Joey Lawrence and brothers Matthew Lawrence and Andrew Lawrence stunned followers after they revealed their actual final title.
On Friday, Joey, 48, Matthew, 45, and Andrew, 37, whose authorized final title is Mignogna, appeared on a panel at 90s Con, the place they recalled why all of them adopted “Lawrence” as their stage title after they rose to fame as youngster stars.
“It was my middle name,” Joey, who was born Joseph Lawrence Mignogna, stated through Leisure Weekly.
“So, I was named after our dad, and our grandfather on our dad’s side. And in the early ’80s, it was like, ‘No one can pronounce Mignogna. That’s not a name people will say.’”
“Today, things like that are celebrated,” the “Blossom” star continued.
“Within the ’80s, it was like, ‘We’re going to wish to water this down. There are silent Gs.’
“Because you spell our last name [Mignogna] like filet mignon,’” Joey added.
“So, they were like, ‘Let’s call him Joey Lawrence.’ So that’s just what they did.”
Joey famous that “it just made sense” for Matthew and Andrew to make use of their brother’s pretend surname after they adopted in his footsteps and started working as youngster actors in Hollywood.
Matthew shared his view that the trio’s dad and mom, Joseph and Donna Mignogna, additionally noticed the benefit that utilizing a special final title would supply their kids.
“I also think my parents, and wisely so, [knew] there was an insulation factor, where, before the internet, you could hide behind that at, you know, at school,” Matthew stated.
“Some people might check in old-school ways, but it would be very, very hard to find us,” he added.
“That was a great thing.”
Nonetheless, the brothers agreed they now want they hadn’t used Lawrence as their final title as an alternative of Mignogna.
“It would have made it easier,” Andrew stated.
“It’s really a pain in the butt, honestly, having two names. You have to prove you’re both people.”
Matthew defined that he had additionally encountered difficulties as a result of title change.
“Now I’m just stuck with two different names, and I can’t travel internationally,” he stated.
“For a while there, the government only recognized me as Matt Lawrence because I paid taxes from the time I was a toddler to 18 as Matt Lawrence.”
“But, really, my name is Matthew William Mignogna,” Matthew added.
“So, when I grew up and used my real name on my passport, there was absolutely no correlation. I didn’t exist.”
Joey launched his profession on the age of 5 in 1981 when he appeared in a Cracker Jack business.
He made his breakthrough when he starred within the hit NBC sitcom “Gimme a Break!” from 1983 to 1987.
Joey grew to become a teen idol within the ’90s when he performed Joey Russo, the older brother of Blossom Russo (Mayim Bialik), within the hit NBC collection “Blossom.”
Matthew was 3 years outdated when he started performing after he was solid within the hit cleaning soap opera “Dynasty.”
Throughout the ’90s, he starred in quite a few TV reveals and flicks, together with taking part in Robin Williams’ son Chris in 1993’s “Mrs. Doubtfire” and Jack Hunter in “Boy Meets World.”
Andrew additionally entered the leisure business on the age of three, taking part in the youthful model of his brother Joey in “Blossom.”
He later voiced the lead character of T.J. Detweiler within the ’90s animated sitcom “Recess” in addition to the 2001 characteristic movie “Recess: School’s Out” and two direct-to-video motion pictures.
Joey, Matthew and Andrew starred collectively because the Roman brothers within the sitcom “Brotherly Love” for 2 seasons from 1995 to 1997.
The trio now host the “Brotherly Love Podcast,” which they launched in 2023.
