joiner. Name: Tallulah Willis (Parents: Bruce Willis and Demi Moore) Demi Moore and Bruce Willis named their first two daughters Rumer, an early 20th-century English novelist, and Scout, the narrator in To Kill a Mockingbird). They were due to name the third after blues musician Muddy Walters but changed their minds to call her Tallulah after the moll in Bugsy Malone). Name: Elijah Bob Patricius Guggi Q Hewson (Parents: Bono and Ali Hewson) The U2 singer Bono's third child was nameless for five days before his six-barrelled monicker was revealed. The Q refers to Quincy Jones, a friend of Bono, while Guggi comes from a member of the Virgin Prunes.

More about: Zappa family drama: A look at where Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet and Diva are today - LA Times Zappa family drama: A look at where Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet and Diva are today Ahmet Zappa Robert Gauthier / Los Angleles Times Ahmet Zappa in his parents' old office at the Zappa family compound in Laurel Canyon. Ahmet Zappa in his parents' old office at the Zappa family compound in Laurel Canyon. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angleles Times) By Randall Roberts Frank Zappa’s rich musical and cultural legacy, and which children have a right to profit off it, have recently become the subject of a public and contentious family battle . The children of Frank and Gail Zappa – Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet and Diva – were left unequal shares of the Zappa Family Trust, which owns the rights to a massive trove of music and other creative output by the songwriter, filmmaker and producer — more than 60 albums were released during Zappa’s lifetime and 40 posthumously.

Thanks to a decision by their mother, who died in 2015, Ahmet, 42, and his younger sister, Diva, 36, share control of the trust — to the dismay and anger of their two older siblings, Dweezil, 46, and Moon, 48, who received smaller portions. But each inherited equal levels of their father’s independent spirit, a sensibility that is seeing renewed attention due to the arrival of the documentary “Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words.” Below is a look at what the Zappa kids are up to now. Moon Unit Zappa Moon Unit Zappa (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) The eldest Zappa child is arguably the most well-known, due in large part to her teenage star turn on “Valley Girl.” The song, a collaboration between father and daughter that appeared on Frank’s 1982 album “Ship Arriving Too Late to Save a Drowning Witch,” poked fun at the California Valleyspeak dialect unique to teenage girls in the San Fernando Valley at the time.

In the intervening decades, Moon has continued to live a creative life, appearing on such TV series as “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “How I Met Your Mother.” More recently, she voiced a character on the Fox’s animated show “High School USA!” Moon writes for film and television, does stand-up comedy and recently held a storytelling show in Portland, Ore. The artist is also very involved in yoga. During a recent conversation, Moon (who considers “Unit” to be her middle name) said that she had wanted to help spread the word about her father’s work and legacy but that Gail had mostly declined her ideas. She noted this was not a family fight over money or unfair proportions, recently tweeting, “This is about having to ask permission for use on OUR last name & creative exclusion.” “There were so many times that I had gone to her. I had suggested a biopic and a documentary. I had lined up all these elements,” said Moon, adding that she also pitched a family reality show and a curated album of Frank’s music designed with teenage girls in mind.

“Every single idea I brought to her, she shot down.” Moon said she loved “Eat That Question,” the new documentary about her father, calling it “such a universal story about following your calling, and how that road is not an easy road. It requires a kind of stamina and dedication, and that’s a great story, whether you’re a fan of that music or not.” At the top of Moon’s creative to-do list is a project sure to excite fans of Zappa and Los Angeles culture: “I'm working on a book about growing up in my crazy house.” Don’t expect her to pull any punches. Dweezil Zappa Dweezil Zappa (Francine Orr/ Los Angeles Times) The oldest son, perhaps best known to the public as an MTV VJ in the 1980s, is the most musically focused of the four kids. It’s Dweezil’s beef with the trust that first drew press attention to the behind-the-scenes drama surrounding use of the Zappa name. Specifically, the trust is trying to prevent Dweezil from touring as either Zappa Plays Zappa or Dweezil Zappa Plays Frank Zappa, citing trademark violations.

Until the tussle is settled, Dweezil will be touring under his own name, and he has dubbed that sojourn the Cease and Desist tour. He and his band will be performing his father’s work, with particular attention paid to songs from the Mothers of Invention’s “Freak Out!,” which this week celebrated its 50th anniversary. I, of all the people in the family, spent time with him doing something because we had it in common -- guitar [and] music. — Dweezil Zappa said of his father Dweezil takes his job as Frank’s musical ambassador seriously. “My concern is to just be able to continue to enjoy the music, live within the music, play the music, and express that and allow new people to discover that in a live situation,” he said. “I, of all the people in the family, spent time with him doing something because we had it in common -- guitar [and] music.” In addition to playing his father’s music, the skilled guitarist has landed guest appearances over the years with such artists as Winger, Pat Boone, Spinal Tap (lead guitar on “Break Like the Wind”), Weird Al Yankovic and the Dixie Dregs.

Last year, Dweezil released his first solo album in nine years, “Via Zammata,” featuring work that mixes rock, jazz and funk. The album’s highlights include the mesmerizing instrumental “Truth,” the jangly, Beatles-esque pop of “Just the Way She Is” and a Zappa-inspired experiment called “ Malkovich ,” which features vocals by John Malkovich. Dweezil Zappa begins his Cease and Desist tour in El Prado, N.M., on July 1. Ahmet Zappa Ahmet Zappa (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) Ahmet has taken charge of day-to-day operations of the Zappa Family Trust. Although those responsibilities are myriad and include running its record labels, advancing Frank’s legacy and protecting his copyrights, Ahmet views his main role as serving the will of the fans and “for people to make the connection to my father's entire body of work.” Running the trust is “totally in my wheelhouse,” he said during a recent conversation at the Zappa compound.

In his professional career, he’s run a division of Disney called Kingdom Comics and, with his wife, Shana Muldoon Zappa, created the Disney-owned brand Star Darlings, which is centered on empowering tween girls. Star Darlings merchandise includes books and dolls and is available at Wal-Mart, Target and other big-box stores. What's great about Frank is that he really is the person guiding things, because he said it, he played it, he shot it. He really is the moral compass. — Ahmet Zappa Said Ahmet, “I always wanted to be a storyteller. That makes me the happiest – storytelling in any medium.” He added that when it comes to his philosophy on matters of the trust, he need only refer to his father’s blueprint. “What's great about Frank is that he really is the person guiding things, because he said it, he played it, he shot it. He really is the moral compass.” Describing his father as “a complicated person” and an amazing musician, Ahmet said that one of his jobs as trustee was to convey the sheer breadth of Frank’s compositional skills.

“One thing that I want people to understand, which I think is underdeveloped, is the focus of him as a modern-day composer. His orchestral pieces, that aspect of his life -- more and more people want to play that music, which makes me so happy.” Ahmet added that while his dad provided posthumous guidance, he learned how to run the business by looking to his mom. Citing “what my mother endured, and her business mind, and her creativity,” he said, “It's pretty cool to be more like Gail Zappa.” Diva Zappa Diva Zappa (Twitter) The youngest Zappa child is also the most press-shy. Speaking on the phone from London earlier in the month, Diva had just returned from Prague, where the Czech National Symphony Orchestra had performed an evening of her father’s music. She said that one of her primary roles in the trust is to be present when her father's work is highlighted. “What do I think my responsibility is? To show up and be open,” she said. “Experience everything. Show up and see what happens and try to do the best I can in every situation for the good of everyone in my family. And that’s including future generations.

Everything we do is really to take care of all of us.” Aside from her role in ensuring Frank’s legacy, Diva is a visual artist and fashion designer who works with knitwear. "When I knit, I never know what will happen,” Diva told the British newspaper the Independent in 2011. “I am inspired by all that is around me, light, trees, leaves, colours, breath, sounds, sparks, magic, beauty, frustration, heat, love, coffee, humour, feathers, shadows, smells... everything. It all gets in there somehow." The designer’s work appeared on the Grammy red carpet in 2009 when Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo’s wife, Chloe, wore a Diva dress. Diva is currently at work on a scarf, but not just any scarf. “ Emilio the Scarf ” is a project with its own Twitter handle.

Described on the profile page as “a magical piece of art,” the scarf promises that “one day I will be 5,280 feet long.” ALSO Frank Zappa - Biography - IMDb Frank Zappa Biography Showing all 63 items Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (2) | Trade Mark (3) | Trivia (33) | Personal Quotes (20) Overview (4) 6' (1.83 m) Mini Bio (1) Of all the qualities that typified Frank Zappa, perhaps the most striking is that he was a paradox. A workaholic perfectionist rock star who eschewed the hippie culture of the 1960s, deploring its conformism, spurious ideals and drug use, Zappa was not only a brilliant rock guitarist but an orchestral composer, innovative filmmaker, music producer, businessman, iconoclast and perceptive political and social commentator. His oeuvre continually amazes: over 60 albums of music from rock to orchestral, in addition to innumerable films, concerts and other accomplishments. Frank Vincent Zappa (b.

21 Dec 1940, Baltimore, MD) began to play drums at the age of 12, and was playing in R&B groups by high school, switching to guitar at 18. After barely graduating from high school, and then dropping out of junior college (where he met his first wife, Kay Sherman), Zappa worked at such jobs as window dresser, copywriter and door-to-door sales,an. With the money he earned from scoring Run Home, Slow (1965) (written by his high school English teacher, Don Cerveris ), Zappa purchased a recording studio and, after concocting an allegedly obscene recording for an undercover policeman, spent ten days in jail. Zappa's diverse range of albums (both with the seminal and protean groups The Mothers of Invention and Zappa; as well as solo releases) are renowned not only for their bravura musicianship and satire, but for offending various groups (usually conservatives, both religious and political).

The 200 Motels (1971) soundtrack was deemed too offensive by the Royal Albert Hall, which canceled scheduled concerts in 1975; and the song "Jewish Princess" (1979) led to Jewish calls for Zappa to apologize. These, and such events as Zappa testifying before Congress in 1985 against rock music censorship, being appointed by Czech president Václav Havel as his Cultural Liaison Officer or considering running for US president, have unfortunately been Zappa's only real source of mainstream publicity. Diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1991, Zappa nonetheless continued working at his Hollywood Hills home, until his death on 4 December 1993.

His widow, Gail, and children Dweezil Zappa , Moon Unit Zappa , Ahmet Zappa and Diva Zappa , soon released a statement to the press that simply stated: "Composer Frank Zappa left for his final tour just before 6pm Saturday." Dark and sarcastic sense of humour Long guitar solos Trivia (33) When marrying Gail Zappa in a civil ceremony, he attached a pin that said "Congratulations from Mayor Lindsay" onto her in lieu of a ring. John V. Lindsay was mayor of New York City at the time. Was school friends with Don Van Vliet (later to be known as Captain Beefheart). Is known affectionately by his fans as FZ. Has an enormous following in the former Communist countries of eastern Europe. In July 1994, the International Astronomical Union named a Czech-discovered asteroid "Zappafrank". Father of Diva Zappa , Moon Unit Zappa , Dweezil Zappa and Ahmet Zappa As a child, his favorite television program was Robert Clampett 's puppet show Time for Beany (1949).

The small town of Bad Doberan, Germany, holds an annual Zappanale festival, celebrating his life and music (first held in 1990). His father, Francis Vincent Zappa, was born in Partinico, Sicily, and his mother, Rose Marie (Colimore), was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Italian parents. Following his death, he was interred in an unmarked grave next to Lew Ayres at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California. In 1995, a group of Lithuanian artists erected the world's first Zappa statue in Vilnius, the capital. Since then one has been erected in Bad Doberan, Germany (which Gail Zappa says does not look like him), and another (a copy of the bust in Vilnius) in Baltimore, Maryland. In recent years, various reworkings of his songs have been recorded, including versions in Baroque instrumental and a cappella vocal stylings. Inducted into the Jazz Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995.

Zappa is the first, and so far only, artist to be inducted into both the Jazz and Rock and Roll Halls of Fame. In March of 2003 his 1979 album "Joe's Garage" came 20th in Classic Rock Magazine's list of the 30 greatest concept albums of all time. Gave up his driver's license voluntarily, because he hated standing in line at the DMV. Wrote his own copyright notice, that appeared on his later records, and was the first to specifically mention sampling. Also released the first 3-inch CD single, with a remix of "Peaches En Regalia", in the late 1980s. Used a wah-wah with his onstage guitar setup, which he had usually leave set in one position as a filter, rather than rock it to get the wah effect. Bought a small recording studio with the proceeds of his score for Run Home, Slow (1965); first came to public attention when he was arrested in a scandal involving the studio (he was later cleared).

Started out playing drums in his teens, then adopted his brother's f-hole acoustic guitar, trying to copy horn and guitar solos on blues and jazz records. Later studied Music Theory in college. Included a warning-cum-guarantee on his late-1980s albums, deriding the Religious Right's attack on rock and pop music, and censorship in general, and concluding "If there is a Hell, its fires wait for them, not us.". He was voted the 21st Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Artists of all time by Rolling Stone. During his last days, he wanted to make a movie called "Dwell". "Dwell" would have been a musical about a giant spider, but from the spider's point of view. He was going to make it with the people from Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988), and had several conversations with Kevin Murphy . Gene Simmons visited with the Zappa family at their home, socializing, some time before Zappa's death. During their visit, Zappa showed him something that proved how prolific Zappa was: hundreds of master tapes of unreleased music. Zappa sponsored Hagstrom guitars early in his career.

However, on his first three albums with The Mothers of Invention , he used a Gibson ES-5 Switchmaster. During the mid to late 1970s, he played a highly modified Gibson SG clone. He had one of Jimi Hendrix 's guitars which was lit on fire by Jimi at the 1968 Miami Pop Festival. "Cured" his kids of sibling rivalry by making a tape of them squabbling, then forcing them to listen to said tape while handcuffed together in the bathroom; this was to show them how dumb they sounded when bickering. Despite his prostate cancer, Zappa continued to smoke. He told an interviewer he considered cigarettes to be "food", tobacco his favorite vegetable and did not believe cigarettes caused the reported health problems. In an interview prior to his death, Zappa revealed he had had urination problems for years but that the prostate cancer wasn't caught until it was inoperable. He hinted this made him extremely bitter and advised others with urination problems to get multiple opinions. Did not like being called "rock legend" and considered it a "pathetic" term. Also did not like being called a "test pilot pushing the edge" since he felt the term sounded too military.

As far as being called an "eccentric genius", Zappa said in an interview prior to his death, "Eccentric, yes. Genius, maybe.". Founded Barking Pumpkin Records in 1981. He also founded Zappa Records, Barfko-Swill [mail order distribution] and DiscReet (record company). Weird Celebrity Child Names | Bizarre Kid Names Tweet on Twitter Apple and Moses (Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin) World-renowned actress Gwyneth Paltrow and rock-star hubby Chris Martin of Coldplay had two children before their “conscious uncoupling” in 2014. Their first was born in 2004 and is named…Apple. Y’know, like the fruit. Why would they name a child after food? Gwyneth explained to Oprah that the name sounded “sweet” and “wholesome” and “clean.” Can’t argue there. There Biblical Moses, born in 2006, is no slouch in the strange name department either.

Blue Ivy (Beyonce and Jay-Z) When the power couple of Jay-Z and Beyonce gave birth in January 2012 and announced their daughter’s name as Blue Ivy, those who thought Jay and Bey were involved with the Illuminati went nuts – for the name Blue Ivy spelled backwards apparently means Satan’s Daughter. The actual genesis of the name, however, seems far more benign, as the Queen Bee posted an excerpt from the novel A Field Guide to Getting Lost to her Tumblr page not long after. The passage is rife in imagery surrounding the color blue – and not the devil. Blue Angel (The Edge) When you’re the daughter of a guy who calls himself The Edge, you’re probably destined for a less-than-usual name. Blue Angel, born in 1989, is actually the youngest daughter of U2 guitarist The Edge and ex-wife Aislinn O’Sullivan – though her older sisters, Hollie and Arran, got away with slightly more traditional names. Bronx Mogwli (Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson) Yes, that’s a Jungle Book reference as the middle name of Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson’s only child.

The first name, according to Wentz, comes from a story between the couple, and not just to give the kid “street cred.” And in case you were wondering if the guy behind songs with names like “My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark” is capable of naming anything in a traditional manner, he’s since had another son with his current girlfriend. Name? Saint Laszlo. Daisy Boo Pamela, Poppy Honey Rosie, Petal Blossom Rainbow, and Buddy Bear Maurice (Jamie and Jools Oliver) Perhaps the reigning champions of weird celebrity child names, celeb chef Jamie Oliver and wife Juliette “Jools” Oliver have four children, each triple-monikered and the three girls sporting a flower theme. The Olivers will have a chance to continue to prove their unique naming skills soon, as they announced in March that they’re expecting their fifth this summer. Kyd Miller (David Duchovny and Tea Leoni) Look, some people just aren’t good at naming things. David Duchovny and Tea Leoni are both accomplished actors, and perhaps all of their creativity needed to be dedicated to their craft. Thus, Kyd. As in, this is our kid.

Gotta give them creativity points for changing the “I” to “Y” though. Pilot Inspektor (Jason Lee and Beth Reisgraf) Actor Jason Lee (My Name is Earl) and actress Beth Reisgraf (Leverage) gave birth to their son, Pilot Inspektor, in 2003. The unusual name, according to Lee, comes from a song by indie rock band Grandaddy titled “He’s Simple, He’s Dumb, He’s the Pilot” which…is probably a weirder explanation than the name itself. Kal-El (Nicolas Cage) Yes, Nicolas Cage’s youngest son is named after Superman. Kal-El is Superman’s birth name, and really, what better choice for the name of the offspring of an actor like Nic Cage? Kal-El, born in 2005 to Cage and third wife Alice Kim, is actually Cage’s second son, after Weston Coppola, who was born in 1990.

Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet, and Diva Muffin (Frank Zappa) There are not many weirder musicians out there than Frank Zappa, so it’s only fitting that Zappa’s kids would all have unusual names. Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet, and Diva Muffin are all accomplished artists, with Dweezil often touring as “Zappa Plays Zappa,” bringing his father’s music to younger generations of fans. Moxie CrimeFighter and Zolten (Penn Jillette) Moxie CrimeFighter and Zolten are the children of Penn Jillette, actor/comedian/verbose half of Penn & Teller. Is there a cooler middle name out there than CrimeFighter? And is Zolten not a CrimeFighter? Has Jillette set up a good versus evil scenario with his children by not giving Zolten a Batman-quality middle name as well? So many unanswered questions.

Around The Web The Zappa Siblings Zap Their New Sitcom : Moon Unit and Dweezil Complain That 'Normal Life' Is Normal TV - latimes YOU ARE HERE: LAT Home → Collections The Zappa Siblings Zap Their New Sitcom : Moon Unit and Dweezil Complain That 'Normal Life' Is Normal TV March 18, 1990 |DANIEL CERONE | TIMES STAFF WRITER Try out this idea for a TV show. First, take two unusual siblings: Moon Unit Zappa, whose 1982 novelty song "Valley Girl" generated a new wave in pop culture, and her brother, Dweezil, an outspoken metal guitarist and singer whose last album was called, "My Guitar Wants to Kill Your Mama." Both are the offspring of cult rock star Frank Zappa. Next, cast two sane and stable TV actors as parents. Finally, call the show "Normal Life." Bizarre kids. Straight parents. Laughs a minute. Hit sitcom.

That was the basic concept Moon ("Unit is my middle name") and Dweezil dreamed up when they approached executive producer Bernie Brillstein over a year ago to do the new CBS sitcom "Normal Life," which premieres Wednesday at 8 p.m. on KCBS as a mid-season replacement. "We pitched the show as "Addams Family Ties," said Moon, who at 22 is the eldest of four Zappa children. But things didn't go exactly as the two novice actors planned. Just how far is the finished show from their original concept? "How far is Russia from here?" Moon said. Since its inception, "Normal Life" has been plagued with writing, directing and casting problems that some members and former members of the show say extend far beyond the usual growing pains of a developing sitcom. "At first, it was a very ironic title-Normal Life.' Like, yeah, right," said Dweezil, 20, suggesting that people who know the Zappa family expect anything but normalcy. "But as the show went on, it really did become ... S he switches to his best zombie imitation and speaks in monotone " ...

nooormal life." Once the series was picked up by CBS for 13 episodes, the show's pilot, which the Zappas say was closest to their initial desire, was scrapped. After the first episode, the original mother on the series, feature film actress Janet Margolin, was replaced by TV veteran Cindy Williams of "Laverne & Shirley" at the suggestion of CBS. Episode No. 1 was was then reshot. After episode No. 4, the show's director and head writer were both replaced, and the characters were slightly revised again. After episode No. 8, following weeks of creative differences, the series father, Max Gail, who played Wojo on "Barney Miller," was virtually written out of the series. "There's kind of a network within a network over there," Gail said. "And there was this feeling that the Zappas untamed was not what an audience wants to see. Somehow, when the network picked up the show and brought in a writer, suddenly the show was not about the Zappas. We went from 'Normal Life' to normal TV.

My character became a conventional domestic duffer." Several sources said that the show's changes came at the insistence of CBS, which took on a new president, Jeff Sagansky, while "Normal Life" was in mid-production. Nobody at CBS was willing to comment on this story. "The pilot was more to the left," said executive producer Brillstein, who dismisses the sitcom's changes as routine. "We did more outlandish things on the pilot, and the apartment looked more wild. We tried to go all the way. We tried to be funny and bizarre. But the pilot didn't test well with audiences. "The finished show is more like what (Moon and Dweezil) envisioned than they think it is. We simply pulled it in a little, and made it a little more reality-based." The two Zappa children, sitting in the shadowy den of their father's Laurel Canyon home, said the changes reached beyond that. They agree that "Normal Life" is funny, certainly no worse than other sitcoms on TV. Their complaint is that it resembles so many other shows on TV. "I think television has such great possibilities, but it's just too controlled," Dweezil said. "That's the thing.

We wanted to try and get on TV and do stuff that was out of control, but we found ourselves being controlled. It was like thespian penitentiary." "After we had done about six shows," Moon said, "they called me in and said," she breaks into a drop-dead serious voice, " 'We're thinking about making your character 21, instead of 22.' "S A bemused look crosses Moon's face, "And I said, 'Oh, OK.' You know? I mean, this is insanity. This is the kind of stuff that they take so seriously, far too seriously." Moon and Dweezil have taken acting classes together and do regular guest spots on MTV as "Veejays From Hell." They have also had small acting roles in film and television, with the scales tipped in Moon's favor. "She's the professional actress," Dweezil said. "Professional actress means your will can be broken. Let's just clarify that," Moon interjected. She said that if her life were a book, its title would be "Painful But Necessary Steps." "They tried to break my will too," Dweezil said. "It just wouldn't happen.

Because what they would find was that they just couldn't get the performances they were trying to get out of me." What did CBS want out of Dweezil? "They wanted me to be Ricky Schroder." MORE: 20 Questions: Frank And Moon Unit Zappa - Zappa Wiki Jawaka 20 Questions: Frank And Moon Unit Zappa From Zappa Wiki Jawaka Playboy , November 1982 By David and Victoria Sheff Rock's knight-errant and his valley-girl daughter assess the state of dating, drugs and – gag us with a spoon! – american culture Frank Zappa 's 30-odd albums include such rock classics as " Lumpy Gravy " " We're Only In It For The Money " " Hot Rats " " Sheik Yerbouti " and " Burnt Weeny Sandwich ." Now his daughter Moon Unit has catapulted herself into the rock limelight with the father/ daughter collaboration " Valley Girl ." David and Victoria Sheff cornered the father of musical weirdness and his daughter (he has three other children: Dweezil , Ahmet and Diva ) in the Zappas' Hollywood Hills home recording studio.

The Sheffs' report: "Never second guess a man wearing shocking-purple blousy pants, a gray-silk shirt, pink socks and red tennis shoes with a silver z on them who once composed a piece of music titled ' Don't You Ever Wash That Thing? ' And Moon seems like a very nice person, too." 1. How have things changed in the Zappa household since Valley Girl became a hit? FRANK ZAPPA: When it started, it interfered greatly with Moon's school, coming at the end of the year right in the middle of finals. She had all these interviews to do while I was in Europe, and it was hard for her to study. Her friends helped her, calling her up and keeping her posted on what she had missed in school. Now that I'm back, I don't accept things without asking how she feels about doing them. I mean, she's 14 years old. She wants to have a good time. MOON UNIT ZAPPA: It's so weird. Like, when I get my hair cut and go out shopping, people look at me funny and say, "Oh, my God!

She got her hair cut!" People who normally get their hair cut don't get that reaction. But on the other hand, record stores are a lot nicer to go into. The people at my school are pretty supportive. But the ones I never was very friendly with and the ones I didn't like are really negative. They finally have a chance to categorize me. They call me a soc or a snob – God knows what. FRANK: We've had calls from Universal, United Artists, even Norman Lear asking to do a film on Valley Girl. My manager and I will see about the best deal. Also, people have been sending Moon all these stupid fucking scripts; one was for a movie called Planet of the Teenagers. There have been a few others where they're looking tor a voluptuous teenager who takes her clothes off and takes drugs. She's obviously passed on those. If we do Valley Girl as a movie, she'll be in it, so she'll have to miss some school. But she'll have a tutor. I refuse to let her just walk away from school. 2. Now that Moon has her own income, is her allowance cut off? Is she going to save the money for college?

Well, she won't have any income from the song until the publishing period. Those royalties are paid only twice a year. When they come in, whatever they are, she can take the money and do whatever she wants with it. In the meantime, she still gets her allowance and does whatever she wants with that, too. For example, she bought a pair of shoes yesterday. That's a kind of teenage thing to do. MOON: I'm not going to college. I don't know what I'll be doing with the money. Now, when I need money – like, I desperately need it to go shopping – I get the money from my parents. 3. What kind of guys are you interested in? And does your dad check out all potential suitors? MOON: I can't stand guys who are loudmouths. I like a guy who can make me laugh and keep me laughing. On dates, I like to go places and observe people. I love watching people eat. I particularly like to watch people eat who don't have any manners. As for checking my dates out, first, my mother meets them and talks to them. They're always really scared to meet my dad.

My father will come in and look them up and down, head to toe, and he'll make a grunting noise and walk out. You have to take that grunt as either approval or disapproval, but you don't always know which. He is polite – I mean, don't get me wrong. He shakes their hand when he meets them. FRANK: I'm an Italian dad. Of course, I check them out. There are some types of people I wouldn't trust. But she's got pretty good taste. All the ones that I've met tend to be pretty much from the Leave It to Beaver school – people who could have gotten a part on My Three Sons. 4. How does a Valley courtship proceed? Does sex happen or is it just talked about? MOON: You can never tell whether a Valley dude likes you or not, because he just doesn't make phone calls. The girls usually do the phoning, because girls have a better chance of getting their phone bills paid. Then, first, you have to go out in cliques. After you really get to know the guy and he's OK, you might want to go out to dinner somewhere affordable, like McDonald's.

If he doesn't drive, you might go to a movie at a local theater; if he does drive, then it's on to Mulholland to watch drag races and to get a six-pack of beer. As for sex, it's done. It's also talked about, but it's done – usually when your parents are in Palm Springs for the weekend. The girl will beat around the bush, just saying, "Yeah, we went all the way." The dude will have to describe it play by play for the guys. 5. What's the biggest problem for Valley girls? And what do they do about it? MOON: Acne is the absolute worst unless you've got thunder thighs and stretch marks. Girls say "I'm so fat," hoping someone will say they're not fat. Then they go on the Beverly Hills diet, because it's the most effective and it gets the most attention, with Tupperware containers filled with pineapple and various tropical fruits. Acne you don't talk about. You just jump hearing the word zit. I know I do. [The phone rings. It's for Moon. She exits.] 6. Is it strange for your children to be Frank Zappa's kids?

FRANK: If we lived in Brooklyn, it would be a different story. But I'm virtually unknown here. If you are the son or daughter of somebody who is a TV star, it's a different story. It's very strange down at this school. The kids all talk about "How many bathrooms you got in your house?" and that kind of thing. 7. Do you go to P.T.A. meetings at the school? I go down to the school. I don't belong to the P.T.A., but whenever there are plays and musicals and things like that that I can attend, I go. And, no, I don't help them with their homework. I'm not competent to do that. If they need any advice in my field of expertise, it's there any time. But the stuff they're doing now is outside my specialization. 8. We read that David Bowie's son, Zowie, now prefers to be called Joe. How do your children – Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet and Diva – like their names? They don't have any problems with their names. Remember, they're going to school in the Valley. They've got some other weird names down there.

When Moon was young, she came in and announced that she wanted to change her name. I said, "Fine, what do you want to change it to?" She said, "Beautyheart." So that blew over after a while. And before Diva was born, Ahmet came in and said, "I have the perfect name for my new little sister," 'cause he was convinced it was going to be a girl. I said, "Yeah, really? What do you think we should call her?" He said, "Bone Sauce." That one didn't work. I liked Diva better, because she was screaming louder than the other babies in the hall at the hospital where she was born. 9. Some people are surprised that you've written for and worked with several of the world's best' symphonies. Where do classical music and rock 'n' roll meet? I don't think that classical in the ordinary sense has anything to do with rock 'n' roll. When I write music tor orchestra, if it ever gets played, it will be consumed by a rock-'n'-roll audience, not by the same people who go to see Beethoven 's Fifth.

Most music in the United States is consumed only because of its fashionable function in relation to a given person's lifestyle. If you're a very modernistic kind of person with modern hair and so forth, you will not go and hear country-and-western music, even if you like it. There are cultural boxes that people put themselves into, and they stay there. For people who have a hard time figuring out the way the world works, I, guess it helps. 10. Are you an exception, comfortable at a rock show and at an L.A. Philharmonic concert? The fact is, I do neither. I don't go to see the L.A. Philharmonic, because I don't think it's very good and its repertoire doesn't entice me out of the house. I don't go to rock shows, because I'm not interested in what's being played at rock shows. I would buy a ticket to see the Chicago Symphony play Arcana, by Edgard Varèse , for instance. But that ain't gonna happen, so I'm staying home. Boulez is my favorite conductor. A lot of people think he's too cerebral.

A lot of conductors like to look good while conducting, and they wave their arms around a lot – a series of useless gestures that don't tell the musicians where the beat is. And if the beat isn't clear, the musicians don't play the notes all at the same time, the way they ought to, so the chords don't stack up right. With some music, such as slovenly romantic sleaze, it's no big deal, but I like a more rhythmic approach, and Boulez has always been careful about that. 11. Would you get dressed up in a suit and tie – or even a tuxedo – if the occasion called for it? Well, I have many suits and ties. I mean, I've been to court before. I've got all the costumes necessary to deal with the world. I even own a tuxedo, but I very seldom wear it. I've got a suit by Giorgio Armani and another one by Yves Saint Laurent and another one by some Italian whose name I can't remember. I've always had suits. As a matter of fact, one time, I went to the Grammy Awards in this beautiful blue suit and no shirt. Try it some time.

Got a suit? Wear it without a shirt. It looks great, especially if you've got a tan. You got to do your neck, though. Hold a cigarette lighter up there. 12. Describe the state of rock 'n' roll. The state of radio determines the state of rock 'n' roll. A healthy society would not tolerate what's going on the air right now. That broadcasting is in the state it is tells me there are a lot of people out there who like it, who crave it – and they're fucked. It's like ostrich time; stick your head in the sand. People give up, they're afraid of the future. The biggest things that sell are the noncontent records – records that sound OK but say nothing – and all of them sound the same. I'm a pretty good listener, but I find it difficult to tell the difference between REO Speedwagon and Journey . They all blend together because it's planned that way. The radio becomes wallpaper to your lifestyle. Certain types of themes and ideas are repeated over and over again. You turn on the radio to your favorite station that plays those special kinds of noises. And it triggers the same response over and over again. It becomes your life. 13.

What kind of mail do you get? A lot of it is just complimentary-type stuff and a lot of "Can you help me with my personal problems?" stuff. Although I haven't answered any mail recently, last year I was pretty good about it. I didn't answer the stuff from deranged, crazy people. There are people with weird interpretations of my songs – like, one guy wrote me and told me he "figured out" Idiot Bastard Son . He figured that Ronnie is Ronald Reagan and Kenny is Ted Kennedy. He was wrong. The song is about two brothers named Ronnie and Kenny. In back of their house was a shed or a garage or something. At one point, Kenny, the younger brother, had moved into the shed for some reason. There was no toilet there, and he and this other guy would piss in these canning jars. Instead of dumping them out, they would pour them into these big crocks. Soon, they had gallons of piss. It got to be such a thing that everybody in the neighborhood would come over and piss in these fucking crocks. They had these crocks of piss sitting in their garage.

Then these things started growing in there, swimming around in these crocks, and to this day, nobody knows what they were or where they came from. Finally, their father found out about it and made them pour the whole thing down the toilet – not in the gutter, not in the street, not on the lawn but down the toilet. OK, so I figure, if those things are alive and living in piss, you pour them down the toilet and flush it and these things are'probably this big in the sewers underneath Ontario, which is where it happened. While Kenny is doing this, Ronnie is living in the bedroom with this guy named Dwight. They used to save their snot on a window over Ronnie's bed. Just like everybody would piss in the jar, every night they would contribute of couple of boogers to this window, until you couldn't see through it. Just, you know, little kids having a good time. So I wrote a couple of songs about it: Let's Make The Water Turn Black and Idiot Bastard Son . 14. You've said that your best audience is in the New York area and that the East Coast is your element. Why, then, are you living in Los Angeles?

You got any idea how much space this complex occupies? Do you know how much it would cost to put this in Manhattan? You couldn't do it. And besides that, I've got green grass and trees and a swimming pool that my kids can have a good time in. I don't like Los Angeles, but I live here because of my work – all the equipment that I need is ten minutes away. But I don't like the people here; I don't like the values of the area. It's so bleak. People pretend to have culture, but there is no cultural life here at all. I stay, but I stay in my house, and I guarantee you that there is something going on in my house. As tar as being a participant in the local scene, that's not for me. I ignore all party invitations. 15. Let's clear one thing up: There have been reports that you have a panty fetish and have encouraged women in your audiences to take theirs off and throw them up to you onstage. Well? A few years ago, in Philadelphia, a girl approached the stage and pitched up this little pair of blue panties.

I knew that the drummer and one of the other guys in the band liked to sniff girls' underpants, so as soon as she pitched them up, I made the drummer get off the stand and come down and sniff them. He did and immediately pretended to gag and faint and rolled all over the stage. The audience loved it. The girl, however, was somewhat chagrined, but I have it on good authority that the panties 'were' semi-lethal. Anyway, I decided that since the people seemed to enjoy that so much, every night, we would invite girls to take their panties off and throw them up to us. But when I looked out at the audience, I realized how many of the girls were wearing pants. To assist them, I came up with helpful ways for them to take their panties off without taking down their Levis. I suggested, it they were wearing bikini panties, that they rip them on the sides and pull them off that way. If they were wearing those big, ugly cotton jobs, I told them to go back to the toilet. We did collect a large quantity of panties – hundreds of them. We gave them to an artist in Colorado named Emily James , and she's making a wall hanging out of them.

She'll eventually exhibit it. 16. Do you take drugs? I don't take drugs. I don't advise anybody else to take drugs. I think they are bad. I fire people from the band and the crew if they use drugs, not because I wish to rule their lives but because – especially in Europe – if you're in possession of some illicit substance, you'll go to jail and they'll treat you mean. Drugs don't appeal to me. Have you ever tried to have a conversation with a dope fiend? They got nothin' to say. They're dead people. It's not like I like to sit around and talk with people, 'cause I don't. I prefer to just do my work and get on with it. About the only time I have a conversation with anybody is when I'm doing an interview. And even when I'm working, the fewer words said, the better. The vast majority of people in this country are using one kind of drug or another all the time. It's the only thing that keeps them from going .totally ape-shit with the way things actually are. But that's creating part of the problem, because the drugs help you hide. 17.

You don't have any vices? I wouldn't say that. I smoke a pack and a half, two packs a day and drink gallons of coffee. I'll drink a bit of wine if I can get a good bottle, and occasionally, I'll drink whiskey. 18. Another rock institution, of course, is the groupie. Do groupies help or hinder rock 'n' roll? Usually, there are resident groupies who come with the halls no matter who is playing. They're part of the furniture. I'm glad they're there, because that's who fucks the crew and the other guys in the band. I'm not interested in those girls, but I'm all in favor of it tor the others. When you go on the road, the more girls who get pooched, the happier the whole tour is. That's the key to a happy tour. The band and the crew that don't get laid when they go out tliere are the meanest, grouchiest, most unpleasant bunch of people to hang out with. "Go out and get pooched," I tell them. But I'm not interested in the girls who come to the hall for that purpose. I don't find them amusing.

I like women full blown, with credentials. You know – an actual, functioning brain. There was one groupie I wrote about on the Fillmore album who wouldn't tuck the guy unless he sang her his hit single first. That's a true story. It happened to the two guys in the Turtles who were in the band with me at the time. She wanted them to sing Happy Together . And they did; you know, because why not? 19. Of what clubs are you a member? I belong to the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association. That's it. 20. The image of Frank Zappa is that of a wild and outrageous person. Is that just an image? I'm really quite wild and outrageous but in ways that people wouldn't recognize. Today, if you actually work 18 hours a day and you like it, that's pretty outrageous. And if you don't compromise and don't put up with a bunch of bullshit and you punch your way through life, which I kind of manage to do on the budget available to me, that's out-fucking-rageous.

Beyonce and Jay Z's daughter Blue Ivy can count herself lucky - Telegraph Beyonce and Jay Z's daughter Blue Ivy can count herself lucky From Chastity to Lennon: Neil McCormick lists the greatest hits in the rock star baby name lexicon. Proud musician parents with expectations: Bob Geldof, Cher and Liam Gallagher Photo: PA/PA/Filmmagic Follow So full of the joys of new parenthood is Jay Z, that he’s released a rap in honour of his and Beyonce’s new born daughter Blue Ivy. Despite the odd cringeworthy couplet (“the most beautifulist thing in the world / Is daddy’s little girl”) Glory is an unusually grounded paean to a new born, counter balancing the innate sentimentality of such parental classics as Stevie Wonder’s Isn’t She Lovely and John Lennon’s Beautiful Boy with the gritty drama expected of hip hop. I feel fairly sure this is the first baby song to discuss miscarriage and the alcoholism of a grandparent. Jay Z’s delight is, frankly, delightful, although I wonder if his daughter will feel the same way by the time she has grown up and has complete strangers approaching her and quoting “you’re my child with the child from Destiny’s Child”.

By then, of course, she may be immune to embarrassment, which is presumably the point of saddling your offspring with a name apparently based on the skin colour of a person on a faulty intravenous drip. Actually, despite theories that she is named after the Jay Z album Blueprint and Beyonce album 4 (in Roman numerals), Blue Ivy makes a fairly undramatic new entry into the rock star baby name lexicon. She is not even the first pop baby Blue. U2 guitarist Edge has a daughter named Blue Angel, named after his favourite Roy Orbison song. Presumably the child can only be thankful that Edge wasn’t more keen on Ooby Dooby. But I’m one to talk. My own son, the soberly named Finn (after the mythic Irish hero) has two middle names that we have since quietly expunged from all official records. And I have actually have a niece with the name Blue, albeit also quietly tucked between her Christian name and surname, only to be used to in case of emergencies or in lights on a Broadway marquee: tonight, for one night only, Juliet Blue!

Every parent knows that naming a child is a daunting responsibility, and it doesn’t help that the task must be completed whilst bouncing between exhausted sleeplessness and hormonal craziness. Essentially, you are torn between gifting your offspring with a unique moniker reflecting a deep inner conviction that you have been blessed with an utterly special human being the likes of which the world has never seen before … and avoiding anything that will lead to teasing in the playground. Maybe the knowledge that the children or pop stars will all be going to expensive private schools with other celebrity offspring influences the wayward tone of many popular choices. You don’t want your daughter to be the one child at roll call saddled with the kind of name you might find in an actual baby book: “Fifi Trixibelle?” “Present” “Moon Unit?” “Here” “Blue Ivy?” “Yes, miss” “Jane?” Related Articles Beyoncé's new baby pictures 11 Feb 2012 I have a theory that most rock stars hate their own names, because when they were kids they couldn’t imagine it up in lights. I mean, something as banal as Paul McCartney?

It’s never gonna work (actually Macca wanted to change his name to Paul Ramon in the early Beatles). Solo stars with prosaic names tend to have first found fame in groups (Michael Jackson, Phil Collins, Robbie Williams) whilst Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Elton John, Sade, Eminem and Lady Gaga all got to choose their own tags. And then there is that special category: the stars whose names seem to have defined them. Prince and Madonna, two of the biggest stars of our times, never needed to go to the deed poll because their parents gave them names fit for the showbiz world (Madonna’s was actually a family name, but Prince was given his musician father’s stage name, and not, as is commonly thought, that of their pet Alsatian). In the ranks of all time outrageous pop star baby names, Blue Ivy is, in fact, relatively modest. One can imagine her playing with family friends Apple (daughter of Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow) and Egypt (daughter of Alicia Keys and rapper Swizz Beats) without anyone at their crèche raising an eyebrow. I don’t know if Gerri Halliwell’s Bluebell Madonna would be allowed to crash the party though.

There’s just something too desperate about that. Over in the music room, you can find the rock star kids whose parents seem to be intent on giving their kids an unsubtle hint about future career expectations. There’s Liam Gallagher and Nicole Appleton ‘s son Lennon Gallagher, Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee and Pamela Anderson’s son, Dylan Jagger Lee, and U2 drummer Larry Mullen’s son Aaron Elvis Mullen. Sir Bob Geldof and Paula Yates offspring (Fifi Trixibelle, Peaches Honeyblossom, Little Pixie and half sister Tiger Lily) share a special platform in the rock offspring pantheon with the Zappa family: Moon Unit, Dweezil and Diva Thin Muffin. Red Hot Chilli Peppers singer Antony Kiedis might pop in with his bafflingly monikered son, Everly Bear. Eryka Badu and Outkast’s Andre 3000 will definitely be allowed to bring Seven Sirius around. But it’s no entry for the unfortunate child of Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz and singing actress Ashlee Simpson, who has been saddled with the frankly awkward place / character combination Bronx Mowgli Wentz.

When discussing rock star names, the case of acclaimed film director Duncan Jones, formerly known as Zowie Bowie, offspring of David and Angie, is often cited as evidence that kids don’t always appreciate their parents more poetic attempts at nomenclature. However, David Bowie gave his son a get out option, because the name on his birth certificate is, actually, Duncan Zowie Hayward Jones. Hiding the silly rock star epithet amongst the middle names is, surely, the way to go, and if my son ever decides he wants to become a star, I may even tell him what his middle names are. Only on condition that he changes his surname first though. The real cautionary tale in the pop name game is surely the case of the daughter of Cher and Sonny Bono, who the proud parents thoughtfully named Chastity Sun. I know it was the sixties and everybody was high, but still. When Chastity grew up, she took matters into her own hands, changing it to Chaz, around the same time she (or rather, he) underwent gender reassignment surgery. What’s in a name, indeed?

Question: Which controversial rock star named his first two children `Moon Unit' and `Dweezil'?
Answer: FRANK ZAPPA