Chaz Bono facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Chaz Bono
Bono in 2017
Born	Chastity Sun Bono (1969-03-04) March 4, 1969 (age 56) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other names	Chaz Salvatore Bono
Occupation	Writer musician actor
Years active	1972–present
Parents	Sonny Bono (father) Cher (mother)
Relatives	Elijah Blue Allman (half-brother) Georgia Holt (grandmother)

Chaz Salvatore Bono (born March 4, 1969) is an American writer, musician, and actor. His parents are the famous entertainers Sonny Bono and Cher. Chaz became well-known as a child when he appeared on their TV show, The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour.

Chaz Bono is a trans man. This means that when he was born, people thought he was a girl, but as he grew up, he realized he was a boy. In 1995, he shared that he was a lesbian. Later, between 2008 and 2010, Chaz began his gender transition. This was a process to align his body and life with his true gender identity as a man.

In June 2009, Chaz explained on TV that his medical transition had started a year before. By May 2010, he legally changed his name and gender on his official documents. A documentary about his journey, called Becoming Chaz, was shown at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. It later aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network.

Early Life and Family

Chaz Bono with Sonny Bono in 1974

Chaz Bono was born in Los Angeles, California. He is the only child of the pop music stars Cher and Sonny Bono. His parents were part of the famous duo Sonny & Cher. They also had a popular TV variety show where young Chaz often appeared.

Chaz was named after a film called Chastity. His father, Sonny, produced this movie. Chaz has a mixed background. Through his mother, he has Armenian, Irish, English, and German family roots. Through his father, he has Italian heritage.

Chaz attended the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City. When he was 18, he told his parents that he was a lesbian. In his book, Family Outing, Chaz wrote that he always felt different as a child. He realized he was gay when he was 13 years old.

Music Career with Ceremony

Chaz Bono started a music career in 1988 with a band called Ceremony. The band released one album in 1993, titled Hang Out Your Poetry. Chaz was the lead singer and played acoustic guitar and percussion for the band.

Other members of Ceremony included Steve March Tormé, Heidi Shink, Pete McRae, Steve Bauman, Louis Ruiz, and Bryn Mathieu. Most of the songs on the album were written or co-written by Chaz Bono, Heidi Shink, and Mark Hudson. The band chose not to use synthesizers or digital effects. They wanted their music to sound like the 1960s, but with a fresh, 1990s feel.

Two songs from the album, "Could've Been Love" and "Ready for Love," were released as singles. Sonny and Cher, Chaz's parents, even sang backup vocals on the song "Livin' It Up" for the album.

Advocacy for LGBTQ Rights

Bono at the 2012 GLAAD Awards

In April 1995, Chaz Bono publicly shared that he was a lesbian in an interview with The Advocate magazine. His 1998 book, Family Outing, explained how this public announcement changed his life. It helped him feel more confident as a lesbian, as a woman, and as an individual.

In the same book, Chaz shared that his mother, Cher, was at first uncomfortable with the news. However, she later became very supportive. By August 1996, Cher appeared on the cover of The Advocate herself. She proudly identified as the mother of a lesbian daughter. Cher has since become a strong supporter of LGBTQ rights.

Chaz's relationship with his father became difficult in November 1994. This was when his father was elected as a Republican Congressman. Their different political views caused them to drift apart. They had not spoken for over a year when Sonny passed away in January 1998.

Chaz Bono has worked as a writer for The Advocate magazine. He is also a social activist. He has been a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign. He has promoted National Coming Out Day. Chaz also campaigned against the Defense of Marriage Act. He served as the Entertainment Media Director for Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).

In June 2016, Chaz Bono appeared in a video from the Human Rights Campaign. The video honored the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting. In it, Chaz and others shared the stories of those who were lost.

Gender Transition and Public Life

In mid-2008, Chaz Bono began his physical and social transition from female to male. His publicist confirmed this in June 2009. They stated that Chaz hoped his choice to transition would help people understand this issue better.

Chaz's legal transition was completed on May 6, 2010. A California court approved his request to change his gender and name. He made a documentary film about his transition called Becoming Chaz. This film premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. The Oprah Winfrey Network showed the documentary on May 10, 2011.

In September 2011, Chaz became a contestant on the 13th season of Dancing with the Stars. He was paired with professional dancer Lacey Schwimmer. They were eliminated from the competition on October 25, 2011. This was a big moment because it was the first time an openly transgender man starred on a major TV show for something unrelated to being transgender.

His book, Transition: Becoming Who I Was Always Meant to Be, was published in 2012. This made him the first person of Armenian descent to publish a memoir about being an openly transgender man.

Film and Television Roles

Chaz Bono has appeared in many films and television shows. He started acting as a child on his parents' TV show. Later, he took on various roles in movies and TV series.

Film Appearances

Television Appearances

See also

In Spanish: Chaz Bono para niños