Kate Winslet explains the reasoning behind naming her son Bear Blaze Winslet

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Here are some photos of Kate Winslet getting her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame yesterday. I believe the Hollywood Walk of Fame stars are bought by the studios at this point and the “star ceremony” timed for film promotion. Winslet did about a week of work on Divergent, so that’s what she’s promoting, just FYI. Shailene Woodley was at the Walk of Fame ceremony, as was Kathy Bates.

Kate looks good, doesn’t she? But I always like her more when she looks “softer” – I think she stopped doing the Botox during her pregnancy last year and I hope she never goes back. She looks so much younger now post-pregnancy. Her youngest, son Bear Blaze, is 14 weeks old. Winslet appeared on The Ellen Show yesterday to talk Divergent, the Walk of Fame and Kate’s new husband and baby:

Kate confirms that yes, she named her baby BEAR BLAZE WINSLET. And I love how Ellen really presses her on marrying a man who changed his name to Ned RockNRoll. I can feel Ellen’s judgment from here, and I’m right there with Ellen. I feel like Winslet is a little bit embarrassed too – Kate explains that Ned changed his name before they had even met and Ellen asks if Kate would have approved of the name change if she had gotten a say in it. When Kate is talking about the baby’s name, Kate confirms that Bear’s surname is Winslet not RockNRoll and Ellen is basically like, “Well, that answers that.”

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Photos courtesy of WENN.

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102 Responses to “Kate Winslet explains the reasoning behind naming her son Bear Blaze Winslet”

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  1. Splinter says:

    I still think it is very selfish. He will have to live with that name.

    • Monie says:

      Most likely (if he doesn’t blow his dough) the kid will be a trust fund baby and not worry about putting that crazy name on a resume or job application. Will make an easier go of life without having to make a living attached to that ridiculous name.

    • MollyB says:

      Maybe it’s where I live (Wisconsin) but while it’s certainly not a common name here, I have heard it before. It might be less common in other places but it’s not totally off the wall.

      • Splinter says:

        Yes, but she named him like that to remember forever how she bore the blaze when she met her third husband!

      • Tswise says:

        You’ve heard the nickname before. Most people have enough sense to give their kids proper names, even if they intend to call them something stupid.

    • BW says:

      My first name means bear. I’m a girl. I’m named after my grandmother who died in Nazi concentration camp, so I don’t want to ever change it. However, I do have to spell it for every English speaking person I meet, as they’ve never heard the name before.

      And there’s always Bear Grylls, although it’s a nickname.

      • roxy750 says:

        This is fascinating yet sad. I don’t know if you have stories of your grandmother being there but I am deeply sorry to know this. It did happen and I find it horrific—again, deepest condolences—I hope the world has learned from that time. What is your name that means Bear—beautiful tribute—I would hope you would keep that one alive in honor and memory of your grandmother. (didn’t expect this conversation on gossip site but it happened—I wonder how the rest of my day will fare)

      • lotuseater says:

        Ursa? Ursula? I’m also named after my grandmother and I love it.

      • LadySlippers says:

        I’d love to know what your name is.

        In Hebrew the name Dov (pronounced with a long o) means Bear.

        Z”L

      • BW says:

        UPDATE:

        My name is Berna. It is ancient German for “brave bear.” It’s supposed to be pronounced BEAR-nuh, but it usually gets pronounced BURR-nuh.

        Berna also means “young” in Turkish, and is a popular name for girls in Turkey. I didn’t learn this until I was 40. Turkey is the only country I’ve visited where everyone got my name right. It was like, “Wow, so this is what it’s like to be normal!”

        Back in the USA however, I have to spell my name 10 times a day, and pronounce it twice to everyone I meet. It’s not that hard. I don’t get the problem.

      • Valois says:

        BW, does nuh sound like a soft a, as in British Englisch “car”? ‘Cause I’m German, just being curious 🙂

    • Marianne says:

      Honestly Bear is pretty tame to some other names I’ve seen celebrities and non-celebrities use. I think the kid will be fine.

      • elo says:

        I kind of like Bear, I don’t think it is that odd either. My son goes by his middle name, which is Cub. It is a family name and fits his personality perfectly. When he is older he can go by his first name or his initials, I don’t get all the upset.

    • lunchcoma says:

      Is it really worse than the average Dumb Hollywood Baby Name? Gwen Stefani’s younger sons are named Zuma and Apollo. Josh Duhamel and Fergie named their kid Axl. I think Kate’s getting picked on more than average because her husband has a stupid name.

      • Merritt says:

        I don’t think Apollo is a bad name. I have no idea why they chose it, but I like names from mythology.

      • lotuseater says:

        Some of those aren’t weird to me at all. Zuma just sounds ridiculous, but I actually went to school with someone named Apollo. I’ve also known people named Isis, Thor, Jesus, Arjuna, Devi, and Athena, so god and goddess names seem more or less reasonable.

        Axl is just an ethnic name ( Scandinavian) probably perfectly normal in its original country.

      • Tatjana says:

        Apollo will be bad if the kid doesn’t end up good looking.

    • Jackie Jormp Jomp says:

      I know two people who have named their sons “Bear”. One is in England, the other in Canada. It’s really not that weird.

  2. Tatjana says:

    Now that’s what I call an English rose.
    I’m one of those horrible people who judge parents for giving their kids silly names, I can’t help it.

    • Tapioca says:

      Same, and I write as someone who has a foreign first name that I have spent my entire life spelling for people. I always wonder why, if parents love “exotic” names so much, they don’t change their own!

      One of my friends was convinced by her (now ex-) partner to give their son a name that was laughably “try-hard sexy Bond villain” and the poor kid is such a shy, quiet boy it’s become horribly ironic.

      • Virgilia Coriolanus says:

        What’s the name?

      • Tapioca says:

        Dante Rupert Drax.

        Dante after the hero in Devil May Cry (video game), Rupert after Rupert Campbell-Black from the Jilly Cooper Books, Drax after the villain in Moonraker.

        Individually they’re no SO bad, but together 🙂

      • Isadora says:

        I actually like Dante (if it fits the surname). However my first thought was Dante Alighieri, whom I greatly admire. I’m not sure I wanted to be named after a video game character.

        And Rupert is perfectly normal, isn’t it? I’m always glad when people with strange first names have normal second ones, so they can actually take those when they are old enough to realize that they lost in the name lottery. 😉

    • LadyMTL says:

      I’m the same and I don’t have kids (and probably never will have them). I understand that parents often want something original and unusual but there are limits. I’m not saying that there needs to be a law but yeah…sometimes they’re just laughable and it makes me feel bad for the kid.

      FYI I remember reading once about a family in France who tried to name their girl Spatule (Spatula in French) and the government told them they couldn’t. Now THAT is a bad name. 😛

      • Jadzia says:

        After living in France for two years or so, I learned that my ridiculous first name basically means “backsplash” (like in a kitchen) in French. So that’s why people were always giving me weird looks when we were introduced! I am actually changing it now, because I always hated it. So good on the government. Who the heck names their kid after a kitchen implement?

    • MonicaQ says:

      Seriously, I gave up with my first name. It’s impossible for people to get right so I just go by my middle name of Monica (or Q as that is on the back of my practice jersey). I blame my mother for this–my dad walked out moments after he signed the birth certificate so it’s not like he was there to give any input.

      We were at Starbucks and I gave my name as Monica and she threw alllllllll kinds of shade. “Oh, so it’s Monica now, huh?”

      Me: “Just wait.”

      ::goes to new Starbucks, says actual first name, it gets butchered on the cup and when it’s called out::

      Me: “That’s why. Thanks for that, by the way.”

      She had no idea, considering her name is Sophia what having a name like that can do.

      • TG says:

        I just make up fun names at Starbucks and other places that ask me my name. I don’t feel comfortable giving it out just to receive my coffee and actually think it is a weird request from businesses. I can’t really explain why I feel this way I just do.

      • Isadora says:

        You’ve made me incredibly curious for your first name… 😉

  3. len says:

    I like the name. If Wolf is a name then why not Bear. Also I think she looks amazing in that black dress with the soft hair.

  4. Sam says:

    I always have a weird reaction when people go back and forth with “odd” names. She has Mia (a very nice name), Joe (okay, his actual name is Joe, but still) and now Bear. It’s the same as Kerry Walsh, who had Joseph and Sundance. It makes you do a double-take. I’m all for odd and less well known names (and frankly, Bear isn’t even the oddest out there anymore) but when you have a family comprised of “normal” and “weird” names, it just seems off. Commit to weirdness, at least.

  5. GoodNamesAllTaken says:

    Cute interview. I like her. I’m not crazy about about Bear Blaze, but it’s not my baby, so…

    I love how she is a little chubby from the baby but beautiful.

  6. blue marie says:

    If I were him when I got old enough to choose I’d go by Blaze, that name is way cooler than Bear. His name as a whole brings to mind Smokey the Bear. Way to go Winslet, now every time I see you I will think “Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires”

    • LAK says:

      or BB Winslet.

    • manta says:

      It may be cooler but for me it brings out a strange association. Many years ago, a friend hooked me to the australian series McLeod’s Daughters and, for 2 or 3 seasons, one of the main characters had a mare named Blaze.
      Every time I hear Blaze I think horse ( and a female on at that)

  7. Virgilia Coriolanus says:

    I think that if you’re SO embarrassed by a dude’s last name, that you wouldn’t give it to your kid, then I think you should talk to him about getting it changed BEFORE you decide to make babies together.

    I still think that’s the ONLY reason that baby’s last name is Winslet. Because she’s embarrassed that she’s with a dude who legally changed his last name to ‘Rocknroll’…..not because she’s trying to make some kind of feminist statement.

    If I was her, I would’ve at least given the baby his original last name.

    • TG says:

      @VC – I agree with you and I think further that if that RocknRoll dude hadn’t been related to a Branson then Kate never would have even looked at him.

      • Virgilia Coriolanus says:

        That’s my feeling too. Plus, I kind of think that she wants a dude who’s going to be able to just drop stuff and be with her whenever she wants. Which might be different from being with Sam Mendes. But she also didn’t want to be embarrassed by marrying some kind of male model/obvious gigolo—so she picked one with family money so he wouldn’t spend all her sh-t either.

        Except he looks even more lazy AND weird.

    • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

      I think when I heard his last name was RockNRoll, I would have said, um, bye, so there never would have been a baby! Lol

      • Candy Love says:

        I would have been ok with the last name until I learned that he legally change his last name to that. Lol

      • Virgilia Coriolanus says:

        I would’ve made him change back, on the condition of us ever moving forward with the relationship–but then again, I wouldn’t date anyone who legally changed their name to something that stupid.

    • TG says:

      Good Point at @Virgilia regarding Kate wanting someone who will drop anything for her and has his own money even if she gains access to the Branson fortune. I guess that is actually the better way to go than to go the Julia Roberts route by marrying a guy who has no choice but to worship you if he wants a fabulous roof over his head.

  8. Jac says:

    Who cares what the kid’s name is? After givingbirth to my daughter earlier this year the nurse came in with paperwork and asked for her name, when I told her, the nurse actually looked taken aback and said “my…that’s very…normal! We don’t get a lot of names like that these days.”
    Times, they are a changin’.

    • Mika says:

      Most young parents these days seem to want their child’s name to be as special as they could possibly be; so much that correctly-spelled normal names seem to be a standout..

      • neelyo says:

        So true. I feel sorry for school teachers trying to do attendance with all of those special little snowflakes.

      • LadySlippers says:

        Attendance is the easy part of dealing with Special Snowflakes. It’s dealing with the kids that have been worshipped since fertilisation that stinks. And it’s only topped by dealing with their parents….

      • MarilynGray says:

        I always toyed with the idea of giving my future kids uncommon names because I thought they were beautiful and is nice to be the only kid in the class with your name.

        However, now that I’m working in a school in coming across some of these sorts of names (we had 2 Meadows last year, and a Phoenix this year in my class) and I can’t help but cringe a bit.
        Although most of all I don’t feel sorry for the teachers calling attendance, but for the kids themselves as they learn to spell and will then have to spell it out for others the rest of their lives. (It’s surprising enough the number of people who need help spelling my name Naomi. )

      • LadySlippers says:

        Or *saying* the name Naomi. I know because it my daughters name.

        My name is VERY common and Biblical and people still spell it 100 different ways. All wrong.

  9. Kristen says:

    I don’t have any comment about the name; everything I’d say has already been said above. But I think Kate is absolutely adorable in that interview.

  10. Celia says:

    I don’t have a problem with the name Bear, it’s cute imo. The Swedish version Bjorn is pretty common in Scandinavia.

  11. Lydia says:

    Ned RockNRoll is a dumb name. His IQ must be in the single digits.

  12. Gine says:

    I can’t help it–thinking of her and RockNRoll always makes me think of that episode of Friends where Phoebe wants to change her name to Princess Consuela Bananahammock and Mike agrees only if he gets to change his name to Crap Bag. You married Crap Bag, Kate!

  13. tifzlan says:

    I call my boyfriend ‘Bear’ sometimes as a “pet name.”

    That’s it. That’s my 2 cents to this story.

  14. maynot says:

    She is the evidente that there’s no need to be particularly smart to be a good actor.

  15. mzizkrizten says:

    I think the whole ‘weird name’ thing is out of date. Our ‘American’ names probably sound and look super odd to people of other cultures, just as the names popular in other cultures look and sound odd to me, simply because of unfamiliarity. Its whatever at this point. As a parent, I know the amount of thought and time and soul-searching that goes into naming your child, so I can’t throw shade at what other parent s chose.

  16. BestJess says:

    I have an unusual name (it’s no Pilot Inspektor but I’ve never met another person with the same one) and while it gets annoying having to spell it and answering to the very common name mine sort of sounds like because it’s often easier than correcting people, I’m still glad my parents gave it to me. I’d hate to have a boring one.

    If people don’t like their names they tend to just go by their middle name or choose another one entirely. My brother uses his third name, my mum uses a weird portmanteau of her many names and my Dad uses a entirely different name to the one on his birth certificate. It’s really no biggie.

    • Kleo says:

      Somewhat OT: Kate’s been getting a lot of flack these past few years about being married three times, but it was on this website a few years ago that some posters wrote that her first husband allegedly cheated on her and gave her an STD. There are also rumors that her second husband is allegedly gay:

      http://www.datalounge.com/cgi-bin/iowa/ajax.html?t=10833300#page:showThread,10833300

      Ned changed his name to something silly, but as long as he treats her and their children well that’s all that matters.

    • Tatjana says:

      In my country middle names are very rare, so you’re pretty much stuck with the first one.

  17. lucy2 says:

    I think the story about how they came to the name Bear is very cute actually…but I would have used it as a middle or nickname myself.

  18. Other Renee says:

    So she’s too embarrassed by Rocknroll then saddles him with the RIDICULOUS name Bear? I’m gonna guess the name was the Dad’s idea and she agreed to it provided she got to give him Winslet as the last name.

    Sorry but I have no patience for selfish stupid parents. When I named my daughter, I deliberately chose a name that would be cute for a child and dignified for an adult.

    • Suzy from Ontario says:

      I’m not a fan of the name she picked either but at least it’s better than Bear Blaze RocknRoll!

  19. Tulip says:

    With unusual celebrity baby names my one problem is this: it announces to the world that this kid is not meant to fill out a work application form. They merely have to look nice and exist.

    To be honest “Bear” is kind of sweet and is less of a shock than “Apple” was. That kid might get teased in high school by homophobes, though, so I hope they teach him to hold his own at an early age.

  20. cro-girl says:

    Yeah she should have named him Jayden/Braden/Cayden/Aiden just like everyone else!!

    • xadie says:

      Other than Aiden, these are also all modern, invented names. So yeah, she may as well have done, it’s no different, just more common.

  21. mimi says:

    Kate looks so beautiful in these pictures. I’m not crazy about the name they picked for their son only because the poor kid will probably get teased about it throughout his life.

  22. Irishserra says:

    Names are like clothes: How you wear it affects how people react to it. We’ve got a Bear in our family and nobody bats an eye when he is introduced. I personally like the name. I got so much flack from outsiders when I named my baby girl Hunter. I was surprised over it all. For the first few years of her life, she asked everyone to call her Jessie. Over time, she started to like her name and she is now the kick-ass woman I hoped she would be and Hunter fits her aptly.

  23. rlh says:

    A star on the Walk of Fame is a big deal. Where is Mr. RockNRoll? Shouldn’t he be there for such an occasion?

    • lucy2 says:

      In the interview she said it was too long a trip for the baby, so he stayed home with the baby.

  24. Stacy says:

    We gave our youngest the name Warrick James. We wanted a name that wasn’t common, but not unheard of. But when we were trying to figure out a middle name to go with it, my mom said if the first name was unusual/rare, to give him a “normal” middle name. So was born Warrick James.
    I have two older kids – Gavin Raine & Leslie Skye.
    My husband has an older child – Samara Rose.
    It’s all about what fits THEN. And as your kids get older (& you’re still having kids) some of it has to do with how the older kids react to their names. ***shrug*** My kids happen to love their names.

  25. Mrs.Krabapple says:

    She looks like Madonna now (not a compliment). It started after she worked on her face around 2009-2010.

    And she should just stop talking about her kids, period.

  26. Jayna says:

    I knew a woman that used to date a guy named Bear. He was a football player in college, big, fun guy that was good-looking and had a lot of friends, well-known in the community, very outdoorsy and athletic. They eventually married. His was a nickname from childhood but what he went by since then, even professionally in his business. It never seemed strange when you met him.

  27. A says:

    While I would NEVER marry someone who would willingly choose the last name RockNRoll, if you decide you’re willing to marry a man who would do that, you should accept the last name. It’s not like he sprung it on you as a surprise.

  28. Lulu says:

    I didn’t read all the comments, but just wanna add that in Scandinavia Bjørn or Björn (which means Bear) is a very common name. Hell one of the guys from Abba was named Björn.

  29. Ginger says:

    I too live it when Kate is curvier like these photos. She looks gorgeous!

  30. kibbles says:

    She looks great and has always looked better a bit chubby than slim. Her body type is naturally curvy and her breasts look amazing when she carries a few extra pounds. Her body was beautiful in her 20s, then, she started losing weight and becoming more mainstream “Hollywood”. Her face wasn’t as full and glowing when she was thinner and I noticed that her breasts had completely deflated and looked awful (watch The Reader). She is bound to lose some of the baby weight, but I hope she doesn’t go overboard with the weight loss like so many celebrities do after having a baby.

  31. Other Renee says:

    Ladyslippers, but the name Dov is a very common Hebrew name especially in Israel (I lived there). It’s accepted and no one is going to make fun of a kid with that name. Bear Winslet is going to made fun of. A lot. Why do that to a kid?

    • LadySlippers says:

      I know it’s pretty popular in Israel. I actually adore several Israeli names (including Dov) but didn’t want that for my kids in case they emigrated. So I choose not very popular Jewish names in either Israel or the USA for my kids.

      And super jealous you lived in Israel. Where? How long? And do you miss it?

  32. dorothy says:

    I like Winslet, but think she’s a little strange. Kids with 3 different fathers. I get the impression she’s in love with the idea of love. Go ahead judge me. But if a woman lived next door to you that had kids by 3 different fathers you would roll your eyes. Be honest, you would.

  33. Andrea says:

    I like her, always have, always will. I will admit, it bothers me that she seems the need to marry and have a kid with every boyfriend lately..But my BIG question is this, wasn’t she with the model guy during the house fire and that’s when she met her husband? Sounds like something I would have done/cough, have done!

    • valiantgirl says:

      I like her too! Always have. She’s been my girl crush for years. And yes- she was with the mode when they met and promptly dumped him for Ned! As fir her marrying a lot. Eh- I give her a pass. Angelina Jolie ( who I adore) has been married twice. As have tons of others in Hollywood. It’s not a rarity .

  34. Wren says:

    I know a Bear and a Dov. At first I thought Bear was a bit silly but now the little boy is one and I’ve changed position, i think it suits him completely. Also I think it’s a very masculine sounding name. His brothers have equally unusual names so it fits in the family. I agree it’s all cultural, I’m in Australia and my sons have old fashioned names which is quite the norm here.

  35. valiantgirl says:

    Maybe it’s because I have a rather rare name (at least here in the States) that I don’t feel as judgmental about unique names. Don’t get me wrong- naming your kid Inspektor Pilot is a bit nuts since they will have to grow up with that. But Bear isn’t so bad. I a actually kind of like it – it definitely has a hippie vibe to it. And as for her marrying a man with that last name- it is what it is. She fell in love with him and it would’ve been silly imo to not be with him because of his name. She’s just smart enough to know not to give it to her kid.

  36. Jadzia says:

    Even though, as some smart person stated above, this kid is probably never going to be hurting for money, who’s to say that he won’t want to make his own way in life? I think saddling him with such a ridiculous name is incredibly selfish and LOOKATME.

    Signed, somebody whose own selfish parents gave her a ridiculous first name (and at age 43, I am finally getting it legally changed)