Keri Russell On ‘Creative’ Celebrity Baby Names
 Ramey |
The year 2008 yielded an abundance of unusual celebrity baby names, and actress Keri Russell has a few theories why. The 32-year-old actress muses to CNN that the “unusual life” led by entertainers is most likely to thank. “I mean…they tend to be creative people, and maybe people are more creative with their names, too,” she explains. “Or [they] feel like they don’t have to be so confined to tradition because it’s such an nontraditional line of work.” That she and husband Shane Deary chose an unusual name for their own son — 18 ½-month-old River Russell — may not make sense to everyone, but it makes sense for their family. Adds Keri,
“It was a name we like, and my husband grew up on Martha’s Vineyard. [There were] a lot of sort of unusual hippie names, so we thought we could get away with it.”
Her new film Bedtime Stories — co-starring Adam Sandler — involves bedtime stories that come true, but at home Keri says that bedtime stories with River rarely make it to ‘The End!’ “He’s too squiggly and little for that right now,” she says. “We do read [him] books, and he has his favorites, but right now it’s very much like ‘Read this one, read this one.’”
“We read the first two pages, then he’s like, ‘And now this one.’ I’m like, ‘But we haven’t gotten to the best part! Let me finish.’ It’s a lot of that.”
Bedtime Stories is in theaters now.
Source: CNN
- Posted on Jan 4, 09 at 5:00PM
- Permalink
- 14 Comments
January 4th, 2009 at 6:21 pm
What I like about the name River is, it’s unusual and kind of hippie-ish, yes, but it’s definitely not off-the-wall.
River is such a cutie! I had no idea he’s as old as he is!
January 4th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
When she named her son River, I guessed that she might have thought of River Phoenix. He was a terrific actor who died in 1993 when he was only 23 years old. I’m sure they probably didn’t know each other but maybe he was kind of inspiring to her because he was such a good actor. River is an awesome name too. You have to have a good last name to go with it so it flows. River Russell is perfect.
January 4th, 2009 at 6:37 pm
River is my eldest son’s name and although, at first, people scratched their heads when they heard it, I can’t think of a name that fits him better.
Her little guy is such a cutie! My youngest is 19 months and, like her son, does not have the attention span to sit and get through an entire book. Most of the time, we end up reading the first two pages of six or seven books.
January 4th, 2009 at 6:59 pm
I love the name River!
actually I love hippie names^^
January 4th, 2009 at 7:10 pm
her comment about reading stories is sooo true. i have a 12 month old son who never sits still long enough to hear the end of a story (unless it s a touch and feel book). i find myself frequently reading to the end of the story as my son crawls away from me. he does look back at me and gives me this puzzling look like “why is she still reading? doesn’t she realize that i left?”
river is such a cutie. keri and her husband seem like excellent parents. i wish their family all the best.
January 4th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
I don’t think River is so unusual; it’s nice, peaceful, and is not bully-fodder. Unlike others…like Peanut…:) I like hippy names too, especially when they are paired with more classic sounding names. River Russell sounds good together.
January 4th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
Keri is awesome and I’ve got to say I really love the name River. It’s a bit unusual and “hippie-ish” yet still not too out there.
January 4th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
I think we need a new pic of Keri and River. This one has been used a lot lately! lol
January 4th, 2009 at 8:12 pm
I like the name River.I knew a boy in school whose middle name was Breeze.Thats weird.
January 4th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
i think River is a cool name. not that unusual. as far as celeb baby names go, hers is on the milder side lol!
January 5th, 2009 at 11:51 am
River is definitely becoming a more popular name. And I know two girls named River! So it will probably become a unisex name.
January 5th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
My son does the exact same thing with books! He’s 15 months grabs a different book after 2 pages.
You can tell they spend a lot of time with their child.
I love the name River and don’t think it is unusual or even hippie.
January 5th, 2009 at 7:52 pm
River is a cute name:) I like it as my uncle’ name..Nothing wrong with that name:) It sounds great and it has a brilliant meaning for the couple:)
January 5th, 2009 at 10:05 pm
I can’t believe, I went to school with her husband Shane, we both rode the same school bus together. His name sounded familiar when I read a celebrity magazine, but when she mentioned the Vineyard it was the same Shane. Small world!